The Ontario Junior Hockey League playoffs begin next week. Here’s a profile of one of the most successful teams in league history – and the decades before the OJHL existed:
The St. Michael’s Buzzers junior hockey team has had plenty to celebrate over the years at storied St. Michael’s College School Arena in Toronto. (Photo by Tim Bates / OJHL Images)
By Ron Valentine
The St. Michael’s Buzzers did not make the playoffs in the 1984-85 season when they were in the Metro Junior B Hockey League.
The club has been embroiled in postseason action every campaign since that year, except for:
- the seasons 1989-90 and 1997-99 when the club did not ice a team and;
- in 2020-21 when COVID-19 caused the cancellation of all action.
Net total of playoff participation: 35 years.
For 23 of those terms, Rich Ricci has been behind the bench at first in the capacity of assistant coach under Chris DePiero and then that of GM/head coach starting in the 2006-07 season.
He has been there ever since, except for a two-year break when he was assistant coach and assistant general manager of the Ontario Hockey League’s Oshawa Generals.
Since the coach’s debut, well over 200 St. Mike’s players and staff have advanced to hockey scholarships in colleges and universities both in Canada and the United States as well as moving up to the Canadian Hockey League level and many have played at the NHL. Most notably and recently, the list includes the likes of Mitch Marner, Brendan and Reilly Smith, Jake Evans, Andrew Cogliano, Wojtek Wolski, Connor Brown, Lucas Lessio and Matt Halischuk.
Going back further turns up the names of Eric Lindros, Sean Burke, Gino Cavallini, Rod Seiling, Dave Keon, Rick Tocchet, Kevin Dineen, Ken Klee and many, many more. The rich history of the club is contained within the club’s expansive website which is a credit to the organization.
Cogliano in 2004-05, his second season with the club, set a club record of 102 points beating the previous mark of 96 in 2000-01 set by Vince Bellissimo, now head coach of the Toronto Patriots.
In more recent times, Brad Somers, the current team captain, led the way with 92 points in the 2021-22 campaign. On January 13, 2018 Cogliano had his NHL ‘iron man’ streak halted at 830 games when he was assessed a two-game suspension. He was playing at the time for the Anaheim Ducks. The 17-year veteran center, currently with the Colorado Avalanche, is closing in on 1.400 regular season and playoff appearances in the ‘show’.
Under the Buzzers logo the club won the Sutherland Cup in 1934, 1936, 1945, 1961, 1982, 1989. They were OPJHL playoff champions in 2005, 2006 and 2013. In 2005 and 2013 they were runners-up for the Dudley-Hewitt Cup. The team won division titles 2004, 2006, 2008, 2012 and 2013. After the 1989-90 season the Vaughan Raiders merged with the club. The organization also holds the OJHL record for most players, 29, named to Team Canada East. They have just passed the 1,500-win mark, accumulated since their inception in 1932-33.
Cameron Searles, currently playing for the University of Guelph Gryphons, was the club captain in the last two of his five seasons with the team, 2017–19. He amassed 292 regular season and playoff points during that time. “I loved my time as a Buzzer. It’s such an historic program and so many great players have gone through the system. I started off there as a 16-year-old and I was able to grow as a player and a person throughout my five years. I went from playing a few minutes a game to eventually setting a record for points, assists and games played. I could not have done this without my awesome teammates, which is a reflection of the program which has been built as sustained over so many years. Some of my favourite hockey memories are from playing with the Buzzers and I have no doubt that the program will continue to succeed. If you are a player just coming out of minor hockey and want to play for a team with an amazing track record of moving players on to college/university hockey as well as a lock for some playoff hockey then St. Mike’s is the place to be.
Coach Ricci: “For me St. Mike’s is my home. I grew up in the neighbourhood. Myself and my three elder brothers all played sports for the school. I got married at the school chapel. It’s been a fantastic journey for me. Vic Criscuolo has been behind the bench with me most of the time; he started before me in 1997, and we share the same hockey philosophy. We were best friends in high school. It’s not been easy for us to win major titles since we do little compared to other teams via the trade route. This season we started out with 15 rookies on our roster. Most of our players are recruited from GTHL under-16 and under-18 teams and it takes a while for them to adjust to the skill and compete levels in junior. The team has never been specifically built for short term events but we have still managed to win our share.”
“Andrew Cogliano graduated in 2005 and he created the road map for high-end players coming from our team at that time. It changed the landscape and what he has done at the NHL level has been remarkable and now in the twilight of his career he is still able to contribute for the Avalanche. Younger guys like Marner, the Smiths and Connor Brown have been able to follow in his footsteps. This season we have Jonathan Morello and David Green on the NHL Watch List.”
“I remember in my first season behind the bench we started off 0-10 and we managed to turn it around and continue the streak and this season we lost four of our first five games but managed to right the ship quickly and we have stayed in contention in what has been the closest race in the East for positions two through eight that I can remember. It’s possible more than two teams can be tied in points at the end of the season.”
“Hockey at the junior level has changed over the years, especially the overall skill level, but our philosophy has remained the same. On our teams, you have to earn your place.”
This season’s Buzzers’ captain Brandon Cohen, on the fringe of a 75-point season himself, added: “”I am super proud of our team for getting to where we are right now. There is still a lot of work to be done. Playing for St. Mike’s is an honour in itself because there is so much history in our organization and so many great players have benefitted from our program. Rich is an excellent coach who knows what it takes to win and he gets the best out of the players. I’m excited for our group for the playoffs. Great things are coming.”
Perhaps as well as celebrating 35 years of postseason play there may be more to come than that for the team this season. Stay tuned!
