Depth

Short-handed Dukes rally from 4-0 deficit and nearly steal a win

Dukes forward Cam Yuill hustles up the ice to stay during play against the Peterborough Liftlock Stars on Friday night at the DukeDome. Yuill picked up an assist on the game winner in overtime.

The Wellington Dukes might have been foregiven for taking the night off on Monday. After all it was their third game in four nights and three of their best players were in Manitoba getting ready to play in the CJHL NHL prospects games (Tuesday and Wednesday). Early on in Cobourg, that is how the game seemed it would play out as the Cougars skated out to a 4-0 lead in the second period.

Other teams might have rolled over, taken the loss and gone home. The Dukes, however, are not other teams. The turnround began from an unlikely source. Mitch Rosborough hasn’t been in the Dukes lineup since the third week of October. He has been toiling ever since with the Picton Pirates.

But with forwards Brian Bunnett, Darcy Greenaway and defenceman Curtis Leonard out of the lineup Rosborough was called back to the Dukes’ fold. Subbing for Bunnett on a line with Zack Jones and Simon Bessette, Rosborough scored early in the second period—his first this season as a Dukes player. Wellington was alive.

The Dukes would go on to score four more unanswered goals—a pair from Brendon Barletta and one each from Zach Blake and Bessette. The Dukes had battled all the way back from a 4-0 defict and now led the game 5-4. Midway through the final frame, the Cougars scored to tie the game at five.

Then with just a minute left in regulation time-Barletta was tagged for holding. Overtime rules mean that each team plays with four players. The Dukes, with Barletta still in the box, were forced to play with three. They were six seconds away from killing the penalty when Cobourg scored—narrowly escaping with the win.

Though a disappointing loss, Dukes fans are likely to appreciate the effort. For their part Cobourg now understands that even at less than full strength the Wellington Dukes remain a formidable force.

The overtime loss gives the Dukes a single point for a total of 50—seven points ahead of second-place Kingston in the East Division race. According to Dukes statistician Dave Brown, this milestone marks the fourteenth consecutive season of playing .500 or better, and the twentieth in their 22-year history.

TENDERIZING THE BEEFY STARS

On Friday the Dukes welcomed the rough-and-tumble Peterborough Stars to Wellington. The Stars have been inconsistent this season, using their size and strength at times to out-muscle other teams, but rarely in back-to back-games.

The Dukes have dropped two of their seven losses so far to Peterborough this season. Early on it appeared it might be another long night for the Dukes as the Stars’ Troy Barss skated down the wing and found a seam between Jordan Ruby’s shoulder and net post, just 30 seconds into the game.

Later in the period Joe Zarbo scored on the power play. But a moment later Peterborough’s Corey O’Brien beat Ruby through a crowd. To celebrate the goal, Peterborough forward Ryan Donahoe flattened a Dukes defenceman, earning a two-minute penalty. Ten seconds later Sean Rudy scored to tie the score again—making the Stars pay for their lack of discipline.

Before the period was up, Darcy Greenaway took the lead. The second period was fast and furious but provided no scoring. Midway through the third period Peterborough scored on the power play to force the game into overtime. In OT Curtis Leonard teed up a blast from the point. Zach Blake picked up the rebound, found a slot and scored to give the Dukes the win.

The assist was Leonard’s third of the game, earning the sturdy defenceman player of the game honours.

WHITEOUT

Dukes forward Brendon Barletta

On Sunday the Dukes travelled through blizzard conditions to Pickering to take on the Panthers. In true workmanlike manner the Dukes methodically dismantled the Panthers, first disabling their key offensive weapons, Justin McDonald and Tyler vonEngelbrechten. Then they unleashed their own arsenal. Rusty Hafner and Joe Zarbo scored in the first. The Darcys, Greenaway and Murphy, added two more in the second. Simon Bessette tallied in the third, giving the Dukes a 5-0 lead. But it didn’t hold. Pickering scored a couple minutes later on the power play with the Dukes’ Zach Blake in the penalty box for slashing.

UP NEXT: COBOURG AND TORONTO

On Friday night the Cobourg Cougars will have the honour of playing the final game in the DukeDome. The Cougars will be looking to improve upon their Monday night performance in which they very nearly allowed the Dukes to come back and win a game the had in the bag.

The Dukes, however will have Bunnett, Greenaway and Leonard back in the lineup on Friday. They will have the added motivation of playing well in their last home game under the Dome.

On Sunday the Dukes travel to Toronto to the dreary Chesswood arena, where about 60 fans are likely to show up. The last time these teams met the Dukes doubled Toronto by a 6-3 score in mid-October.

Though they sit second last in the South Division and likely won’t make the playoffs, Toronto still has the potential to steal games from teams that take them lightly. The Dukes aren’t likely to make that mistake on Saturday.

SAYING GOODBYE TO THE OLD DUKEDOME

It is appropriate that Cobourg and Wellington will square off in this final game in the DukeDome, according to Dave Brown. These two teams have been opponents for longer than any other teams.

Back in 1998, the Dukes moved from the Metro Junior ‘A’ League to what is now called the Ontario Junior Hockey League. They were placed in a 13-team East Division and the Cougars are the only team that has remained with the Dukes throughout this period of time as a result of shifts to the Central Division and the CCHL.

Yet another connection is that Cobourg’s current coach is Wayne Marchment. Marchment guided the Dukes for two seasons, 1993-95.

The Dukes and Cougars had one memorable playoff series back in 2002 when they met for the East Division Championship, and while the Dukes swept the series in four games, two of the games went into overtime.

It’s been a rough period for the Cougars having been only able to win one playoff round in the past eight seasons (the Dukes have won 23 rounds over the same time span). However, this year’s Cougar edition is right up there in the standings in what is the tightest race in years. In a scheduling quirk, the Dukes will play the Cougars six times over the final 21 games of the regular season. The first was on Monday while the second will be this Friday as fans say goodbye to the old DukeDome.