2007 AIHL season
Encyclopedia
The 2007 AIHL season was the 8th season of the Australian Ice Hockey League
, the 6th in which the Goodall Cup
will be awarded to the league champions.
The season opened on 14 April 2007 with the traditional double-header between the Melbourne Ice
and the Adelaide Avalanche
. Melbourne won both games, 6-1 on Saturday and 5-4 on Sunday, to sweep the opening series for the first time in team history.
Adelaide and Melbourne were most evenly placed throughout the season to claim the top position, Adelaide eventually moving past the Ice in the final round to claim the V.I.P. Cup
. Newcastle and the Bears had opened up a substantial gap between themselves and fifth position; Brisbane, with double points wins on the road in Adelaide and Melbourne, got themselves into a position to steal fourth place from the Bears, but lost its final game 6-7 to the Knights.
at 11:26. They opened up a 2-0 lead through Warren Jayawardene at 6:12 in the third period, but AIHL leading scorer Brad Wanchulak
narrowed the margin back to 2-1 only 39 seconds later. From that point, the game shifted Newcastle's way, with the Northstars doing all of the attacking, and the Bears looking increasingly shaky under the sustained pressure. The Bears' Murray Wand was penalised for holding the stick with 2:59 remaining, and Newcastle eventually tied the game with a power play goal to Darcy Corcoran with 1:45 remaining. Wand took another penalty with 1:28 remaining, but the Northstars did not score and the game went to overtime. After 5½ minutes of overtime, Northstars' goaltender Matt Ezzy was penalised for hooking; on that powerplay, the Bears scored the game-winner through a blue-line shot from Rob Pashminka.
The Bears won their first Goodall Cup
since 2002. Bears' goaltender Pekka Kankaanranta won the Playoffs' MVP award, for his return of 28 saves against Adelaide and 15 saves against Newcastle.
. While Powell ranked only tenth amongst scorers (23 games, 16 goals, 18 assists), he dominated Melbourne's attack during the first half of the season, when they were at their most successful.
Australian Ice Hockey League
The Australian Ice Hockey League is Australia's top-level ice hockey league. It is sanctioned by Ice Hockey Australia and is run by its own Board of Directors....
, the 6th in which the Goodall Cup
Goodall Cup
The Goodall Cup is the championship trophy of the Australian Ice Hockey League ice hockey in Australia. The Goodall Cup has been contested as the national senior men's ice hockey trophy in Australia since 1909, making it the fifth oldest known ice hockey trophy still being awarded, after the...
will be awarded to the league champions.
The season opened on 14 April 2007 with the traditional double-header between the Melbourne Ice
Melbourne Ice
The Melbourne Ice are a semi-professional ice hockey team in the Australian Ice Hockey League. The team plays its home games at the National Ice Sports Centre in Melbourne, which was completed in 2010. It formerly played at the Olympic Ice Skating Centre in Oakleigh South, a suburb of Monash...
and the Adelaide Avalanche
Adelaide Avalanche
The Adelaide Adrenaline are a semi-professional ice hockey team based in Thebarton, South Australia that play in the Australian Ice Hockey League .-History:...
. Melbourne won both games, 6-1 on Saturday and 5-4 on Sunday, to sweep the opening series for the first time in team history.
Adelaide and Melbourne were most evenly placed throughout the season to claim the top position, Adelaide eventually moving past the Ice in the final round to claim the V.I.P. Cup
V.I.P. Cup
The V.I.P. Cup is a retired trophy that was awarded to the minor premiers of each season in the Australian Ice Hockey League from 2004 to 2009; that is, the team that finishes first overall in the standings at the end of the regular season. The trophy is named for its sponsor, V.I.P...
. Newcastle and the Bears had opened up a substantial gap between themselves and fifth position; Brisbane, with double points wins on the road in Adelaide and Melbourne, got themselves into a position to steal fourth place from the Bears, but lost its final game 6-7 to the Knights.
Standings
| Position | Team | GP | W | L | SOW | SOL | PTS | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adelaide Avalanche Adelaide Avalanche The Adelaide Adrenaline are a semi-professional ice hockey team based in Thebarton, South Australia that play in the Australian Ice Hockey League .-History:... |
28 | 17 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 56 | 101 | 78 |
| 2 | Melbourne Ice Melbourne Ice The Melbourne Ice are a semi-professional ice hockey team in the Australian Ice Hockey League. The team plays its home games at the National Ice Sports Centre in Melbourne, which was completed in 2010. It formerly played at the Olympic Ice Skating Centre in Oakleigh South, a suburb of Monash... |
28 | 14 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 53 | 92 | 69 |
| 3 | Newcastle North Stars Newcastle North Stars The Newcastle North Stars are a semi-professional ice hockey team in the Australian Ice Hockey League. The team plays its home games at the Hunter Ice Skating Stadium in Warners Bay, a suburb of Lake Macquarie located about 15 kilometres south-west of Newcastle, New South Wales.The North Stars... |
28 | 13 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 52 | 106 | 87 |
| 4 | Bears | 28 | 14 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 49* | 112 | 84 |
| 5 | Brisbane Blue Tongues Brisbane Blue Tongues The Bartercard Gold Coast Blue Tongues, formerly known as the Brisbane Blue Tongues are a semi-professional ice hockey team in the Australian Ice Hockey League. The team plays its home games at the Iceland in Bundall, Gold Coast, Queensland.-History:... |
28 | 15 | 9 | 0 | 4 | 46* | 107 | 101 |
| 6 | Western Sydney Ice Dogs Western Sydney Ice Dogs The Sydney Ice Dogs are a semi-professional ice hockey team in the Australian Ice Hockey League... |
28 | 10 | 10 | 7 | 1 | 42* | 105 | 93 |
| 7 | Canberra Knights Canberra Knights The Canberra Knights are a semi-professional ice hockey team in the Australian Ice Hockey League. The team plays its home games at the Phillip Swimming & Ice Skating Centre in Phillip, a suburb of Australia's capital city, Canberra.... |
28 | 6 | 20 | 0 | 2 | 20 | 84 | 124 |
| 8 | Central Coast Rhinos Central Coast Rhinos The Central Coast Rhinos are a semi-professional ice hockey team based in Erina, New South Wales, Australia that play in the Australian International Ice Hockey Cup. They are a former member Australian Ice Hockey League, playing in the league from 2005 to 2008... |
28 | 2 | 24 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 71 | 142 |
Playoffs
The playoffs were held at the Penrith Ice Palace, the Bears' home ice, on September 1-2. The Bears beat the Avalanche in their semi-final by the score of 4-1, and Newcastle eliminated the Ice in a semi-final for the second straight year, this time winning 3-6.Championship Game
The championship game was held on September 2, 2007 between the Bears and Northstars. Other than an early scoreless powerplay dominated by the Bears, the first period was even and tentative, with the score 0-0 at the first intermission. A faster second period saw the Bears take some ascendency, and they eventually scored through Vladimir RubesVladimir Rubes
Vladimir Rubes is an Australian ice hockey player and coach. He is currently plays for and coaches the Sydney Bears of the Australian Ice Hockey League and is the current head coach of the Australian men's national ice hockey team....
at 11:26. They opened up a 2-0 lead through Warren Jayawardene at 6:12 in the third period, but AIHL leading scorer Brad Wanchulak
Brad Wanchulak
Brad Wanchulak is the Vice President of Corporate Development with Petroleum service provider Poseidon Concepts Corporation and ex- professional ice hockey left winger. He played collegiately at the University of Notre Dame, where he double-majored in management consulting and psychology...
narrowed the margin back to 2-1 only 39 seconds later. From that point, the game shifted Newcastle's way, with the Northstars doing all of the attacking, and the Bears looking increasingly shaky under the sustained pressure. The Bears' Murray Wand was penalised for holding the stick with 2:59 remaining, and Newcastle eventually tied the game with a power play goal to Darcy Corcoran with 1:45 remaining. Wand took another penalty with 1:28 remaining, but the Northstars did not score and the game went to overtime. After 5½ minutes of overtime, Northstars' goaltender Matt Ezzy was penalised for hooking; on that powerplay, the Bears scored the game-winner through a blue-line shot from Rob Pashminka.
The Bears won their first Goodall Cup
Goodall Cup
The Goodall Cup is the championship trophy of the Australian Ice Hockey League ice hockey in Australia. The Goodall Cup has been contested as the national senior men's ice hockey trophy in Australia since 1909, making it the fifth oldest known ice hockey trophy still being awarded, after the...
since 2002. Bears' goaltender Pekka Kankaanranta won the Playoffs' MVP award, for his return of 28 saves against Adelaide and 15 saves against Newcastle.
AIHL MVP
The inaugural MVP award was presented to Tommy Powell of the Melbourne IceMelbourne Ice
The Melbourne Ice are a semi-professional ice hockey team in the Australian Ice Hockey League. The team plays its home games at the National Ice Sports Centre in Melbourne, which was completed in 2010. It formerly played at the Olympic Ice Skating Centre in Oakleigh South, a suburb of Monash...
. While Powell ranked only tenth amongst scorers (23 games, 16 goals, 18 assists), he dominated Melbourne's attack during the first half of the season, when they were at their most successful.
Leading Scorers
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | P |
| Brad Wanchulak Brad Wanchulak Brad Wanchulak is the Vice President of Corporate Development with Petroleum service provider Poseidon Concepts Corporation and ex- professional ice hockey left winger. He played collegiately at the University of Notre Dame, where he double-majored in management consulting and psychology... |
Newcastle Newcastle North Stars The Newcastle North Stars are a semi-professional ice hockey team in the Australian Ice Hockey League. The team plays its home games at the Hunter Ice Skating Stadium in Warners Bay, a suburb of Lake Macquarie located about 15 kilometres south-west of Newcastle, New South Wales.The North Stars... |
23 | 31 | 38 | 69 |
| Matt Amado | Brisbane Brisbane Blue Tongues The Bartercard Gold Coast Blue Tongues, formerly known as the Brisbane Blue Tongues are a semi-professional ice hockey team in the Australian Ice Hockey League. The team plays its home games at the Iceland in Bundall, Gold Coast, Queensland.-History:... |
20 | 39 | 23 | 62 |
| Tomas Landa | Bears | 25 | 20 | 42 | 62 |
| Greg Oddy | Adelaide Adelaide Avalanche The Adelaide Adrenaline are a semi-professional ice hockey team based in Thebarton, South Australia that play in the Australian Ice Hockey League .-History:... |
20 | 24 | 19 | 43 |
| Ryan Remillard | Adelaide Adelaide Avalanche The Adelaide Adrenaline are a semi-professional ice hockey team based in Thebarton, South Australia that play in the Australian Ice Hockey League .-History:... |
23 | 22 | 20 | 42 |
Leading Goaltenders
| Player | Team | Min | GA | GAA | SO | Sv% |
| Stu Denman | Melbourne Melbourne Ice The Melbourne Ice are a semi-professional ice hockey team in the Australian Ice Hockey League. The team plays its home games at the National Ice Sports Centre in Melbourne, which was completed in 2010. It formerly played at the Olympic Ice Skating Centre in Oakleigh South, a suburb of Monash... |
1035 | 66 | 2.87 | 1 | .876 |
| Pekka Kankaanranta | Bears | 1109 | 71 | 2.88 | 2 | .879 |
| Lanny Ramage | Western Sydney Western Sydney Ice Dogs The Sydney Ice Dogs are a semi-professional ice hockey team in the Australian Ice Hockey League... |
682 | 47 | 3.10 | 0 | .891 |