Playoff ready
Dukes send a message to potential first round playoff opponents While the Wellington Dukes fell short of defeating the putative East Division champions on Sunday, they did, however, deliver a clear and unequivocal message to the Cobourg Cougars: Be ready for a battle in the first round of the playoffs. The Dukes have just a […]
Clinched
Dukes bound for the playoffs On Saturday afternoon, the Wellington Dukes clinched a playoff spot for the 30th consecutive season before a national audience on CHCH television. It is the kind of statistical benchmark David Brown loved to track, promote and share. Sadly, Brown passed away late last year missing this important milestone. He would […]
Showcase
Dukes and Kingston to be featured in national broadcast on Saturday afternoon Largely overlooked by folks outside of their hometown, Tier 2 Junior hockey, outside of the championship game, doesn’t often get an opportunity to present itself to a national audience. That changed this season when the OJHL teamed up with broadcaster CHCH in order […]
Thriller
Dukes defeat Oakville in an exciting display of speed and tenacity Some described it simply as the most exciting game they’ve ever witnessed. That’s something. For the Dukes have presented plenty of excitement in Wellington over the decades. But this was exceptional. The Oakville Blades were in town. The best team in the OJHL, third […]
Character win
Dukes beat Trenton, get ready to welcome the OJHL’s leading team to Wellington A large contingent had travelled from Quinte West and environs into the County to watch their Golden Hawks take on the Wellington Dukes. It made for a boisterous event—cheers and gasps with every near miss. Every solid check and every extinguished power […]
Going strong
Nine of ten points since New Year The Dukes deserved a better fate on Sunday. Although they never had the lead in the game, they were much faster. They controlled the play, won the foot races and fired more shots on net. So when Elijah Gonsalves scored from an inspired feed from Tyson Gilmour to […]
The final stretch
Dukes begin the new year with a pair of wins I begin 2019 with a correction. In last week’s column I laid out playoff scenarios for the Wellington Dukes and other teams in the East and North Division. This was all wrong. While these two divisions had formed a conference for many years, the OJHL […]
Unremarkable
The Dukes march toward the playoffs The Wellington Dukes are in the midst of a two-week Christmas break, returning to action this Friday in Pickering. Home on Sunday. The team gets back to the playoff hunt in the new year, with just 16 games remaining in the regular season, and lodged firmly in the fourth […]
Doldrums
Dukes struggle to maintain intensity The Wellington Dukes seem content to linger with the middle of the pack. The team has had a good run recently with four wins in five games. In doing so they have moved back into contention in the East Division. There have been exceptional performances, exceptional exhibitions of talent and […]
Home at last
Dukes return to Wellington on the back of a three-game winning streak The Wellington Dukes remain a puzzle. The team has, with Saturday’s victory in Whitby, now won three games in a row. Against the three top teams in the East Division. The wins came not from a wild, run and gun offensive outburst, but […]