SUDBURY – By recording 50th goal of the season Friday evening in a 5-4 victory over the Mattawa Blackhawks, Cochrane Crunch forward Cody Gratton joined an impressive list of players that have hit the half century mark in a single campaign in the lengthy history of the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League.
With his effort, which also turned out to be his NOJHL-leading 10th game-winner of the season, the 20-year-old Sudbury product becomes the 40th player in recorded league history to reach the half century mark in tallies in a single campaign.
The achievement also extends a Cochrane team record for most goals in a season as he is having an impressive season for the first-year Crunch.
As well as leading all NOJHL skaters in tallies and game-winners, Gratton also top all players in points with 85 and shorthanded efforts with 11.
His tally total puts him into a tie for 36th all-time in league history for goals in a season, with the Crunch still having nine games remaining on their schedule before the playoffs.
The last time a NOJHL player reached the 50-goal mark was back during the 2011-12 campaign when then Sudbury Cubs standout Jordan Carroll amassed an amazing 70 tallies.
Prior to that the last half-century man in the NOJHL was Jeff Rainville of the Soo Thunderbirds who struck 56 times in 2002-03.
The NOJHL record for most goals in a single season is an incredible 95 piled up by Denis Castonguay, who set the mark back in 1983-84 with the Rayside Balfour Canadians in just 40 games played.
Gratton and the rest of his Cochrane teammates return to the ice Saturday as they host Sault Ste. Marie in a 7:30 p.m. start at the Tim Horton Event Centre.
The following is the list of all-time 50-goal scorers in the NOJHL:
| NOJHL leaders: Goals in a single season (50 or more) | ||||||
| RANK | FIRST | LAST | TEAM | SEASON | GP | G |
| 1 | Denis | Castonguay | Rayside Balfour Canadians | 1983-84 | 40 | 95 |
| 2 | Mike | Dore | Rayside Balfour Canadians | 1991-92 | 44 | 77 |
| 3 | Doug | McEwen | Elliot Lake Vikings | 1983-84 | 35 | 75 |
| 4 | Denis | Castonguay | Rayside Balfour Canadians | 1982-83 | 42 | 73 |
| 5 | Shawn | Dubois | Elliot Lake Vikings | 1988-89 | 37 | 72 |
| 6 | Jordan | Carroll | Sudbury Cubs | 2011-12 | 50 | 70 |
| 7 | Jon | Stos | Rayside Balfour Canadians | 1991-92 | 42 | 67 |
| T-8 | Alain | Cormier | Rayside Balfour Canadians | 1983-84 | 40 | 66 |
| T-8 | Steve | Sullivan | Timmins Golden Bears | 1991-92 | 47 | 66 |
| T-10 | Bob | Tombari | Soo Greyhounds | 1966-67 | 39 | 65 |
| T-10 | Al | Blanchard | Sudbury Cubs | 1970-71 | 41 | 65 |
| T-10 | Ed | Bumbacco | Soo Greyhounds | 1969-70 | 44 | 65 |
| T-13 | Dave | Creasy | Onaping Falls Huskies | 1979-80 | 35 | 63 |
| T-13 | Randy | Prior | North Bay Trappers | 1964-65 | 39 | 63 |
| T-15 | Matt | Shank | Sudbury Jr. Wolves | 2001-02 | 42 | 62 |
| T-15 | Alain | Cormier | Rayside Balfour Canadians | 1985-86 | 39 | 62 |
| T-15 | Kevin | Lee | Onaping Falls Huskies | 1985-86 | 39 | 62 |
| T-15 | Todd | Vaillancourt | Rayside Balfour Canadians | 1987-88 | 40 | 62 |
| 19 | Gord | Geisler | Powassan Hawks | 1992-93 | 41 | 61 |
| T-20 | Tim | Boyer | Nickel Centre Native Sons | 1978-79 | 40 | 59 |
| T-20 | Pierre | Dupuis | Nickel Centre Native Sons | 1982-83 | 41 | 59 |
| T-20 | Marc | Lafreniere | Rayside Balfour Canadians | 1991-92 | 43 | 59 |
| T-20 | Derek | McNair | Timmins Golden Bears | 1992-93 | 47 | 59 |
| T-20 | Jim | Ratte | Timmins Golden Bears | 1992-93 | 44 | 59 |
| 25 | Brian | Verrault | Rayside Balfour Canadians | 1983-84 | 39 | 58 |
| 26 | Peter | Kiernan | Onaping Falls Huskies | 1980-81 | 40 | 57 |
| 27 | Jeff | Rainville | Soo Thunderbirds | 2002-03 | 43 | 56 |
| T-28 | Dan | Despatie | Nickel Centre Cubs | 1992-93 | 48 | 55 |
| T-28 | Bruno | Vallieres | Rouyn Noranda Capitales | 1992-93 | 45 | 55 |
| 30 | Ray | Delorenzi | Soo Greyhounds | 1970-71 | 47 | 54 |
| 31 | Andrew | Bain | Timmins Golden Bears | 1994-95 | 47 | 53 |
| T-32 | Luc | Drouin | Rayside Balfour Canadians | 1984-85 | 40 | 52 |
| T-32 | Bob | Shaughnessy | Espanola Eagles | 1969-70 | 41 | 52 |
| T-34 | Marty | Reynolds | North Bay Trappers | 1965-66 | 36 | 51 |
| T-34 | Dean | Cull | Rayside Balfour Canadians | 1991-92 | 47 | 51 |
| T-36 | Bob | Leduc | Sudbury Cubs | 1963-64 | 39 | 50 |
| T-36 | Lyle | Wildgoose | Nickel Centre Power Trains | 1986-87 | 38 | 50 |
| T-36 | Vince | Edwards | Espanola Eagles | 1985-86 | 40 | 50 |
| T-36 | Mike | Vaillancourt | Rayside Balfour Sabrecats | 2001-02 | 40 | 50 |
| T-36 | Cody | Gratton* | Cochrane Crunch | 2014-15 | 41 | 50 |
| *-Current season | ||||||
| With files from NOJHL Historian/Statistician David Harrison | ||||||
