Jan Kaminsky has averaged a point per game in his last five outings. He helped set up two goals in Sunday’s win in Lindsay.

Dukes within a point of second place

Both teams were sharp—sticking tightly to the game plan—each player following his role. The first five goals in the game were scored with a man advantage. Fortunately three of them were scored by Dukes (Guillaume Naud with a pair, Elliott Richardson with the other).

But the Whitby Fury pushed hard. Just behind the Dukes in the standings and losing by just a goal in overtime a week earlier, the Fury were within striking distance of getting back into the game. It was intense, desperate hockey.

Darcy Murphy had set up two earlier goals, but with the pressure mounting the Dukes’ forward scooped up the puck in the Dukes’ end and pushed up the wing. A Whitby defender attempted to squeeze the rugged Dukes winger into the boards at the centre line. But Murphy bulled his way through the defender as though he wasn’t there. The Fury player crumpled to the ice as Murphy skated into the Fury zone. It was now a two-on-one with Jan Kaminsky bearing down on net through the slot. Murphy carried the puck deep—too deep it seemed— the scoring window had nearly closed. Behind the red line he deftly sent the puck onto Kaminsky’s stick and a split second later the puck was in the net.

That goal gave the Dukes a 4-2 lead and the eventual game winner. It was also a good illustration to Dukes fans just how Murphy is achieving such incredible success this season. Strip away his considerable skill set and smarts—it is plain old hard work and intensity that has made Murphy the most feared goal scorer in the OJHL this season. No angle is too sharp—no obstacle too tall—no defender that can’t be outworked.

Murphy’s four points, including an emptynet goal, led the Dukes in defeating Whitby for the second time in a week. Cam Yuill also scoed on Friday, his third against the Fury in two games.

Anthony Taylor swoops around a Whitby defender on Friday to get a shot on net. A couple of ill-advised penalties, however, nearly cost his team dearly in the close game.

“At this point in the year,” said Simon Bessette, Dukes captain, “It is important to win games like these—to battle through and leave the rink with two points.”

REMEMBERING FOSTER
Before the puck drop on Friday the Dukes paid tribute to Foster Bailey—the die-hard Dukes fan who passed away on Canada Day last year. The fans heard tributes from Hugh Parliament and Tod Lavender who remembered the role Foster played in his life and the life of the Wellington Dukes. Two of Foster’s sisters were in attendance for the unveiling of a photograph of Foster that will be mounted in a display case at the Wellington and District Community Centre next to that of his friend and mentor Garry Lavender.

GUTSY WIN
The Dukes travelled to Lindsay on Sunday night. The Muskies hadn’t lost a game since the Christmas break and had beaten the Dukes just before holidays.

Adam Ritchie—skating on a line with Bessette and Kaminsky—broke out with a three-goal performance on Sunday, leading his team to a “Four out of four points on the weekend is huge,” said Bessette. “As we get closer to the playoffs, we are playing teams that need points, so the games are tougher, grittier and more intense.”

Coach and General Manager Marty Abrams has been pleased with the consistent performance of his team over the past 25 games. He is, however, cautioning his squad not to get complacent.

“Playing a full 60 minutes remains an issue,” said Abrams.

Bessette was thrilled to see Adam Ritchie break out with a hat trick—particularly as the skilled forward has been hobbled with injury much of the season.

“Putting Adam Ritchie on my line with Jan Kaminsky didn’t work right away,” said Bessette. “It was pretty hard at first. But now we have a good chemistry on the ice. I was really happy for him. It is good to see him play well.”

Abrams says Ritchie’s contribution to the scoresheet is a bonus to the club.

“We know Adam can contribute in various ways,” said Abrams. “We just need him to stay healthy heading into the stretch drive.”

Erick Delaurentis, in a rare departure for the young sniper, dropped the gloves in Lindsay to send a message to the Muskies team that persistent slashing of the Dukes’ top players wasn’t going to be tolerated.

UP NEXT: NORTH YORK AND KINGSTON
With just eight games left in the regular season schedule and the Dukes just a point behind Cobourg in the race for the first-round bye, every game carries extra significance. On Friday the Dukes welcome the North York Rangers to the Essroc arena.

North York is a sub-.500 team but is still fighting for a playoff spot. This makes them dangerous.

Kingston is in a similar position, but have the advantage of having beaten the Dukes on three prior occasions this season. Kingston is in Wellington on Sunday night

“Every game is going to be hard,” said Bessette. “Every game is going to be a battle.

“We love to play at home—it is our house. We’ve been on the road quite a bit lately and really looking forward to the warm welcome we get in Wellington.”

LINEUP
Ryan Donohoe is expected to be back in the lineup on Friday after being sidelined for a couple games due to a lower body injury. Netminder Tyler Marble is skating but likely a week to two before he returns to the Dukes net.

Where are they now

The Wellington Dukes trace their hockey roots to the former Belleville Bobcats franchise, purchased in 1989 by 10-year operators of a successful Wellington Junior ‘C’ representative who moved the acquired squad to the tiny Village. This is the seventeenth in a series of tracking down former Duke Players.

NAME: AARON LEWICKI
A few years ago the rules for signing 16- year-old players by Junior ‘A’ teams was changed so that you could only sign a maximum of two. However, back in the 2001-02 season, before the rule changed, the Dukes roster included a remarkable ten 16 year olds, a 15 year old and not a single 20 year old. How could that team compete with such a young group, you might ask? Well, all they did was make it to the OJHL Playoff Finals, coming up two wins short of a championship.

Aaron Lewicki was one of those 16 years olds and the Toronto, Ontario native became one of the team’s premier checkers while still putting up some decent offensive numbers. The team finished not only first in their division but first overall in the entire OJHL regular season. They went on to sweep all of their first three rounds and the opening game of the South/East Conference Championship against the Wexford Raiders, running their playoff win streak to 13 games. The older Wexford team proceeded to win the next three games to take a stranglehold of the series before the Dukes fought back to win the last three contests and move on to the league finals, where they came up just short against the Brampton Capitals.

Aaron, drafted by the Kingston Frontenacs, would play the next three years in the OHL. He then took his hockey education package and headed off to Dalhousie University, located in Halifax, Nova Scotia. After two years he transferred to the University of Waterloo and currently plays for their hockey team while majoring in Political Science.

DID YOU KNOW?
Aaron’s grandfather Danny is the only hockey player to have won the Allan Cup, Memorial Cup and Stanley Cup while still a junior.