The 2023–24 CCHL season was the 63rd season of the Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL). The Navan Grads won the league championship Bogart Cup for the first time in the franchise's 28-year history and went on to compete at the 2024 Centennial Cup national championship tournament in Oakville, Ontario.
Season highlights
League commissioner Kevin Abrams resigned at the end of the 2022–23 CCHL season after serving for 17 years in the role. Sean Marcellus, who was appointed as interim commissioner in June 2023, resigned in April 2024 and took up the position of director of hockey operations for the Eastern Ontario Junior Hockey League.
The Navan Grads won the league championship Bogart Cup for the first time in the franchise's 28-year history. The team's goaltender, Jaeden Nelson, received the league's top rookie, top prospect and top goaltender awards. He went on to receive the top goaltender award at the 2024 Centennial Cup national championship tournament.
Awards
Most Valuable Player: Jace Letourneau (Renfrew Wolves)
Top Rookie: Jaeden Nelson (Navan Grads)
Outstanding Defenceman: Xavier Laurent (Rockland Nationals)
Sportsmanship/ability award: Kyle Leonard (Rockland Nationals)
Top Prospect: Jaeden Nelson (Navan Grads)
Outstanding graduating player: Shamus Stevenson (Smiths Falls Bears)
Arthur K. Nielsen scholarship award: Bill Gourgon (Carleton Place Canadians)
Scoring champion: Jace Letourneau (Renfrew Wolves)
Top Goaltender: Jaeden Nelson (Navan Grads)
Top Coach: Marty Abrams (Navan Grads)
Top General Manager: Pat Malloy (Smiths Falls Bears)
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Regular season
The regular season opened on 14 September 2023 and ran until 17 March 2024. Each team played 55 games, playing against each opponent 5 times. While teams were nominally assigned to either the Robinson division or the Yzerman division, the top 8 teams overall advanced to the playoffs regardless of their division assignment.
1 Navan Grads 55 41 9 3 2 235 144 87 2 Smiths Falls Bears 55 36 15 1 3 193 128 76 3 Cornwall Colts 55 33 17 1 4 201 143 71 4 Rockland Nationals 55 32 19 3 1 202 175 68 5 Renfrew Wolves 55 32 20 3 0 233 201 67 6 Hawkesbury Hawks 55 27 22 3 3 179 179 60 7 Carleton Place Canadians 55 28 24 3 0 175 191 59 8 Pembroke Lumber Kings 55 24 24 5 2 146 179 55 9 Kemptville 73's 55 25 26 1 3 160 170 54 10 Ottawa Jr. Senators 55 24 28 3 0 146 172 51 11 Nepean Raiders 55 20 28 5 2 152 204 47 12 Brockville Braves 55 8 40 5 2 136 272 23
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Post-season
The Navan Grads defeated the Pembroke Lumber Kings, Rockland Nationals, and finally the Smiths Falls Bears to win the league championship Bogart Cup for the first time in the franchise's 28-year history. The Grads went on to represent the league at the 2024 Centennial Cup national championship tournament in Oakville, Ontario.
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First round: Navan vs. Pembroke
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First round: Rockland vs. Renfrew
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First round: Smiths Falls vs. Carleton Place
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First round: Cornwall vs. Hawkesbury
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Semifinal: Navan vs. Rockland
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Semifinal: Smiths Falls vs. Cornwall
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Final: Navan vs. Smiths Falls
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National championship
The 2024 Centennial Cup national championship tournament took place at the Sixteen Mile Sports Complex in Oakville, Ontario from 9 – 19 May 2024. The competition included all nine CJHL champions; the Calgary Canucks of the AJHL; the Melfort Mustangs of the SJHL; the Winkler Flyers of the MJHL; the Sioux Lookout Bombers of the SIJHL; the Greater Sudbury Cubs of the NOJHL; the Collingwood Blues of the OJHL; the Navan Grads of the CCHL; the Collège Français de Longueuil of the QJHL; the Miramichi Timberwolves of the MHL; and hosts the Oakville Blades of the OJHL.
The Navan Grads recorded two wins and two losses in the preliminary round. They then advanced to the quarterfinals where they lost to the Miramichi Timberwolves by a score of 8-4 and were eliminated from competition.
Round Robin
The top 3 teams from each group advanced to the playoffs, and the 1st place teams in each group had a bye to the semifinals.
Playoffs
The Collingwood Blues won the tournament after defeating the Miramichi Timberwolves by a score of 5-2 in the semifinals, and the Melfort Mustangs by a score of 1-0 in the final.
References
Sources
External links
Official website of the Central Canadian Hockey League
Official website of the Canadian Junior Hockey League