Simply the best

Dukes earn home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs

The Wellington Dukes are the best in the OJHL. The team finished the regular season with more wins and more points than any other in the league. The Dukes lost just nine games all season long, in a 54-game schedule. It is a record of success unmatched since the team’s 2003/04 run to the RBC championship. It is a standard of excellence with which Wellington fans have been spoiled these past two decades.

On their way to the top, the Dukes claimed the East Division Championship and relegated the Trenton Golden Hawks to second place. They did it in Trenton. Cold.

DUKES 3 – TRENTON 2 OT
The Golden Hawks were up for this game. They had defeated the Dukes for the first time this season in mid-January. They believed they could do it again—and with some luck from Markham might still have had a shot at the number one spot.

Trenton came out fast and furious. The Golden Hawks took the lead after pressing the play, the puck ended up in no man’s land in front of Matt Dunsmoor. Trenton’s Jared Gerger got there first. Shot. Goal.

Midway through the second, Sullivan Sparkes tallied for the Golden Hawks widening the lead, to the delight of the hometown crowd. But even by that point, it was clear the Dukes were turning the tide back toward the Trenton end.

The result was Golden Hawks penalties. Just nine seconds into Trenton’s third penalty of the period—and a minute and a half after the Golden Hawks had extended their lead—James White scored for the Dukes. A blast teed up by Evan Miller.

The game was now tilting heavily in the Dukes’ favour. They were carrying the play and winning the battle for the puck. Relentless forecheck. Tenacious as wolverines. The Golden Hawks’ defence held, however. Until late in the third. Wilting under the intense forecheck, virtually the entirely Golden Hawks line clustered in the corner attempting to wrest control of the puck. Instead, it was the Dukes “fan favourite” Dawson Ellis who emerged from the scrum—firing a shot on net. Ben Woodhouse was alone in front of the net, to gather the rebound and bury it. The game was tied with just under three minutes remaining in the third period.

Trenton immediately pulled their netminder. Even though the score was tied, the game was meaningless without a win.

But even with the long man-advantage, Trenton failed to breach the Dukes’ defence and sensational netminder Matt Dunsmoor.

In overtime, it was all Wellington Dukes. The Golden Hawks were flailing. Quinn Hanna finished the comeback win, converting an Ellis pass through the five-hole on the Trenton netminder.

The Dukes were East Division Champions.

DUKES 5 – MARKHAM 2
The Dukes got off to a sluggish start back at home on Saturday night. It was, after all, a meaningless game for the hometown squad. Wellington had, with the win in Trenton the night before, secured the top spot in the East Division and indeed the league.

The Markham Royals, however, still held a slim grip on a playoff spot. (That hope evaporated on Monday as the Royals lost its wildcard game against Georgetown.) The Royals were eager to put in a good showing against the East leaders.

Midway through the first, Markham scored on Matt Keeley to take the lead. And then a minute into the second, a long wrister from the point, found its way through traffic and past Keeley. The Royals had a two-goal lead.

It wouldn’t endure. The Dukes were already getting their legs back. Markham struggled to match Wellington’s pace. Midway through the second, the Dukes were killing a penalty—yet continued to control the play. Ben Woodhouse navigated the neutral zone, across the blueline. Drop back to Quinn Hanna who immediately passed across the slot to Jacob Breckles. There was nothing the Markham goaltender could have done.

Jake Gagnon scored a pair of goals and assisted on another on Saturday to finish the most points (69) among Dukes players. He surpassed Frank Vitucci (67) in this last game to regain the top spot. Gagnon earned 10 points in his final five games in the regular season.

It was clear this game was going to end poorly for the visiting Royals, despite the fact they continued to cling to a one-goal lead. By now the Dukes were dominating Markham territorially. The Royals rarely ventured into the Wellington zone. Four minutes after Breckles’ goal, Markham was penalized for the first, and only, time in the game. But it proved costly. Jake Gagnon back to Noah Massie. Massie’s shot sailed through a forest of trees into the Markham net.

Though the game was tied, the outcome was clear. The Dukes dispatched the Royals with the same ardour as the English parted with Mary Queen of the Scots. Markham barely registered a shot on net for a ten minute span.

Three more Dukes goals—a pair from Jake Gagnon and another from Ben Woodhouse.

It was the Dukes’ 13th straight win. They were the very best in their league.

UP NEXT: PLAYOFFS
The Dukes will wrangle with the Cobourg Cougars in the first round of the playoffs. The action kicks off this Friday night in Wellington.

Cobourg has endured a tough season. They struggled in the early part of the season, but rebounded sharply after dismissing their coach in mid- November. But after the Christmas break, the team had a tough schedule. The Cougars were shellacked in back-toback games against Trenton. Wellington defeated Cobourg three times since New Year.

Cobourg, nevertheless, will prove a thorny first-round opponent. The Cougars are solid enough defensively with two good netminders. They are decent penalty killers and lead the league in shorthanded goals with 16.

The next home game is set for Sunday at 5 pm in Wellington