History of Hockey (Part 19 of a series)

Allan Cup was unique accomplishment Though the Royals were playing well it was clear by mid-January that the N.S.H.L. was in trouble. Throughout the season there were objections by sports writers and from the Capitals and Mariners, the league's two least stacked teams, as to the number of imports on each team and the exorbitant salaries that some of them were getting.

On the Royals and Jets the average import was being paid roughly $500 a week just to play hockey and there were rumours that some top players were getting double that amount. Aside from the obviously dire financial repercussions this would have for each team if attendance declined there was a larger problem. The bigger west coast centres were pricing the Mariners out of the league.

Port aux Basques could not afford to pay such high amounts of money for imports so Corner Brook and Stephenville ended up with all the best players. In turn, the lopsided character of the league led to lowered overall attendance at all arenas. In Port aux Basques and St. John's, fans did not want to go and see their teams get humiliated, and in Corner Brook and Stephenville fans only went out to watch the Royals and Jets rivalry. The Capitals' organization, backed by the population of St. John's, could handle it but the Mariners could not. By Jan. 14, Port aux Basques had pulled out of the N.S.H.L.

Western Star sports columnist Dave White called the Herder race a "farce" saying:..the Mariners couldn't stack their shiney attitude (playing for the sake of playing) up against the well-worn credit ratings of the other teams (paying for the sake of winning), namely Stephenville Jets and Corner Brook Royals.

The sports page had an article asking the questions "Where have all the amateurs gone?" and "How can the N.S.H.L. survive?" on an almost daily basis. On one occasion two former presidents of the N.A.H.A., Vince Rossiter and Don Johnson, said publicly that the league's days were numbered. The league continued however and so did the practice of importing.

With the Mariners out, the regular season, as it was, had to be changed. A 24-game round robin playoff was decided on. After all of these matches had been played the top two teams would compete for the Herder. In the last leg of the campaign the Royals added some extra scoring punch by signing Tim Cranston, a former Royal in 83-84 who had been playing in Europe, and Mark Jeffries. The two west coast teams easily outpaced the Capitals and earned berths in the Herder finals for the third year in a row. In keeping with the trend of the previous two years the league's rookie of the year award was given to a Corner Brook player.

Ken Mercer earned that piece of silverware and Robbie Forbes easily captured the scoring title finishing a full 20 points ahead of his nearest rival. Dave Matte was the biggest individual winner copping the league's top goalie award and the overall most valuable player. The 84-85 Royals were likewise honoured. They won the province's sports team of the year award for their performance in the Allan Cup playoffs.

The final series kicked off in Stephenville because of the Jets' first place finish and the teams split the first two games thanks to an overtime goal by Forbes in game two. Back in Humber Gardens for games three and four, the Royals took a commanding three games to one lead by edging the Jets two nights in a row. The Jets organization filed a protest of game four because they believed that Matte should have been ejected for his role in a mid-ice altercation but it was not upheld by the N.A.H.A. Stephenville won game five on their home ice and the scene shifted once more to Corner Brook.

The 1986 Allan Cup Champion Corner Brook Royals

In the sixth contest on March 23, the Royals took their eight Herder Memorial Trophy even though they had blown a five to nothing lead. It was the first time in over 50 years of competition for the Herder that Corner Brook had won back to back titles. The team were assured of another shot at the Allan Cup but their first opponents were not decided until the end of the first week in April. Cal Dunville, Sheldon Currie, Steve McKenzie, and Danny Longe were picked up from the Jets and Gus Greco from the Capitals also joined the squad. The C.B.H.A. arranged a couple of exhibition matches with the Halifax Blues of the Nova Scotia Senior Hockey League in order to acquaint the new teammates with the Royals style and keep their players in shape, but Corner Brook met with little opposition. They routed the Blues in both games.

By the middle of April. the Royals were in Brantford, Ont., fighting the Flamboro Motts' Clamatos in the best four of seven Bolton Memorial Trophy, Eastern Canadian finals. Flamboro, a rural township in Ontario, had only 25,000 residents spread over a great distance but their hockey team boasted a strong lineup including several ex-NHLers. The series had to be held in Brantford because the Flamboro arena was not big enough to handle the large crowds, roughly half of which were transplanted Newfoundlanders out to cheer on their island favourite. Neither team really had home ice advantage and the Royals took game one and an early series lead. However, Flamboro was not about to roll over and die as had the Tigers the year before.

The next two matches were won by the Motts' Clamatos and the series shifted in their favour. Game four ended in a hard fought victory for the Royals, but costly penalties were the main reason for their loss two nights later. Facing the unspeakable, the pride of the island rallied in a nail-biting game six to tie the series at three games apiece and force a seventh and deciding game. Mike Anderson spoke for himself, his players, and all Newfoundland hockey fans when, after game six, he said, "God bless the nerves." Fortunately, the Royals jumped out to an early lead and never looked back. They won the contest 8-4 and were named Eastern Canadian champions for the second consecutive year. For a team from a small city in Newfoundland to achieve such consistency on a national level was amazing.
The victory did not come easy however.

Quick and capable Tim Cranston had his hand bitten, requiring stitches, in a skirmish earlier in the series and he played the final games with two broken bones in his right wrist. Also, the forward line of Todd Stark, Tony Cuomo, and Ken Mercer were so bruised and battered that they needed pain-killing injections before each contest. These were just the major injuries on the team. Almost all of the players had gotten hurt one way or another but they had to keep up their intensity level. The season was not over. The Royals were determined to win the Allan Cup and they were only four wins away. Their final obstacle were the Nelson (British Columbia) Maple Leafs, a squad rumored to be fast, big, and rough. Not exactly what the doctor ordered.

However, what the Royals did not know at that time was that the Leafs were depleted by injuries as well. In the first match at the Nelson Civic Centre the Royals edged the Maple Leafs 6-4 behind two goal performances by the injured Cranston and Steve McKenzie. Game two was closer. Robbie Forbes' goal midway through the third period proved to be the winner in the 6-5 barnburner. The third contest in as many nights proved to be an easier victory for the Royals. Anderson said after the game that the team was actually getting better every outing. Todd Stark paced the team with four goals in the 5-2 win, and Dave Matte turned in his usual excellent performance to take a three games to none series lead; all too familiar territory for fans of the team. The Royals made sure history did not repeat itself in game four on April 29. The Royals won the game, and the coveted Allan Cup, by a score of 7-0.