The Navan Grads are a Junior "A"

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

team from

Navan Navan ( ; , meaning "the Cave") is the county town of County Meath, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In 2016, it had a population of 30,173, making it the List of urban areas in the Republic of Ireland by population, tenth largest settlement in ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada. They are a part of the

Central Canada Hockey League The Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL) is a Canadian Junior "A" ice hockey league operating in eastern Ontario, Canada. The league is sanctioned by the Hockey Eastern Ontario and Hockey Canada and is a member of the Canadian Junior Hockey League ...

History

In the Summer of 1974, the residents of Navan, Ontario banded together and purchased the rights of the

Eastern Ontario Junior Hockey League The Eastern Ontario Junior Hockey League is a Junior ice hockey league operating in Eastern Ontario, Canada. The league is sanctioned by Hockey Eastern Ontario and Hockey Canada and acts as a second tier to the Central Canada Hockey League. The 1 ...

's Rockland Boomers. They moved them to Navan, and the Grads were born. In 1989, the board of directors for the Navan Grads felt that the region of

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...

would be better suited with a team that reflected the region. The team's name from then on was the "Cumberland Grads" from 1989 to 2017. In the Summer of 1991, the Grads became the 10th team in the Central Junior A Hockey League and have been a member of the CJHL ever since. The Grads best season came in 2002-03 when the team finished 1st overall and were major contenders to qualify for the

Fred Page Cup The Fred Page Cup is a championship ice hockey trophy, won by a tournament conducted by the Canadian Junior Hockey League. The award is given to the winner of a round-robin and playoff between the Bogart Cup champions of the Central Canada Hoc ...

. The Grads won their first-ever playoff series against the Kanata Stallions defeating them 4 games to 0. The Ottawa Jr. Senators upset the Grads 4 games to 2 in the semi-finals, when game 6 went to triple overtime and Ottawa scored the game-winning goal on a penalty shot in the third overtime period. Craig Nooyan, Christian Boucher, Jason Murfitt, Jonathon Matsumoto, Brent Patry, Brendan MacIntyre, and Craig Baxter were among several returning players for 2003-04. The Grads wound up finishing second overall, and suffered a first-round upset to the Kanata Stallions in seven games, in spite of having led the series 3 games to 1. Assistant coach Mark Grady took over Bruce Johnson's duties as head coach in 2004-05.

Claude Giroux Claude Giroux (; born January 12, 1988) is a Canadian professional ice hockey forward and alternate captain for the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). He has previously played for the Philadelphia Flyers and the Florida Panthe ...

made his rookie debut with the Grads in 2005, and he was selected by the QMJHL's

Gatineau Olympiques The Gatineau Olympiques are a major junior ice hockey team based in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada, that plays in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). Starting with the 2021–22 season, the Olympiques play home games at Centre Slush Puppie, ...

after having been passed over at the

Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; french: Ligue de hockey de l'Ontario (LHO)) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The league is for players aged 16–19. There are exceptions for overag ...

2005's draft. The Grads missed the playoffs multiple times since then or have failed to make it past the first round in the CJHL playoffs.

Season-by-season record

''Note: GP = Games Played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against''

Championships

:CCHL Bogart Cup Championships: None :Eastern Canadian

Championships: None :CJAHL

Royal Bank Cup Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...

Championships: None

Notable alumni

Matt Bradley Matthew William Bradley (born June 13, 1978) is a Canadian professional ice hockey scout and former player. He currently is a scout for the Washington Capitals. Bradley played in the National Hockey League for the San Jose Sharks, Pittsburgh ...

Jon Matsumoto Jonathan Richard Matsumoto (born October 13, 1986) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who is currently playing for Kölner Haie of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). Playing career Matsumoto began playing collegiate hockey for the Bowl ...

Daniel Taylor Daniel, Dan, or Danny Taylor may refer to: Sportspeople * Dan Taylor (shot putter) (born 1982), American shot putter * Dan Taylor (cricketer) (1887–1957), South African cricketer * Dan Taylor (footballer, born 1993), English footballer * Dan Tayl ...

Jason Akeson Jason Akeson (born June 3, 1990) is a Canadian professional ice hockey Winger (ice hockey), right winger for Straubing Tigers of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). He played 15 games in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Philadelphia Flyer ...

Eric O'Dell Eric O'Dell (born June 21, 1990) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player. He is currently playing with HC Dynamo Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). O'Dell was originally selected by the Anaheim Ducks in the second round (39th ov ...

External links

Navan Grads WebpageCCHL WebpageEOJHL Webpage
{{EOJBHL Central Canada Hockey League teams Ice hockey teams in Ottawa Ice hockey clubs established in 1974 1974 establishments in Ontario