Rockland Nationals

The Rockland Nationals, colloquially known as the Nats, are a Junior A ice hockey team based in Clarence-Rockland. The Nationals compete in the Central Canada Hockey League as a member of the Yzerman Division. Since 2017, the team has played its home games at the Clarence-Rockland Arena, originally known as the CIH Arena.
Founded in 1968 as the Ottawa M&W Rangers, the team is the second CCHL franchise to use the Rockland Nationals name. The original Rockland Nationals played in the CCHL from 1973 to 1981 and have won both Bogart and Centennial Cups in 1976.
The current Rockland Nationals began play in 2017 after the Gloucester Rangers relocated to Clarence-Rockland after the 2016–17 season. The Nationals won the 2025 Bogart Cup Finals against the Carleton Place Canadians.
The Nationals have made it to the playoffs six times from the 2018–19 season to the 2024–25 season. As of the 2025–26 season, they are one of the most successful teams in the CJHL, and their arena has been well-attended during Nats home games.

History

The Rockland Nationals were founded in September 2016 when an ownership group led by André Chaput purchased the Gloucester Rangers from Paul Jennings. The Rangers played their final season at the Earl Armstrong Arena after nearly 50 years, before relocating to the 2,000-seat Clarence-Rockland Arena for the next season.
The Nationals played their inaugural home opener in Clarence-Rockland on September 8, 2017 and won the game 3–1 against the Navan Grads in front of a crowd of 1,200. On March 11, 2018, the Nationals qualified for the playoffs in their inaugural season following a 3–2 overtime win on the last game of the regular season in Pembroke against the Lumber Kings. They however lost in the first round 4 games to 1 against the Carleton Place Canadians. In their first season in Clarence-Rockland, the team has averaged 318 fans per game for a total of 9,210 in 29 home games.
On September 7, 2018, a franchise record crowd of 1,400 fans attended the 2018–19 home opener as the Nats invited former Ottawa Senators legend Chris Neil and Ryan Dzingel to make ceremonial puck drop before the game. Rockland was able to pull a 4–1 win over the Navan Grads. They finished the regular season second place in their division with a record of 40–17–5 and have made it to the playoffs for the second straight year. They faced their Highway 17 rivals Hawkesbury Hawks in the quarterfinals and won the series 4 games to 1, and then faced the Carleton Place Canadians in the semifinal round, losing the series 4 games to 1. Their average attendance increased by roughly 30% from their first season, to an average of 410 people per game at its arena.
Following the 2019–20 regular season, Rockland finished first place in the Yzerman Division with a record of 39–19–4 and qualified for the playoffs for the third straight season. However, the playoffs were later canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and so was the entire 2020–21 CCHL season. In 2020, the ownership group sold the team to a businessman Luc Lavictoire.
During the 2021–22 season, the Nationals finished 4th in their division at 24–24–7 and have qualified for the playoffs for the fourth time in franchise history, but have lost the tie-breaker game against the Smiths Falls Bears 4–1.
In the 2023–24 season, the Nats finished third place in the Yzerman Division at 32–19–3 and qualified for the playoffs for the fifth time in history. They have won the first round against the Renfrew Wolves 4 games to 2, but have lost in the semifinals against the eventual champion Navan Grads in five games. In September 2024, the Rockland Nationals won the first edition of the RE/MAX Cup against their long-time rival Hawkesbury Hawks on September 8, 2024, which was held at the Clarence-Rockland Arena.
In the 2024–25 regular season, Rockland started the season by winning their first 12 games in a row to a record of 12–0–0, a franchise record since the 1979–80 season. Their first loss in regulation time occurred on November 8, 2024 in Hawkesbury against the Hawks, to a record of 15–1–1. They finished the regular season first place in the CCHL and third in the CJHL, with a record of 45–8–2. The 2024–25 season was also notable for the Nationals by drawing 14,227 people to its rink for an average of 569 fans per game, the highest in franchise history. On April 27, 2025 at the Carleton Place Arena, Rockland won their fifth Bogart Cup in franchise history by defeating the Carleton Place Canadians in four games, with team forward Anthony Hall scoring the game winner in overtime. The league has given multiple awards to the team, as Justin Pereira was named the CCHL Head Coach of the Year, Carl Robillard was named the CCHL General Manager of the Year, and Denis Dalrymple was named the CCHL Trainer of the Year. The Nats have averaged 1,105 fans in eight playoff home games, including a near-capacity crowd of 1,892 people during Game 7 of the semifinals against the Smiths Falls Bears.

Team identity

The Rockland Nationals organization operates in both English and French. For many years, public address announcements and press releases have been given in both languages, and the team website and social media outlets are in both languages as well. At home games, the first stanza of O Canada is sung in French, and the chorus is sung in English. It has been estimated that 60 percent of Nats fans who attend games are francophone.

Crest and sweater design

Since 2017, the team's primary colours are blue, red, and white, the same colours as the New York Rangers. The home sweater is predominantly blue in colour with a maple leaf that says "Rockland Nationals" in the centre, and features four red and white stripes: one across each arm, one across the chest and the other across the waistline. The main road sweater is white with a blue and red stripe across the waist, with their red maple leaf logo in the centre.
In the 2024–25 season, the Nationals have unveiled a "Reverse Retro" alternate uniform in collaboration with Adidas. The uniform was essentially the same as their regular red uniform, but with the blue and white replaced by red and black lines.

Broadcasting and arena entertainment

Nats games can be heard on flohockey.tv, via the FloSports streaming platform. The team's play-by-play broadcaster is Richard Gauthier, who brings over 40 years of experience in sports media as a play-by-play broadcaster and public address announcer for various sports across the country. The Rockland Nationals' DJ is Alexis Marcotte, better known as ALECKSY. He also serves as the DJ of the Nepean Raiders, and has previously served as the former DJ of the Ottawa Titans professional baseball team. After each Nationals goal, ALECKSY sounds a Nathan Airchime K3LA train horn, very similar to the horn used by the Los Angeles Kings.
The Nats have introduced their own theme song titled in March 2024, which is played when the team comes on the ice at the beginning of each game. The song is named "Trumpeter's Cry" and was initially used by the Ottawa Senators as their theme song from 2005 to 2024, written by Ottawa singer-songwriter Andres del Castillo, who was formerly part of the band Eight Seconds.

Rivalries

Navan Grads

The Nationals have developed strong rivalries with three CCHL franchises, with whom they frequently shared divisions and competed in postseason play. The oldest is with the Navan Grads, who first faced the Nationals as the Gloucester Rangers in 1974. The teams met three times in the playoffs, including one Bogart Cup Final round. Featuring one of the two closest teams in the league, the rivalry is symbolic due to the 26-kilometre drive from Clarence-Rockland Arena to the Navan Memorial Centre.

Hawkesbury Hawks

The team's second rivalry is against the Hawkesbury Hawks, who since their CCHL debut in 1974, have played the former Gloucester Rangers more than any other team in both regular season play and the playoffs combined. Since the arrival of the current Rockland Nationals in 2017, the rivalry returned and is often referred as the Battle of Highway 17, in result of both arenas located alongside Highway 17, which starts after Trim Road in Orleans, all the way to East Hawkesbury.

Ottawa Jr. Senators

There is a long-standing Rockland-Ottawa rivalry. Today, both teams compete in the Yzerman Division and there is only a 35-minute drive from Clarence-Rockland Arena to the Jim Durrell Recreation Centre. The current rivalry began when the Rockland Nationals' first game was held in Ottawa on September 23, 2017, where the Jr. Senators beat the Nationals 7–3.
The historical rivalry began when the Rangers and the Senators were the only two Ottawa-based teams in the CCHL from 1989 to 2014. As of the end of the 2024–25 season, Ottawa leads the current Rockland Nationals in the regular season 20–17–1.

Season-by-season record

''Note: GP = Games Played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against''

Centennial Cup

Canadian Jr. A National Championships
Maritime Junior Hockey League, Quebec Junior Hockey League, Central Canada Hockey League, Ontario Junior Hockey League, Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League, Superior International Junior Hockey League, Manitoba Junior Hockey League, Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League, Alberta Junior Hockey League, and Host. The BCHL declared itself an independent league and there is no BC representative.
Round-robin play in two 5-team pools with top three in pool advancing to determine a Champion.

Year	Round-robin	Record	Standing	Quarterfinal	Semifinal	Championship
2025	OTL, Edmundston Blizzard, 3-4 W, Valleyfield Braves,, 9-4 W, Calgary Canucks, 7-2 L, Melfort Mustangs, 2-5	2-0-1-1	3rd of 5 Pool B	Won, 4-0 Northern Manitoba Blizzard	OT Loss, 2-3 Calgary Canucks	Did Not Qualify

Championships

CJHL Bogart Cup Championships: 1970, 1971, 1981, 2025