St . Albert Saints The St . Albert Saints were a junior ice hockey franchise based in St . Albert , Alberta , for twenty - seven seasons from 1977 to 2004 . Before 1977 , the team played in nearby Spruce Grove as the Spruce Grove Mets , and in 2004 the team again moved to Spruce Grove where they now play as the Spruce Grove Saints . In all its incarnations , the team has been a part of the junior ' A ' Alberta Junior Hockey League . History . The Saints began life as the aptly named Edmonton Movers , as one of the original franchises of the Alberta Junior Hockey League in 1963 . Nine years later , the Movers merged with their cross - town rivals the Edmonton Maple Leafs ( named after the more famous Toronto NHL club ) and moved to the suburban city of Spruce Grove to become the Mets . However , the team ' s stay in Spruce Grove was short - lived , and by 1977 the team moved to another Edmonton suburb , St . Albert , where they became the St . Albert Saints . In Edmonton , the team had already built up its share of history , winning two Carling Cups as the Movers in 1967 and 1968 and adding another two consecutive as the Mets in 1975 and 1976 , with the 1975 incarnation also taking the national Manitoba Centennial Trophy . But in St . Albert , the team built up most of its most famous alumni and took its share of major championships , although it would never repeat the glory of the 1975 Mets on the national stage . The Saints won four league titles during their time in St . Albert , taking the 1981 , 1982 and 1996 Carling Cups as well as the 1998 Rogers Wireless Cup . But it was its players that achieved the greatest fame , with the most famous undoubtedly being long - time NHLer and six - time Stanley Cup champion Mark Messier , who played one season with the Mets and one with the Saints . Other notable alumni have included longtime New Jersey Devils stalwart Ken Daneyko ( who only played two games with the Saints ) , longtime Chicago Blackhawks player and current Blackhawks WGN - AM radio color analyst Troy Murray , and recent NHL standouts such as Steven Reinprecht , Stu Barnes and Mike Comrie . Players such as Fernando Pisani , Steven Goertzen , René Bourque and Jamie Lundmark have had workmanlike careers in the NHL , while other players such as Alexander Fomitchev have gone on to great success in other professional leagues . Despite these successful players , the Saints were also involved in one of the most tragic incidents in junior hockey history , when a clean hit by a Saints player on Sherwood Park Crusaders forward and captain Trevor Elton resulted in the death of Elton . They were also involved in one of the most violent , a famous bench - clearing brawl on November 21 , 1979 , between the Saints and the Red Deer Rustlers . This brawl resulted in the suspension of several players , as well as Saints head coach Doug Messier and Rustlers ' trainer Terry Sexsmith for getting a little too involved in the battle . Sexsmith was later banned from the AJHL for life . Departure . As the 21st century rolled around , complaints increasingly began to grow that the Saints ' arena , Akinsdale Arena , was of a calibre too low to occupy a junior ' A ' franchise . Various newer arenas seating over a thousand , such as the Sherwood Park Crusaders ' Sherwood Park Arena , the 2 , 000 - seat Jubilee Recreation Centre , home of the Fort Saskatchewan Traders , and the vacant 1 , 200 - seat Grant Fuhr Arena in Spruce Grove - which was expected to receive a significant upgrade - are all within a short drive of St . Albert . Akinsdale Arena , by comparison , was relatively old and very small , seating only 611 with room for 200 standing , the smallest capacity in the league . The arena also suffered in terms of parking , amenities , and quality of view . By the 2002 - 03 season , it was becoming clear that the Saints would be moved , with Barrhead or the oil town of Leduc frequently cited as potential locations . The team was even forced to play out its last games in Edmonton ' s Bill Hunter Arena , where it never drew crowds of less than double Akinsdale ' s maximum capacity . Despite rumours that the St . Albert city council under mayor Richard Plain was to approve the construction of a new multi - use facility including a 1 , 700 - seat arena ( one that would eventually be approved for over $ 40 million in 2004 ) , the Saints moved to Spruce Grove to start the 2004 - 05 AJHL campaign . Season - by - season record . " Note : GP = Games played , W = Wins , L = Losses , T / OTL = Ties and overtime losses , SOL = Shootout losses Pts = Points , GF = Goals for , GA = Goals against "