Brampton Battalion

Brampton Battalion
City:	Brampton, Ontario
League:	Ontario Hockey League
Conference:	Eastern
Division:	Central
Founded:	December 3, 1996
Home Arena:	Powerade Centre
Colors:	Olive, Yellow, Black, White
Head Coach:	Stan Butler
General Manager:	Stan Butler
Affiliate(s):	Bramalea Blues Brampton Capitals

The Barrie Colts applying pressure at the Brampton Battalion net, while visiting the Powerade Centre.

The Brampton Battalion are a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League. The team is based in Brampton, Ontario and started playing in 1998.

History

The Brampton Battalion were granted an expansion franchise on December 3, 1996. Major Junior A hockey had returned to Brampton since the Brampton 7Ups folded in 1963. Brampton was part of the return of major junior hockey to the Greater Toronto Area in the late 1990s that included the Mississauga IceDogs and the revived Toronto St. Michael's Majors. In 2005, team owner Scott Abbott was inducted into the Brampton Sports Hall of Fame for his work in building the franchise.[http://www.bramptonsports.ca/inductee.php?pk=111 [1]]

The Battalion name was chosen from community suggestions, and was also adopted by the competitive minor hockey program. Brampton is covered by local television Rogers Community Cable 10, and the local newspaper, The Brampton Guardian. The Battalion's secondary school educational programs are co-ordinated through Turner Fenton Secondary School.

Championships

The Battalion are in quest of their first J. Ross Robertson Cup and first Memorial Cup. The Battalion have won two division titles to date.

Emms Trophy
Central Division Champions

• 2002-03, 2005-06

Coaches

Stan Butler has been the only head coach and general manager in club history. He was appointed to the position in August of 1997. He is currently the second longest serving coach with the same team, second only to Brian Kilrea. Butler previously coached the Oshawa Generals, Prince George Cougars, and the Canada's National Under 18 team.

Players

Award Winners

• 1998 - Jay Harrison Jack Ferguson Award, First overall draft pick
• 1999-00 - Rostislav Klesla CHL Top Draft Prospect Award
• 2005-06 - Wojtek Wolski William Hanley Trophy, Most Sportsmanlike Player
• 2005-06 - Wojtek Wolski Red Tilson Trophy, Most Outstanding Player

NHL Alumni
The Brampton Battalion have 9 alumni that have graduated to play in the NHL.

Current Roster

as of Septemeber 27, 2007.

Goalies

• 1 -- Patrick Killeen (Carp, Ontario)
• 31 -- Bryan Pitton (Brampton, Ontario) ~ EDM 2006

Defencemen

• 2 -- Ken Peroff (Chisholm Township, Ontario)
• 3 -- Jaroslav Hertl (Prague, Czech Republic)
• 4 -- Ben Alvie (Richmond Hill, Ontario)
• 6 -- Brad Albert (Nepean, Ontario)
• 7 -- Alexander Eriksson (Umea, Sweden)
• 12 -- John de Gray (Markham, Ontario) ~ ANA 2006
• 24 -- Bobby Sanguinetti (Lumberton, New Jersey) ~ NYR 2006

Forwards

• 9 -- Matt Duchene (Haliburton, Ontario)
• 10 -- Conor O'Donnell (Hamilton, Ontario)
• 11 -- Scott Tanski (Burlington, Ontario)
• 14 -- Thomas Stajan (Mississauga, Ontario)
• 15 -- Luke Lynes (Ellicott City, Maryland) ~ WSH 2006
• 16 -- Graham McNabb (Minesing, Ontario)
• 17 -- Jason Dale (Pickering, Ontario)
• 18 -- Justin Levac (Garson, Ontario)
• 19 -- Cody Hodgson (Markham, Ontario)
• 20 -- Thomas Middup (Richmond Hill, Ontario)
• 21 -- Mike Lomas (Burlington, Ontario)
• 22 -- John Hughes (Whitby, Ontario)
• 23 -- Kyle DeCoste (London, Ontario)
• 25 -- Kevin Christmas (Hamilton, Ontario)
• 28 -- Luke VanMoerkerke (Tillsonburg, Ontario)

Team records

Yearly Results

Regular Season

Legend: T = Tie (2004-05 & previous), SL = Shoot Out Loss (2005-06 & onward)

Playoffs

• 1998-1999 Out of playoffs.
• 1999-2000 Lost to Erie Otters 4 games to 2 in conference quarter-finals.
• 2000-2001 Defeated Guelph Storm 4 games to 0 in conference quarter-finals.
  Lost to Erie Otters 4 games to 1 in conference semi-finals.
• 2001-2002 Out of playoffs.
• 2002-2003 Defeated Barrie Colts 4 games to 2 in conference quarter-finals.
  Lost to St. Michael's Majors 4 games to 1 in conference semi-finals.
• 2003-2004 Defeated Ottawa 67's 4 games to 3 in conference quarter-finals.
  Lost to St. Michael's Majors 4 games to 1 in conference semi-finals.
• 2004-2005 Lost to Sudbury Wolves 4 games to 2 in conference quarter-finals.
• 2005-2006 Defeated Belleville Bulls 4 games to 2 in conference quarter-finals.
  Lost to Barrie Colts 4 games to 1 in conference semi-finals.
• 2006-2007 Lost to Barrie Colts 4 games to 0 in conference quarter-finals.

Uniforms & Logos

The Battalion's uniform is primarily an army-like shade of olive green. The shoulders feature black bars, with white outlining, this is then further outlined in black. Evenly between the shoulder and elbow lie three military-style chevrons, connoting rank (here, sergeant) completing armed forces theme.

The logo itself, featuring their mascot, Sarge, gritting his teeth is also army olive green, a mix of yellow and beige, white, fleshish pinky-orange, black, and red. The name Battalion, emblazoned on their uniform is pure red, and is created in a way that it looks three-dimensional.

Uniform Colours: Olive Green, Yellow, Black and White

Logo Design: "A militant with an army hat with Battalion under the militant."

Cartoon Series

The Brampton Battalion cartoon characters.

The Brampton Battalion was also a series of comics created and produced by Kevin J. Johnston under the HoocLyne Entertainment banner. The characters were designed to be fun-loving and politically correct, and included all ages, sizes and races.

The comics appeared as four page shorts in the game-day programs and in the local newspaper, and their images were on the back of souvenir t-shirts. The stories depicted mascots the other Ontario Hockey League franchises as the antagonists in humorous situations.

Arena

The Brampton Battalion play out of the Powerade Centre, which was formerly known as the "Brampton Sports & Entertainment Centre." It is located on Kennedy Road, on the south-side of the city near the 407 ETR. This is a facility has one main arena, as well as three full size practice rinks on the north-east side, many baseball diamonds as part of the complex.

• Powerade Centre - The OHL Arena & Travel Guide

Capacity = 4,980

Ice Size = 200' x 85'

See also

• List of ice hockey teams in Ontario

External links

• www.battalionhockey.com Official web site
• Ontario Hockey League Official web site
• Canadian Hockey League Official web site

References

• "1", Brampton Sports Hall of Fame, Scott Abbott, retrieved May 18, 2006.

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