Barrie Colts facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Barrie Colts
City	Barrie, Ontario
League	Ontario Hockey League
Conference	Eastern
Division	Central
Founded	1946 (Jr. B.) May 6, 1995 (OHL)
Home arena	Sadlon Arena
Colours	Navy blue, yellow, red and white
General manager	Marty Williamson
Head coach	Marty Williamson
Website www.barriecolts.com

The Barrie Colts are an exciting junior ice hockey team! They play in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) and are based in Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Their home games are held at the Sadlon Arena.

The Colts joined the OHL in 1995. Before that, they played in other junior hockey leagues. A big moment for the team was in the 1999–2000 OHL season. They won the J. Ross Robertson Cup and even played in the 2000 Memorial Cup tournament!

What Trophies Have the Colts Won?

The Barrie Colts have won several important championships and division titles. These trophies show how well the team has played over the years.

OHL Championships

The OHL is the main league the Colts play in.

Memorial Cup

The Memorial Cup is one of the biggest trophies in Canadian junior hockey. It's a tournament where the champions from different leagues compete.

• 1999–2000—The Colts were finalists, meaning they made it to the championship game but didn't win, against the Rimouski Océanic.

J. Ross Robertson Cup

This is the championship trophy for the entire Ontario Hockey League. The Colts have won it once and been finalists three other times.

• 1999–2000—Champions! They won against the Plymouth Whalers.
• 2001–02—Finalists against the Erie Otters.
• 2009–10—Finalists against the Windsor Spitfires.
• 2012–13—Finalists against the London Knights.

Bobby Orr Trophy

This trophy is for winning the Eastern Conference Championship. The Colts have won it four times.

• 1999–2000—Champions against the Belleville Bulls.
• 2001–02—Champions against the Toronto St. Michael's Majors.
• 2005–06—Finalists against the Peterborough Petes.
• 2009–10—Champions against the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors.
• 2012–13—Champions against the Belleville Bulls.
• 2015-16—Finalists against the Niagara IceDogs.

Emms Trophy

The Emms Trophy is given to the team that finishes first in the Central Division. The Colts have won this title 8 times!

• 1998–99—105 Points (First in Eastern Conference)
• 1999–2000—93 Points (First in Eastern Conference)
• 2006–07—97 Points (First in Eastern Conference)
• 2009–10—116 Points (First in OHL)
• 2012–13—92 Points (Second in Eastern Conference)
• 2014–15—85 Points (Second in Eastern Conference)
• 2015–16—89 Points (Second in Eastern Conference)
• 2017-18—89 Points (Second in Eastern Conference)

Hamilton Spectator Trophy

This trophy goes to the team with the best record in the entire league.

• 2009–10—The Colts had an amazing 116 points! They finished with a record of 57 wins, 9 losses, and 2 overtime losses. They were ranked #1 in Canada for the last four weeks of that season.

OHA Jr. B Championships

Before joining the OHL, the Colts played in the Junior B league.

Sutherland Cup

This is the championship trophy for Junior 'B' hockey.

• 1934–35 and 1992–93—The Colts won the Sutherland Cup in these years.

Division Titles

The Colts also won several division titles in the Central Junior 'B' league.

• 1984–85, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1992–93

Who Are the Coaches?

A coach guides the team and helps players improve.

Bert Templeton was the very first coach for the OHL Colts. He also won the OHL Executive of the Year award in 1995–96 for his work as general manager. Templeton helped build the first Barrie Colts team that made the playoffs in their first season, which was a big achievement for a new team!

Here is a list of the Barrie Colts' coaches:

• 1995–1999 – Bert Templeton (4 seasons)
• 1999–2000 – Bill Stewart
• 2000–2004 – Bud Stefanski (4 seasons)
• 2004–2010 – Marty Williamson (6 seasons)
• 2010–2019 – Dale Hawerchuk (9 seasons)
• 2019–2020 – Warren Rychel (interim coach)
• 2020 – Todd Miller (interim coach)
• 2021–present – Marty Williamson

Who Are the General Managers?

The general manager (GM) is in charge of building the team, signing players, and making big decisions.

Here is a list of the Barrie Colts' general managers:

• 1995–1999 – Bert Templeton
• 1999–2000 – Bill Stewart
• 2000–2005 – Mike McCann
• 2005–2010 – Greg Carrigan
• 2011–2020 – Jason Ford
• 2021–present – Marty Williamson

Famous Players

Many talented players have played for the Barrie Colts! Some have even won special awards or gone on to play in the National Hockey League (NHL).

OHL Award Winners

These players won awards while playing in the OHL.

• 1995 – Daniel Tkaczuk – Jack Ferguson Award (This means he was the very first player picked in the OHL draft!)
• 1998–1999 – Brian Finley – OHL Goaltender of the Year
• 1998–1999 – Brian Finley – Wayne Gretzky 99 Award (Playoffs Most Valuable Player)
• 1998–1999 – Sheldon Keefe – Emms Family Award (Rookie of the year)
• 1999–2000 – Sheldon Keefe – Eddie Powers Memorial Trophy (Scoring champion, meaning he scored the most points)
• 1999-2000 - Sheldon Keefe – Jim Mahon Memorial Trophy (Top Scoring right winger)
• 2000 – Erik Reitz and Sheldon Keefe – Memorial Cup All-Star Team (They were chosen as top players at the Memorial Cup tournament)
• 2001–2002 – Erik Reitz – Max Kaminsky Trophy (Most outstanding defenceman)
• 2003–2004 – Paulo Colaiacovo – OHL Goaltender of the Year
• 2003–2004 – Bryan Little – Emms Family Award (Rookie of the year)
• 2009–2010 – Bryan Cameron – Leo Lalonde Memorial Trophy (Overage player of the year, for players who are older than the usual junior hockey age)
• 2011 – Aaron Ekblad – Jack Ferguson Award (First overall draft selection)
• 2011–2012 – Aaron Ekblad – Emms Family Award (Rookie of the year)
• 2013-2014 - Aaron Ekblad – Max Kaminsky Trophy (Most outstanding defenceman)
• 2014–2015 – Joseph Blandisi – Leo Lalonde Memorial Trophy (Overage player of the year)
• 2015-2016 – Kevin Labanc – Eddie Powers Memorial Trophy (Scoring champion)
• 2015-2016 - Kevin Labanc – Jim Mahon Memorial Trophy (Top scoring right winger)
• 2015–2016 – Kevin Labanc – Leo Lalonde Memorial Trophy (Overage player of the year)
• 2015–2016 – Michael Webster – Mickey Renaud Captain's Trophy (Leadership award)
• 2015–2016 – Mackenzie Blackwood – OHL Goaltender of the Year
• 2017 – Ryan Suzuki – Jack Ferguson Award (First overall draft selection)
• 2017-2018 – Aaron Luchuk – Eddie Powers Memorial Trophy (Scoring champion)
• 2017-2018 – Aaron Luchuk – Leo Lalonde Memorial Trophy (Overage player of the year)
• 2017-2018 – Andrei Svechnikov – Emms Family Award (Rookie of the year)
• 2022-2023 – Evan Vierling – William Hanley Trophy (Most Sportsmanlike Player)

CHL Award Winners

The CHL (Canadian Hockey League) is the umbrella organization for the OHL and other major junior leagues.

• 2017-2018 – Andrei Svechnikov – CHL Top Draft Prospect Award
• 2022-2023 – Evan Vierling – CHL Sportsman of the Year Award

Team Captains

The team captain is a leader on and off the ice. Here are some players who have been captains for the Barrie Colts:

NHL Alumni

Many former Barrie Colts players have gone on to play in the National Hockey League (NHL), the top professional hockey league! As of the 2022-23 NHL Season, 70 former Colts have played in the NHL.

Junior B Colts who played in the NHL

OHL Colts who played in the NHL

Uniforms and Logos

The Barrie Colts' logo features a fierce horse holding a hockey stick, surrounded by a horseshoe. The team's main colors are red, white, navy blue, and gold.

Their home uniforms are white with red, navy blue, and gold stripes. For away games, they wear navy blue uniforms with red, white, and gold trim. The team also used to have a third jersey that was red with white, navy blue, and gold accents.

For the 2007–08 season, the Colts introduced a new navy blue third jersey. It had white, red, and gold trim along the bottom, with the word "Colts" written diagonally across the front. In the 2009–10 season, the Colts started wearing the Rbk Edge uniforms with a new design.

Where Do the Colts Play?

The Colts have played in a few different arenas over the years.

The Barrie Colts played at the Barrie Arena during their Junior B and Junior A days. They also used it for part of their first OHL season. This arena was in downtown Barrie and was torn down in 2008.

The Barrie Molson Centre was finished during the 1995–96 season. Its design was so good that many new OHL arenas built after it used it as a model! The arena has a restaurant called the Horsepower Grill. It's located near Park Place and Highway 400.

This arena has been renamed a few times. It was called "The Barrie Colts Centre" for a while. Then, in 2021, it became the "Sadlon Arena" as part of a 10-year agreement.

See also

• List of ice hockey teams in Ontario