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Detroit Jr. Red Wings (OHL, 1993-94)

1993-94 Regular Season
      The Detroit Jr. Red Wings were in their fourth season of operation in the 1993-94 season. Owned by Detroit businessman Peter Karmanos, the OHL franchise played it's home games at Joe Louis Arena, home of the NHL's Detroit Red Wings (hence the name). By 1992-93 the team emerged as a contender in the OHL, finishing 37-22-7 in the Emms Division. Paul Maurice was head coach/general manager.

     The Jr. Red Wings continued to improve in 1993-94, winning the Emms Division with a 42-20-4 record. Their 88 points were 11 ahead of the second place Soo Greyhounds and nine points behind league-best North Bay. The Wings had the third best offense in the OHL that season, scoring 312 goals. Top scorer that year was Los Angeles Kings prospect (4th Round, 87th Overall in 1992) Kevin Brown, who scored a career best 54 goals and 135 points in 57 games. Another Kings prospect, Bob Wren (4th Round, 94th overall in 1993) had 45 goals and 109 points in 57 games. Dallas Stars prospect Todd Harvey (1st Round, 9th Overall in 1993) had 34 goals and 85 points in 49 games. Sean Haggerty was the other player with at least 30 goals, scoring 31 goals and 63 points in 60 games. 

     The Jr. Wings were just as good on defense, allowing 237 goals, third-fewest in the OHL. The team used three goaltenders that season. Jason Staal, a 1993 Kings draft pick (5th Round, 117th Overall) played in 45 games, with a 28-11-3 record and 3.36 GAA. Quebec Nordiques prospect Aaron Ellis (11th Round, 244th Overall) played in 27 games, sporting a 14-9-1 record with a 3.71 GAA. Finally, Chris Mailloux played in 1 game, with a 6.00 GAA in 20:00 of relief. Saal and Ellis saw action in the postseason. Bill McAuley was the leading scorer on defense, with 18 goals and 57 points in 59 games. Eric Cairns was next with 7 goals and 42 points in 59 games.

     The Detroit Jr. Red Wings qualified for the OHL playoffs for the third straight season. They earned a bye into the second round, and faced Owen Sound. The Jr. Wings swept aside the Platers in four straight, outscoring them 22-15 in the process. They then faced the Soo Greyhounds in the Emms Division Finals. In a high-scoring series, the Jr. Wings defeated the Greyhounds in six games, outscoring them 33-22, to advance to their first-ever OHL Finals. Detroit went up against the North Bay Centennials and the series went the distance before the Cents won Game 7, 5-4 to win the J. Ross Robertson Cup.

     This program is 71 pages long, and is very similar to the Whalers program I posted earlier. Player bios, statistics from 1992-93, and the game log are included in this copy. I did go to a Jr. Red Wings game vs. Guelph, but I think it was during the 1992-93 season. I actually got this program from the Detroit Red Wings Fan Fest in 1994. The Jr. Wings had a table there and had three players signing autographs: Jason Saal, Dan Pawlaczyk and Bill McCauley. 

     Local advertisements include Compuware, Newport Sports Management, Zubor Buick, Harmony House, Gus Revenberg Pontiac Buick GMC and Merollis Chevrolet GEO. 


References:

Ontario Hockey League Season Statistics: 1993-94,  from hockeydb.com

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