Kitchener Rangers’ Christian Humphreys kisses the Memorial Cup after their clinching win on Sunday. (Photo: Darryl Dyck/Canadian Press)

Back in November, Kitchener Rangers general manager Mike McKenzie's phone rang.

"On Nov. 19, I got a call from (Rangers CEO) Joe Birch, 3 o'clock in the afternoon,"  McKenzie told a packed Carl Zehr Square in downtown Kitchener on Tuesday. "He told me we weren't getting the 2027 Memorial Cup. It had been awarded to the Guelph Storm."

Boos rained down from the crowd.

"We took some time to think about it and we said 'Screw it, we're gonna go to Kelowna and get it this year.'"

Cheers erupted as the GM then lifted the trophy high above his head.

The Rangers are 2026 Memorial Cup champions after dominating the field and capping off the tournament with a 6-2 win over the Everett Silvertips on Sunday.

They couldn't host the Memorial Cup. So they went ahead and hoisted it.

It was preceded by an OHL regular season and playoffs in which the team became more and more unstoppable.

After going 16-2 in the OHL post-season, the Blueshirts outscored their Memorial Cup opponents 20-6 while going undefeated.

“They had a swagger and were unflappable,” McKenzie told beat reporter Josh Brown. “These guys have cemented their legacy as champions with the Kitchener Rangers and that’s something really special.”

The celebrations carried over to Kitchener on Tuesday as the team held its victory parade and celebration, sharing the win with thousands of fans.

To read more from Sunday's clinching game, see Brown's story here in the Waterloo Region Record. You can also find a photo gallery here.

For more on the parade and celebrations, see Bill Doucet's story here.

Brantford fell well short of its ultimate goal this season, and will now have to retool its roster and find a replacement for departed head coach Jay McKee. (Photo: Jacob Robinson/Brantford Expositor)

Would Brantford Bulldogs general manager Spencer Hyman change anything he did this season?

“Absolutely not,” he told our Brian Smiley.

In fact, flaming out in the Eastern Conference final to the Barrie Colts in seven games has only made him more hungry, the executive said.

“We won the Hamilton Spectator Trophy, won another division (title) and all this season has done is light an even bigger fire under us to progress even further.

"We won’t stop until we win the Robertson Cup and eventually a Memorial Cup. Brantford deserves that.”

There's plenty of work to be done to get back in the conversation.

Hyman shed many draft picks and young players to make Brantford a superpower this past season, and now they'll have to deal with the inevitable departures. If anything, a retooling year looks more likely.

And now they're on the hunt for a head coach after Jay McKee took a job with the New York Islanders' new AHL affiliate, the Hamilton Hammers.

Having already made a flurry of deals since the OHL's trade window opened on Tuesday, nobody can accuse Hyman of resting on his laurels.

“I am going to be aggressive every year and put us in the best position to win.”

You can find out more about the Bulldogs' plans in the Brantford Expositor.

Attack owner Tyler Nother signalled his intent to make Owen Sound a more competitive team next season. (Photo: OHL Images)

Speaking of aggression, new Attack owner Tyler Nother has made it clear he intends to build a winning culture in Owen Sound in short order.

Now serving as the team’s governor, president and head of hockey operations, Nother made a splash on Tuesday, dealing unsigned prospect Jet Kwajah and a trio of picks to Brantford for veteran goaltender Ryerson Leenders.

“He makes us an instant contender," Nother told our Greg Cowan on Wednesday.

Leenders, entering his overage season and eligible to re-enter the NHL draft this summer after going unsigned as a seventh-round pick of the Buffalo Sabres, backstopped the Bulldogs to the third round this year.

“I think he’s an elite goaltender in the OHL," Nother said. “He ultimately wants to win a league title."

Whether the 2026-27 Attack are positioned to ice a championship-caliber roster in front of him remains to be seen, but Nother and head coach Keenan Reynolds are intent on making Owen Sound a destination for players.

For more on Leenders, the loss of Kwajah, trade conditions, Owen Sound's crease and other rumblings, be sure to check out Cowan's piece in the Owen Sound Sun Times. 

Give him a follow on X, too. You won't regret it.

 The moment the Kitchener Rangers became 2026 Memorial Cup champions. (Photo: Darryl Dyck/Canadian Press)

Thanks for reading, hockey fans. See you next time.