Ontario Hockey League

From The UCSC Wikipedia Trust Project

Ontario Hockey League

Founded	1980
Head Office	Scarborough, Ontario
Official Web site	O.H.L.
Commissioner	David Branch
Hockey Operations	Ted Baker
Finances	Ray Hollowell
Administration	Herb Morell
Referee-in-Chief	Ted Baker
Chief Scout	Rob Kitamura
Publications	Aaron Bell
Current Champions	Peterborough Petes

OHL All-Star Game 2006 Opening Face Off.
Game played in Belleville's Yardmen Arena.
February 1st, 2006.

The Ontario Hockey League is one of the three Major Junior "A" Tier I ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The league is for players aged 15-20.

In 1980, the Ontario Hockey League was born with the renaming of the "Ontario Major Junior Hockey League." Previously the OMJHL officially separated from the Ontario Hockey Association in 1974.

David Branch has been the only Commissioner of the OHL from this time. Since 1980 the league has grown rapidly into a high profile marketable product, with many games broadcast on television and radio.

There are currently 20 teams in the OHL; 17 are based in Ontario, 2 teams in Michigan and 1 team in Pennsylvania. The league is often referred to as the "O".

1 History
2 Member teams
3 Schedule
4 Memorial Cup champions
5 Priority Selection
6 Trophies and awards
7 See also
8 External links

History

Template:MainThe Ontario Hockey League began as the Ontario Hockey Association in 1896. Since then it has undergone four major eras of distinction in levels of junior hockey.

The OHA started with a senior and a junior division in 1896. In 1933, the junior division was divided into two levels, junior A and junior B. In 1972 the upper level was divided into two more levels, Tier I and Tier II. In 1974 the "Major Junior A Tier I" portion of the OHA separated and became the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League. In the 1980, the OMJHL became the "Ontario Hockey League."

Member teams

A map of the OHL teams' home cities.

;Eastern Conference :East Division

:Central Division

;Western Conference :Midwest Division

:West Division

Schedule

The 20 OHL clubs play a 68 game unbalanced schedule, which starts in the third full week of September, running until the third week of March. Ninety per cent (90%) of OHL games are scheduled between Thursday and Sunday to minimize the number of school days missed for its players. Ninety-five per cent (95%) of the players in the league are attending high school or college.

Approximately 20% of players on active rosters in the National Hockey League have come from the OHL, and about 54% of NHL players are alumni of the Canadian Hockey League.

2006-07 OHL season

Template:MainThe current OHL season commenced on September 21, 2006. The OHL announced on the same day, a new rule entitled Checking to the Head effective immediately. [1]. Also announced, the recently adopted National Hockey League rule on stick curvature will not be implemented until next season.

Bell OHL All-Star Classic

Template:MainTemplate:SeealsoThe 2007 OHL All-Star Classic was played January 31, 2007, in Saginaw, Michigan. It was the first OHL All-Star game played outside of Canada. The annual event features the best players from the Eastern and Western conferences playing against each other, and a skills competition on the night before the game. The 2008 game will be hosted at the Steelback Centre in Sault Ste. Marie.

OHL Playoffs and Memorial Cup

The J. Ross Robertson Cup is awarded annually to the winner of the Ontario Hockey League Championship Series. The Cup is named for John Ross Robertson, who was president of the Ontario Hockey Association from 1901 to 1905.

The OHL playoffs consist of the top 16 teams in the league, 8 from each conference. The teams play a best-of-7 game series, and the winner of each series advances to the next round. The final two teams eventually compete for the J. Ross Robertson Cup.

The OHL champion then competes with the winners of the Western Hockey League, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, and the host of the tournament to play for the Memorial Cup, which is awarded to the junior hockey champions of Canada. The host team of the tournament is alternated between the three leagues every season. This year's tournament is hosted by the Vancouver Giants of the WHL.

Memorial Cup champions

The Memorial Cup has been captured 12 times by OHL/OHA teams since the tournament went to a 3-league format in 1972:

The Cup was also won 16 times by OHA teams in the period between 1945 and 1971:

Priority Selection

The Priority Selection was first conducted the summer before the 1974-75 OMJHL season. It has been conducted annually since then. It is a selection of players aged 16 and 17 years old who are residents of the province of Ontario, the states of Michigan and Pennsylvania, and other designated U.S. states.

Prior to 2002, the OHL held the Priority Selection in a public forum, such as an arena. Drafts were attened by many players and family members. In 2003 the OHL decided to hold the "draft" via the Internet, greatly reducing the costs the league and its member teams incurred in hosting a public draft. This move reduced the stress and pressure that prospective players faced with a large crowd present.

The Jack Ferguson Award is presented annually to the first overall selection . The award was named in honour of long time OHL scout and former Director of Central Scouting, Jack Ferguson.

:See 2006-07 OHL season for the complete first round list.