October 1, 2021
In the history of CCAA National Hockey Championships, eight teams were their post-secondary institution's first national champion in any sport.
The 1974-75 Camrose Lutheran College Vikings of Camrose, Alberta were the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference's & the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association's first national champion in any sport. They were also the first team from Camrose in any sport to win a national title. In 2007, the '74-75 Vikings were the first team from the ACAC to be inducted in the Alberta Hockey Hall of Fame. In 2012, the team was enshrined in the first Vikings Wall of Fame class.
The 1975-76 St. Clair Saints of Windsor, Ontario were the first college hockey team from the province and the second hockey team from the city to become national champions. A winger who scored a goal for the triumphant Windsor Bulldogs in the decisive game of the 1963 Allan Cup, Gerry Serviss, coached the Saints to a perfect season.
The 1976-77 Red Deer College Kings of Red Deer, Alberta were the city's second hockey team to raise a national championship banner. The 1976-77 Kings were inducted into the Alberta Hockey Hall of Fame along with the 1978-79 & the 1979-80 Red Deer College Kings in 2011.
The 1977-78 College of Cape Breton Capers of Sydney, Nova Scotia were the first post secondary hockey team from the Atlantic provinces as well as the first team in any sport from the Nova Scotia Colleges Conference (now the Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association) to capture a national title. In 2018, the Capers Hall of Fame was launched and team was a part of inaugural induction class. In 2004, they were inducted into the Cape Breton Sports Hall of Fame. The Capers were the fourth hockey team from Nova Scotia and first hockey team from Cape Breton Island to win a national championship.
The 1980-81 Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) Trojans of Calgary, Alberta were the fifth hockey team from the city to become national champions. The '80-81 Trojans entered the Alberta Hockey Hall of Fame class in 2013. A plaque was unveiled a year later on the Trojans Wall of Distinction which was founded in 1989.
The 1981-82 NAIT Ooks of Edmonton, Alberta were the 12th hockey team from the provincial capital to win a national title. Of the four ACAC hockey teams to win their post secondary institution's first national championship, the 1981-82 Ooks are the only one that has not received a call to the Alberta Hockey Hall of Fame. While the 1974-75 Vikings & the 1980-81 Trojans have been recognized on their athletic department walls, a similar honour has not been bestowed upon the 1981-82 Ooks. The most recent induction on the NAIT Athletics Wall of Fame (which was established in 2001) occurred in 2007.
The 1983-84 Les Lauréats du Cégep de Saint-Hyacinthe of Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec were the first post-secondary hockey team from the province and the first hockey team from Saint-Hyacinthe to become national champions.
The 1986-87 Les Patriotes du Cégep de Saint-Laurent of Saint-Laurent, Quebec were the lone hockey team from the city to win a national title before it became a Montreal borough in 2002.
Of the eight, three have been enshrined in a provincial hockey hall of fame and three have been inducted in a wall/hall of fame at their post secondary institution. Additional accolades are warranted.