2023 CBR Brave season
The 2023 CBR Brave season was the Brave's 8th season in the Australian Ice Hockey League since being founded and entering the league in 2014. Canberra won a fourth consecutive premiership title and lifted the H Newman Reid Trophy, by finishing top of the regular season standings.[1] The Brave also finished top of the newly formed Rurak Conference and held aloft the inaugural Rurak Conference Cup.[1] Canberra finished second in the AIHL Finals, being beaten by the Melbourne Mustangs in the championship grand final in Melbourne to miss out on the Goodall Cup.[2]
| 2023 CBR Brave | |
|---|---|
Rurak Conference champions | |
| League | 1st AIHL |
| Conference | 1st Rurak |
| 2023 record | 20–1–1–4 |
| Home record | 10–1–0–2 |
| Road record | 10–0–1–2 |
| Goals for | 170 |
| Goals against | 77 |
| Team information | |
| Coach | Stuart Philps |
| Assistant coach | Jeff Helbren |
| Captain | Kai Miettinen |
| Alternate captains | Bayley Kubara Casey Kubara |
| Arena | Phillip Ice Skating Centre |
| Team leaders | |
| Goals | Austin Albrecht (39) |
| Assists | Felix Plouffe (44) |
| Points | Austin Albrecht (76) |
| Penalty minutes | Mike Giorgi (45) |
| Goals against average | Aleksi Toivonen (2.86) |
Season notes
Pre-season, the Brave organised exhibition games against the Brisbane Lightning in Brisbane and Canberra.[3] Former Sydney Sirens head coach, Jeff Helbren, was signed to take on the role of assistant coach.[4] Caribou Kingston became the first ever Brave naming rights sponsor, with the team to be known as the Caribou CBR Brave for 2023 and Peter Di Salvo was added to the coaching roster as a goaltender coach for Toivonen and Tétreault.[4][5] During the season the Brave revealed special one-off jerseys for Caribou Kingston, Menslink and Hockey Fights Cancer. All special jerseys were auctioned with proceeds going towards the team, Menslink and Cure Brain Cancer Foundation.[6][7][8] Off the ice, CBR Brave super-fan, Emma Easton, died in 2023. Before her death, the Brave faithful celebrated Emma's 35th birthday with a rendition of ‘happy birthday’ at a home game at the Brave Cave. Brave players and supporters then came together to produce a memorial video and give Emma a hockey guard of honour at her funeral.[9]
Roster
Team roster for the 2023 AIHL season.[10][11][12]
| Active Roster | Coaching staff | |||
| Goaltenders Defencemen |
Forwards
|
Head Coach Coaches Legend Statistics | ||
| Last updated on: 7 August 2023 | ||||
| Elite Prospects IHNA | ||||
Transfers
All transfers in and out of the team since the last AIHL season.[11][13] Kale Costa was announced as a signing in pre-season,[4] but in May 2023 it was revealed he would not be joining the team, instead choosing to stay in the Czech Republic to play for HC Stadion Litoměřice in the Czech 1.liga.[14] In July 2024, the Brave signed goaltender Curtis Villani to an affiliate contract. Villani was added to the roster as an emergency backup but was never dressed or used and was subsequently removed from the roster without playing a game.[15]
In
| Pos | Player | Transferred From | Local / Import |
|---|---|---|---|
| W | Austin Albrecht | Maine Mariners | Import |
| D | Lachlan Fahmy | The Coast | Local |
| G | Andrew Glass | Adelaide Tigers | Local |
| D/F | Matthew Harvey | No team | Local |
| D | Cameron Marks | Corsaires de Nantes | Import |
| F | Ricki Miettinen | Jokerit (ACT) | Local |
| C | Felix Plouffe | Corsaires de Nantes | Import |
| F | Jake Riley* | Melbourne Ice | Local |
| F | Christopher Stoikos | Waterloo Maroons | Import |
| D | Carson Vance | South Carolina Stingrays | Import |
- * Mid-season transfer
Out
| Pos | Player | Transferred To | Local / Import |
|---|---|---|---|
| D | Declan Bronte | Salem State Vikings | Local |
| D | Garret Cockerill | Jacksonville Icemen | Import |
| F | Wehebe Darge | Newcastle Northstars | Local |
| F | Nicholas Doornbos | Steele County Blades | Local |
| G | Luke Fiveash | No team | Local |
| G | Wylie Hodder | No team | Local |
| D | Lynden Lodge | Perth Thunder | Local |
| D | Matthew Marasco | No team | Local |
| F | Brandon McNally | Sheffield Steelers | Import |
| F | Hamish Murray | No team | Local |
| D | Matthew Price | Newcastle Northstars | Local |
| D | Alastair Punler | Perth Thunder | Local |
| F | Christopher Stoikos* | Saint-Roch-de-l'Achigan Jaguars | Import |
| F | Mario Valery-Trabucco | No team | Import |
| D | Jamie Woodman | Perth Thunder | Local |
- * Mid-season transfer
Staff
Current as of 2023 AIHL season.[11]
Standings
Regular season
Summary
| Season | Overall | Home | Away | |||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | L | OW | OL | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Finish | P | W | L | OW | OL | GF | GA | GD | P | W | L | OW | OL | GF | GA | GD | |
| 2023 | 26 | 20 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 170 | 77 | +93 | 63 | 1st | 13 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 88 | 37 | +51 | 13 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 82 | 33 | +49 |
Position by round
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CBR Brave (P) | 26 | 20 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 170 | 77 | +93 | 63 | 2023 Goodall Cup Finals |
| 2 | Sydney Bears | 26 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 132 | 81 | +51 | 60 | |
| 3 | Newcastle Northstars | 26 | 18 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 162 | 112 | +50 | 56 | |
| 4 | Melbourne Mustangs | 26 | 17 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 147 | 94 | +53 | 55 | |
| 5 | Perth Thunder | 26 | 17 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 141 | 90 | +51 | 52 | |
| 6 | Melbourne Ice | 26 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 144 | 165 | −21 | 30 | |
| 7 | Brisbane Lightning | 26 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 15 | 156 | 136 | +20 | 30 | 2023 Goodall Cup Finals |
| 8 | Sydney Ice Dogs | 26 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 17 | 104 | 159 | −55 | 23 | |
| 9 | Adelaide Adrenaline | 26 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 21 | 90 | 162 | −72 | 13 | |
| 10 | Central Coast Rhinos | 26 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 24 | 75 | 245 | −170 | 5 |
Rules for classification:
Tie-break: 1) points; 2) points percentage; 3) head to head; 4) goal difference; 5) goals scored; 6) coin toss
Points: 3 points for regulation win; 2 points for OT or SO win; 1 point for OT or SO loss; 0 points for regulation loss
Note: Sydney Bears deducted 3 points by the league for accidentally breaching player cap regulations in June 2023.[16]
(P) Premiers
Rurak Conference
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CBR Brave | 26 | 20 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 170 | 77 | +93 | 63 | 2023 Goodall Cup Finals |
| 2 | Newcastle Northstars | 26 | 18 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 162 | 112 | +50 | 56 | |
| 3 | Brisbane Lightning | 26 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 15 | 156 | 136 | +20 | 30 | |
| 4 | Adelaide Adrenaline | 26 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 21 | 90 | 162 | −72 | 13 | |
| 5 | Central Coast Rhinos | 26 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 24 | 75 | 245 | −170 | 5 |
Rules for classification:
Tie-break: 1) points; 2) points percentage; 3) head to head; 4) goal difference; 5) goals scored; 6) coin toss
Points: 3 points for regulation win; 2 points for OT or SO win; 1 point for OT or SO loss; 0 points for regulation loss
Schedule & results
Exhibition games
| 2023 exhibition fixtures and results | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Time | Away | Score | Home | Location | Recap |
| 4 MAR | 17:00 | CBR Brave | 5–2 | Brisbane Lightning | Iceworld Boondal | Ref |
| 5 MAR | 15:30 | CBR Brave | 6–0 | Brisbane Lightning | Iceworld Boondal | Ref |
| 1 APR | 17:00 | Brisbane Lightning | 5–6 | CBR Brave | Phillip Ice Skating Centre | Ref |
Regular season
Finals
Goodall Cup semi-final
| 26 August 2023 18:30 | CBR Brave | 4–1 (2–1, 0–0, 2–0) | Perth Thunder | O’Brien Icehouse |
| Game reference | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aleksi Toivonen | Goalies | Kristian Stead | Referees: Rob Love Mark Peruzzo Linesmen: Russell Dow Hayden Rogers | ||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
| 6 min | Penalties | 4 min | |||||||||||||||
| 50 | Shots | 39 | |||||||||||||||
Goodall Cup final
| 27 August 2023 14:00 | Melbourne Mustangs | 1–0 (0–0, 1–0, 0–0) | CBR Brave | O’Brien Icehouse |
| Game reference | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liam Hughes | Goalies | Aleksi Toivonen | Referees: Kent Unwin David Gal Linesmen: Russell Dow Hayden Rogers | ||
| |||||
| 2 min | Penalties | 2 min | |||
| 22 | Shots | 33 | |||
Awards
No team awards announced by the Brave for 2023. No Canberra players or staff were awarded any AIHL season awards for the first time in team history.
References
- O'Connor, Sean (September 4, 2023). "CBR Brave win historic 4-Peat Premiership title". CBR Brave. Archived from the original on October 27, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
- O'Connor, Sean (September 4, 2023). "Brave finish runner's up in 2023 Championship tilt". CBR Brave. Archived from the original on October 26, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
- Collins, Lee (March 18, 2023). "Brisbane Lightning and CBR Brave to play exhibition game in April". icehockeynewsaustralia.com. Archived from the original on March 18, 2023. Retrieved February 26, 2024.
- Gavel, Tim (April 20, 2023). "With a new sponsor and another title under their belts, CBR Brave set for strong 2023 season". The RiotACT. Archived from the original on February 26, 2024. Retrieved February 26, 2024.
- Collins, Lee (April 27, 2023). "Peter Di Salvo joins the CBR Brave as a goaltending coach". icehockeynewsaustralia.com. Archived from the original on January 6, 2024. Retrieved February 26, 2024.
- Collins, Lee (May 26, 2023). "CBR Brave reveal Caribou sponsored jersey". icehockeynewsaustralia.com. Archived from the original on February 26, 2024. Retrieved February 26, 2024.
- Collins, Lee (July 8, 2023). "CBR Brave reveal Menslink jersey". icehockeynewsaustralia.com. Archived from the original on February 26, 2024. Retrieved February 26, 2024.
- Collins, Lee (August 16, 2023). "CBR Brave reveal Hockey Fights Cancer jersey". icehockeynewsaustralia.com. Archived from the original on August 20, 2023. Retrieved February 26, 2024.
- Radford, Travis (September 11, 2023). "The Caribou CBR Brave rallied around their biggest fan and showed 'humanity at its best'". The RiotACT. Archived from the original on September 11, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
- "2023 CBR Brave Team Roster". Elite Prospects. Retrieved June 16, 2023.
- Collins, Lee (April 11, 2023). "CBR Brave 2023 roster". icehockeynewsaustralia.com. Archived from the original on January 6, 2024. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
- "CBR Brave 2023 captains". icehockeynewsaustralia.com. March 28, 2023. Retrieved June 16, 2023.
- "CBR Brave 2022 roster". icehockeynewsaustralia.com. April 30, 2022. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
- Collins, Lee (May 24, 2023). "Kale Costa opts not to join the CBR Brave for 2023". icehockeynewsaustralia.com. Archived from the original on May 24, 2023. Retrieved February 27, 2024.
- Collins, Lee (July 27, 2023). "CBR Brave sign Curtis Villani". icehockeynewsaustralia.com. Archived from the original on August 2, 2023. Retrieved February 27, 2024.
- Collins, Lee (June 26, 2023). "Sydney Bears penalised three points over breach of import rule". icehockeynewsaustralia.com. Archived from the original on June 27, 2023. Retrieved August 6, 2023.