Bumping along

A win and overtime loss against teams the Dukes needed to beat

As long as the score stayed close, Aurora remained civil. When it became clear they would lose—in Wellington— a fact that became evident in the latter stages of the second period—the Tigers looked for redemption in other more illmannered ways.

After losing two games that should have been wins, the Dukes needed a bounce back at home in front of a friendly crowd.

The first bounce came early. The Dukes started the game on the power play as the Tigers served a delay of game penalty—that became a two-man advantage as another Tiger player was assessed a tripping penalty. Mitch Mendonca scored his seventh goal since joining the Dukes nine games ago.

Then Wellington began to send a procession of its own players to the penalty box. Five minor penalties assessed in a span of a little more than eight minutes—some piled on top of others.

Yet the Dukes retained a one-goal lead into the second period. But the Tigers beat Connor Ryckman early to tie the score. With a head of steam, Aurora pushed through the second frame looking for the go-ahead goal.

But with 90 seconds left in the period, Jackson Arcan converted an Austin Labelle play. The Dukes had gone ahead.

Midway through the third, Aurora’s Anthony Paveglio was summoned to the penalty box for the second time in the game. Penalized in the first period, it had cost his team a goal. He would do so again. With a man-advantage, Brayden Stortz and Nic Mucci set up Justin Bean, whose shot sealed Wellington’s 3-1 victory.

DUKES 2 – MISSISSAUGA 3 OT
The Dukes fell behind early in the sparsely populated rink in Port Credit on Saturday night. Stortz tied up the game a few moments later. But the Dukes were always chasing in this game— against a Mississauga team that had won just five games in 20 starts before Saturday’s match.

The Dukes scored at the end of the second period, but after time had run off the clock according to the on-ice officials.

The Chargers regained the lead a couple of minutes after Stortz’s goal; after the Dukes top scorer was penalized for a high stick. A penaltyfilled second period made for listless action on the ice. It was on the last of the second-period penalties that Brody Morris scored, drawing the Dukes even at two goals apiece with four seconds left in the period.

There was nothing left in the tank, on either side. The Dukes and Chargers managed just four shots on net apiece in the final period. It would take one and half overtime periods before this game was settled. Mississauga’s Chris Karrabassis beat Ryckman for the win, to the scattered cheers of a few moms and girlfriends.

UP NEXT: KINGSTON AND BUFFALO
Wellington has a better record than rivals Kingston, but the Voyageurs are always dangerous, particularly so lately—playing Trenton to a draw last week and thumping Stouffville 7-2 the weekend before.

Kingston’s leading scorer, Danny Bosio—with 33 points including 17 goals—was named the OJHL’s North-West Conference Player of the Month for October. The Dukes travel to Kingston on Thursday for just their second match against the Voyageurs so far this season. At the end of September Wellington beat Kingston 4-1. Stortz scored two and assisted on the other two goals for Wellington.

On Friday, the Dukes welcome Buffalo—fresh from a tumultuous election in that country. Buffalo has beaten weaker teams this season—something Wellington has failed at recently—but struggled against the stronger competitors. The Junior Sabres languish in the middle of the South Division with a .500 record after 21 games. Worryingly from the Duke’s perspective, Buffalo plays better on the road than at home.

Game time on Friday is 7:30 p.m.