Sherwood Park Crusaders The Sherwood Park Crusaders are an ice hockey team in the Alberta Junior Hockey League . They play in Sherwood Park , Alberta , Canada at the Sherwood Park Arena , capacity 1800 . History . The Edmonton Crusaders joined the AJHL in 1976 playing out of the Jasper Place Arena . The AJHL franchise was revived from a dormant entry controlled by Jim McCaddie . The Edmonton Crusaders played two seasons in the AJHL . 1978 - 1999 . In 1978 , a group of Sherwood Park businessmen , headed by John Fisher , Frank Chase , and Al Bishop , moved the franchise to Sherwood Park . John Fisher , a Sherwood Park resident and former Edmonton Oiler , became the first coach of the Crusaders . On February 20 , 1980 , Crusaders captain Trevor Elton died after collapsing from a clean routine body check along the boards versus the St . Albert Saints . During the 1985 - 86 season Brett Pearce suffered a major injury which left him paralyzed . During the same season , the Crusaders capture the AJHL North Division Championship . In 1986 - 87 the Crusaders capture the Regular Season Championship , followed by another North Division Championship in 1989 - 90 . On July 2 , 1996 Crusaders General Manager and part owner , Al McDonald passes away after a short battle with cancer . Since the start of the Crusaders in Sherwood Park , there have been a great number of prominent business and sports personalities involved with making the franchise a success . Some , and by no means all , include Al McDonald , Bob Green , Bill Warwick , Harry Zuzak , Al Hamilton , Jim Crosson , Ross Perkins , George Buchan , Len McBride , Rollie Duplessis , Dennis O ’ Rourke , Bill McBride , Vern Schultz , Iris Evans , Peter Stiller , Vern Hartwell , the Strathcona County Council and many dedicated volunteers too numerous to mention , that have been the key to maintaining the franchise . Most importantly , the loyal support of our fans and the local business community who have stood with the team since the beginning are the major keys to our success . At the conclusion of the 1998 season the team was purchased from Art Cox by a group of local businessmen headed by Tom Maxwell . The group has since turned the club into a non - profit society with a commitment to be in Sherwood Park for many years to come . The Crusaders have recently undergone a major restructuring with a commitment to being a positive force in the community and a supporter of the local minor hockey scene . The 98 - 99 season was certainly a year for identifying the club ' s needs . The Cru finished last in the North Division with a 13 - 44 - 3 - 2 record , but the season ' s main objective was met and the rebuilding process began . In 1999 , nearly all of the Crusaders were new faces . Behind the scenes , management began signing players like Braydon Cox , Mark Smith , Calvin Brown , Sean Dersch , and Michael Ringrose , who would become key parts in the Crusaders future . On the ice , the team finished with a dismal 7 - 52 - 3 - 2 record , the worst in Canadian Junior A . But with a young lineup , many players were developed well getting much more ice time than they normally would have . 2000 - 2001 . With a much stronger lineup entering the season , and yet another head coach in Doug Schum , the Crusaders were finally looking like a team that could battle for a playoff spot in the AJHL ' s North Division . Once again , backstopped by the amazing goaltending of Scott Rowan , the Cru sneaked into the playoffs with a 20 - 29 - 6 - 2 record , but bowed out to the St . Albert Saints in 3 games . Still , the building process continued , and losing only five players , the Crusaders were shaping into one of the better North Division teams . 2001 - 2002 . Over the off season with new coach Dan Auchenberg at the helm , the Crusaders made a 3 - way deal with the St . Albert Saints and the Camrose Kodiaks to acquire Doug Auchenberg , son of Dan , for 20 year old Tyler Resch . Doug had been a major force for the Camrose Kodiaks who won the AJHL Championship and the Royal Bank Cup in the spring . A solid core of the team returned for camp , and a tough decision was to be made about the goaltending . Chris Denman and Chris Houle ended up taking the duties , leaving out another Chris in Chris Miller , who returned to Nova Scotia . The Cru started the season off well , until captain Kelly Wosnack was traded to Fort Saskatchewan for Jamie Marshall . The team slumped at first , then got into a real groove mid way through the season . In December , Chris Houle went to a tryout for the London Knights of the OHL , who were in desperate need of a goalie . He was signed and stayed there for the rest of the season . Gerry Festa was picked up from the Saskatoon Blades , and became a major part of the team ' s success . The Cru made a great charge toward the end of the season going on a 15 game winning streak , and finished 3rd in the North Division behind Drayton Valley and St . Albert . Head coach Dan Auchenberg won Coach of the Year honours , and the Crusaders were heading into the playoffs with some doubts , after seeing goaltender Chris Denman go down with an illness , all eyes were on Gerry Festa , who certainly rose to the occasion and was named Crusaders playoff MVP . They took the first round series vs . Lloydminster 3 games to 0 and headed to Drayton Valley for the second round . The Cru lost both games and came back to the Sherwood Park Arena needing 2 wins to get back into the series . Game 3 was a very physical battle that headed into double overtime . After a near goal from the Thunder , the Cru headed up ice and put away the winner to cut the series lead down to one game . After a tough loss , the Thunder were back and pounding away at the Crusaders defense in the early going . After going down early , the Cru battled back and once again went to double overtime . With a great crowd of over 1000 , they pulled it out once again to make the fans go nuts . Back to Drayton Valley for game 5 , nothing was going right for the Cru and they went down 3 games to 2 . Back to a rocking Sherwood Park Arena in front of another great crowd , the score was tied up at 2 going into the 3rd period . 2 quick goals ended the threat from the Cru , as the game got slightly out of hand as did the score . Drayton Valley won the series 4 games to 2 , and went on to win the AJHL Championship before losing to the Chillawack Chiefs in the Doyle Cup . One thing was for certain though , and that was the Crusaders were going to be a force to come . 2002 - 2003 . The 2002 - 03 season began with a rapid start , winning their first 4 of 5 with Braydon Cox leading the way and Chris Denman guarding the pipes once again . Then the injury bug hit the Cru where it hurts . In the pregame warmup before a game in Drayton Valley , a player fell on Chris Denman , tearing muscles in his leg . Around this time , second year Conor Shields was traded to Bonnyville for Chris Baker and Ryan Rarmuch . This deal was heavily criticized at the time , but has turned out as a steal for the Crusaders . There were few solutions to the goaltending problem , leaving the team to pick up Anton Wintner from the WHL . Female rookie sensation Shannon Szabados came to the helm for eight games , earning 2 shutouts and an 7 - 1 record . She probably would have stayed with the team , for it not have been an AMHL rule for players only to play 8 games or that team will forfeit their rights to sign Midget players . Garret Kindred was on loan to the Lloydminster Blazers , so the Crusaders were in luck when Gerry Festa returned from a tryout with the Saskatoon Blades . After only 7 games , he was signed by the Calgary Hitmen of the WHL and was gone once again . After many different goalie changes , Chris Denman returned to a still very good team . Braydon Cox led the team in scoring , but was supported well by the likes of Sean Dersch and Michael Ringrose . The Cru made a few late season pick - ups from the WHL including Nick Chibi and David Selthun and a trade with the Flin Flon Bombers of the MJHL for goalie Bryan Dafoe . The Crusaders finished the season with 43 wins , earning a first place finish in the North Division and the regular season crown . In the first round of the playoffs , the Bonnyville Pontiacs were blown away by the Cru in a four game sweep . The playoff format forced the Cru into a second round bye and a 19 - day layoff , which hurt them badly in the end . Game 1 of the third round series vs . the St . Albert Saints was back at the Sherwood Park Arena in front of a great crowd , but saw the Cru fall sluggish and give the Saints a 1 - 0 series lead . Game two once again , the Crusaders were being hammered every where they turned by a solid team clearly in 3rd round form . Game 3 headed across city limits into Aikinsdale Arena in a game where the Cru fell behind early , but battled back and won the game in overtime . Still , the layoff was clearly hurting them and were not in proper form . The Cru lost game 4 in overtime on a fluke goal , and headed back to Sherwood Park for a must - win game five . The Sherwood Park Arena was packed for this game , setting a Crusaders record for attendance at over 1900 . The Cru finally came out flying like they had so many times before , and headed into the locker room after the 1st tied up . In the second , the Cru finally took a lead before having it demolished by 2 quick Saints goals . In the third , after battling back to tie it , the St . Albert Saints proved to be the better of two teams in the game and took the fifth and deciding game . 2003 - 2004 . The Crusaders 26th season in the AJHL began with an obvious letdown from the previous season . Most predicted a middle of the pack finish for the Cru , including head coach Dan Auchenberg . Gone were the likes of Braydon Cox , Sean Dersch , Brandt Middleton , Calvin Brown , Chris Denman , and numerous others who made up the high scoring , tight defensive Cru . The season began as predicted , with the Cru going 5 - 4 - 0 and a 5th place seat in the North Division . There were numerous questions surrounding the team , including starter Garret Kindred . Trade rumours were all over the place until finally General Manager Tom Maxwell pulled the trigger on a deal with the St . Albert Saints . The trade sent disgruntled forward Lee St . Arnaud and rookie defenseman Justin Lylick , in return for star goalie Sheldon Michaelson , the man who shut down the Cru in the league semifinals and brought the Saints within a game of the league championship , and 18 year old forward Brent Leah . Garrett Kindred was given his release , leaving the Cru with a solid tandem of Michaelson and Shannon Szabados . The Cru began to get on a roll with the much improved goaltending situation , and the Cru sat in second place at the all - star break . The AJHL All Star Weekend was held in Sherwood Park for the first time since 1992 , and it was pulled off perfectly by the organizers setting the bar higher for future all star events . Crusader Michael Ringrose was named North All Stars MVP in a losing effort for the North . Everything looked great for the Cru heading out of the all - star break , but the team was hit by the injury bug and went on an awful skid that saw them lose 3 of their next 4 and 9 of the final 13 games in the regular season , dropping them back to 4th spot in the North Division . In the opening round of the playoffs , the Crusaders hosted the Drayton Valley Thunder in a best - of - 5 series . The Thunder took the opening game 2 - 0 in a tight defensive game , and little offense from the Cru . Game 2 was close early on until the Thunder took a 4 - 1 lead in the second . In the third it was all Crusaders who battled back to within a goal and completely dominated the period , but couldn ' t come up with the equalizer and lost the game 4 - 3 . The series headed back to Drayton Valley and the Crusaders faced elimination . After outplaying the Thunder in both games , the Cru still couldn ' t solve Brett Jaeger and the Cru dropped the third game 5 - 1 and lost the series 3 games to 0 . With the organization wanting to take a different route in the future , the Crusaders fired coach Dan Auchenberg after 3 and a half years at the helm . General Manager Tom Maxwell also stepped down from his position . Both assistant coaches , Ryan Marsh and Bob Niedzielski , resigned , leaving an entirely new look behind the bench for the Cru in 2004 - 2005 . Retired Numbers / Honored Players . Al McDonald . On July 2 , 1996 , Al McDonald , General Manager and part owner of the Sherwood Park Crusaders died from cancer . Al joined the Crusaders in 1983 and went on to become their General Manager , a position he held with the club for 12 years . During that time he saw 27 players receive scholarships to US Colleges , 13 players graduate and go on to the NHL or other pro leagues , and an additional 19 players further their education while playing hockey at the University of Alberta or NAIT . Al was named the Alberta scout for the Vancouver Canucks in 1988 and his efforts helped to promote a number of AJHL players to the NHL team or their affiliates . Al loved junior hockey and he was very proud of the relationship he had with the young players whose dreams were to play the best hockey their talents would allow . He also had a great respect for the many volunteers that game so generously of their time to see that junior hockey could remain in Sherwood Park . With fond memories and deep appreciation of an exceptional man , the Sherwood Park Crusaders have placed a banner in his memory in the Sherwood Park Arena . The Crusaders have also dedicated a trophy in Al ' s name , rewarding the Crusader that best combines academic and athletic excellence . The Al McDonald Memorial Trophy is sponsored by the Belvedere Golf and Country Club who also host the Al McDonald Memorial Golf Tournament . # 10 Trevor Elton . Trevor Elton was captain of the Sherwood Park Crusaders during the 1979 - 80 season . In February 1980 during a game vs . the St . Albert Saints he was on the receiving end of a body check . Trevor collapsed and later died as a result of the hit . The Crusaders retired the number 10 jersey of Trevor Elton . A banner with Trevor ' s name and number was placed in the arena to honor him . The Crusaders also named the team ' s Most Valuable Player trophy after him . # 11 Brett Pearce . In 1985 Brett Pearce won the Crusaders Most Improved Player award . The following season Brett suffered a freak accident during a game which left him paralyzed . The Crusaders retired the number 11 jersey of Brett Pearce . A banner with Brett ' s name and number was placed in the arena to honor him as an exceptional member of the Crusaders family . The Crusaders also named the team ' s Most Improved Player trophy after him . Season - by - season record . " Note : GP = Games played , W = Wins , L = Losses , T / OTL = Ties / Overtime losses , SOL = Shootout losses , Pts = Points , GF = Goals for , GA = Goals against " NHL alumni . The following former Crusaders have gone on to play in the NHL :