2018 Allan Cup

The 2018 Allan Cup was a tournament to determine the men's senior hockey champion of Canada. The province of Saskatchewan was announced as the host branch in the fall of 2016. To be eligible to host the tournament a team would have to be registered at the Senior AAA level the previous season. The only team meeting that requirement was the Rosetown Red Wings. The team accepted the hosting responsibilities and were announced as host November 21, 2016. The event was held at the Saskcan Centre in Rosetown, Saskatchewan April 9-14 2018.



Atlantic Region
Due to the defending Herder Memorial Trophy champions not participating at the Senior AAA level the runner-up for the Herder were to take their place. The Atlantic Regional qualifying event was to be a round robin tournament held in Bouctouche, New Brunswick January 25-28, 2018 involving the Clarenville Caribous, Elsipogtog Hawks, and Montague Stallions. The top two teams from the round robin would play a single game for the Allan Cup berth on January 28th. But with the Clarenville Caribous withdrawal from the event it was changed to a best-of-three series to be held January 26-28 between Montague and Elsipogtog. The Montague Stallions would end up folding in December of 2017 and negate the need for a qualifying series.The Elsipogtog Hawks advance to the 2018 Allan Cup as the Atlantic Region representative.

Newfoundland and Labrador
By winning the 2017 Herder Memorial Trophy, The Harbour Grace Cee Bee Stars earned the right to represent the province for the 2018 Atlantic Region Allan Cup Qualifier. However, the team declined to compete at the Senior AAA level for 2017-18. However, both the Clarenville Caribous and the Grand Falls-Windsor Cataracts have both registered Senior AAA for the 2017-18 season. Based on the Central/West Senior Hockey League actually playing for the 2017-18 season the Clarenville Caribous would have been the provincial representative at the Atlantic Regional qualifying tournament in January 2018. However, it was announced that Hockey Newfoundland and Labrador had requested that the Clarenville Caribous not attend the Allan Cup qualifiers so that the leagues and the province would not be in a situation that would shorten the league and provincial playoffs which would cause the teams to lose money and make it so the teams were worse off financially. Due to the remoteness of the province from the rest of Canada it would be just about as expensive to travel to New Brunswick as it would be to travel to Saskatchewan. The province is therefor not having any teams participate in qualifying for the 2018 Allan Cup.

Prince Edward Island
The Montague Stallions have confirmed they will compete at the Senior AAA level for the 2017-18 season. They are a member of the New Brunswick based North East Senior Hockey League.

New Brunswick
The North East Senior Hockey League decided to do a similar method as Newfoundland and Labrador has been doing with the previous season provincial champion representing the province in Allan Cup qualifying. The Elsipogtog Hawks lost in the finals on the league playoffs for 2016-17 to the Montague Stallions who can not qualify for the Allan Cup via New Brunswick's playoffs. So the Elsipogtog Hawks will be the province's qualifier for the 2018 Atlantic Region Allan Cup Qualifier.

Nova Scotia
No team from Nova Scotia has registered at the Senior AAA level for 2017-18

Quebec (East) Region
The Quebec region did not have any teams commit to the Senior AAA level for 2017-18. The Laval Senior A Hockey League is the highest level Senior league in the province. The Ligue Nord-Américaine de Hockey is a semi-professional league and its teams are ineligible for Allan Cup play. The region's spot in the Allan Cup traditionally goes to the host branch of Saskatchewan.

Ontario Hockey Association
The only registered Senior AAA teams in the OHA region are the five active members of Allan Cup Hockey (Brantford Blast. Dundas Real McCoys, Hamilton Steelhawks, Stoney Creek Generals, and Whitby Dunlops). The league champion traditionally advances to provincial playoffs first against any other qualifying teams in the Ontario Hockey Federation and then against the Hockey Northwestern Ontario champion in the Renwick Cup and the regions spot in the Allan Cup. The winner of the Allan Cup Hockey playoffs was to play the Kenora Thistles for the Renwick Cup and to advance to the 2018 Allan Cup. With the Thistles folding in late September now the Allan Cup Hockey playoff champion Stoney Creek Generals advance directly to the 2018 Allan Cup.

Hockey Northwestern Ontario
The Kenora Thistles were supposed to return to play after sitting out the past two seasons. They were to play the champion of the Allan Cup Hockey playoffs for the Renwick Cup and a spot in the 2018 Allan Cup. However, the Thistles folded in late September and will not compete.

Manitoba
The Ile des Chenes North Stars and South East Prairie Thunder have confirmed they are playing at the Senior AAA level for 2017-18. The provincial representative/champion would at this point qualify for the 2018 Allan Cup as Western region representative as the two Saskatchewan Senior AAA teams qualify as the host team and the other in an unused Quebec spot. South East Prairie Thunder defeated the Ile des Chênes North Stars three games to none to win the Pattison Cup and qualified for the 2018 Allan Cup.

Saskatchewan
The Rosetown Red Wings qualify for the 2018 Allan Cup as host team.

The Bethune Bulldogs have announced they are participating at the Senior AAA level for 2017-18. '''The Bethune Bulldogs qualify for the 2018 Allan Cup via the unused Quebec spot. ''' The Saskatchewan Hockey Association is still scheduled to have a provincial tournament to determine the Province's Senior AAA champion.

Alberta
The four Alberta based members of the newly renamed Allan Cup Hockey West (formerly the Chinook Hockey League) were all registered at the Senior AAA level for 2017-18. A fifth member of the league the Rosetown Red Wings participated in the league playoffs this year (unlike 2016-17) which creatde the need for a separate set of playoffs for the provincial championship and a spot in the McKenzie Cup against the British Columbia representative. The 2018 ACHW league playoffs were a one weekend single elimination tournament while the provincial playoffs were a two round best-of seven tournament for the Pacific Region spot in the 2018 Allan Cup. The Lacombe Generals won the tournament to qualify for the 2018 Allan Cup.

British Columbia
Thus far only the West Coast Heat have been reported to have registered at the Senior AAA level in the province, it would later be announced that they would not be playing at the Senior AAA level for 2017-18. The Powell River Regals were registered at Senior AAA last year but have yet to decide for 2017-18. Neither team would declare for the Senior AAA level but both would play at the Senior AA level.

note: traditionally, teams from the Yukon have played under the sactioning of the British Columbia Amateur Hockey Association and there are no teams are registered for this year.



Division 1

 * Bethune Bulldogs (Host Branch-Unused Quebec Spot)
 * Elsipogtog Hawks (Atlantic)
 * South East Prairie Thunder (West-Manitoba Champion)

Division 2

 * Rosetown Red Wings (host)
 * Stoney Creek Generals (Central-Allan Cup Hockey playoff champion)
 * Lacombe Generals (Pacific-Alberta Champion)

April 9

 * South East Prairie Thunder tied Bethune Bulldogs 2-2 (ot)
 * Stoney Creek Generals tied Rosetown Red Wings 3-3 (ot)

April 10

 * South East Prairie Thunder defeated Elsipogtog Hawks  5-2
 * Rosetown Red Wings tied Lacombe Generals 1-1

April 11

 * Bethune Bulldogs tied Elsipogtog Hawks 1-1
 * Lacombe Generals defeated Stoney Creek Generals 5-3

Tie-Breaking Procedure
used to determine home team and matchups in playoff rounds and breaking ties within division.
 * 1) Most points
 * 2) Winner of head to head game (if applicable)
 * 3) Best goal ratio (GF/(GF+GA)
 * 4) Fewest goals against
 * 5) First goal scored in head to head
 * 6) Fastest goal scored in round robin competition
 * 7) Least penalty minutes (head to head)
 * 8) Coin toss

April 12 (Quarterfinals)

 * Stoney Creek Generals defeated Bethune Bulldogs 3-2
 * Elsipogtog Hawks defeated Rosetown Red Wings 6-4

April 13 (Semifinals)
Semifinal matchups are based on if winning quarterfinal teams are from the same division then the higher seeded quarterfinal winning team will play the lower seeded division winner and the lower seeded quarterfinal winning team playing the higher seeded division winner. If the quarterfinal winning teams are from different divisions then the quarterfinal winners would place the champion of the other division in the round robin.
 * Stoney Creek Generals defeated South East Prairie Thunder 5-2
 * Lacombe Generals defeated Elsipogtog Hawks 4-1

April 14 (Final)

 * Stoney Creek Generals defeated Lacombe Generals 7-4