In the hunt

Griffin McCarty drives to the net against Aurora last Wednesday.

Dukes in search of an identity

The Wellington Dukes cling stubbornly to a playoff spot in the northeast conference after a win and a pair of losses over the last week. The difference this week is that they now share that spot with the Pickering Panthers and the Newmarket Hurricane. Only two will make it.

The Dukes will spend this weekend along the 401 corridor—facing St. Michael’s on Friday, Georgetown on Saturday and Whitby on Sunday. These are becoming must-win games for the Dukes—not necessarily to secure the final playoff spot, but to demonstrate to themselves and to their fans they belong among the elite teams in the OJHL.

They will get no better opportunity to test that hypothesis than this weekend.

The Dukes supplemented two positions before the trade deadline. They obtained centreman Nick Gomerich from the BCHL and Daniel Potter—an 18-year-old netminder from Toronto—acquired from Blind River of the NOJHL.

The Dukes may also benefit from a deal that saw defenceman David Hopfer added to the Picton Pirates last week. The 19-yearold defenceman started the season with the Buffalo Junior Sabres of the OJHL and then played with two teams in the CCHL before his rights were dealt to the Dukes affiliate in Picton.

Josh Supryka scored twice on Sunday, helping his team reach a 7-1 road win in Milton.

DUKES 7 – MILTON 1

The Dukes rebounded on the road in Milton on Sunday after two home losses last week to Aurora and Kingston.

Although the Dukes dominated the opening period, the score was tied at one goal apiece at the first break. But in the second, the Dukes blew the doors off—scoring five unanswered goals. They added another in the third to cap the 7-1 win. Captain Joe McKeown had a pair of goals. Linemate Abbott Girduckis had a goal and three assists. Will Cook earned three assists, and Josh Supryka had a pair of goals.

KINGSTON 4 – DUKES 1
On Friday the Dukes allowed a game to slip out of their grasp. Both Kingston and Wellington were up for the renewed rivarly. Throughout the first period, it was fast-paced, hard-hitting action. But late in the period, a Kingston player was left unchecked on the power play, and the Voyageurs had the lead. Early in the next frame, Kingtson’s Cole Bolton got his stick on a point shot—redirecting it into the Dukes net.

Olivier Lafrenière was playing well. The Dukes were still in the game. But they had to find away to score. A moment later, Ben Sokay dug the puck out of a flurry of elbows and slid it to the stick of Wes St. Amand in the slot. St. Amand hit the open net.

The Dukes were alive. But Kingston tightened up. The Dukes hit some posts, but couldn’t edge closer. Late in the second, Kingston scored to widen their lead. The Dukes came out with force in the third period, but couldn’t gain any traction. Kingston scored again. That was it.

New forward Nick Gomerich scored in his second game with the Dukes. Both he and Wes St. Amand played in Powell River of the BCHL last season.

AURORA 2 – DUKES 0

On Wednesday, the Dukes took on the league-leading Aurora Tigers in a thrilling game at home. Both teams played hard and fast. They also played smart—rarely giving up odd-man chances. But the Dukes’ sticks had gone quiet. More posts rang with fury—but no goals. Aurora at last broke the draw late in the second period. It was all they needed.

An empty net goal finished the scoring.

The only silver lining was that Dukes fans could see their team could skate and compete with the best team in the OJHL. But the Dukes will need find a way to put the puck in the net against better teams— not just ring posts.

UP NEXT: ST. MIKE’S, GEORGETOWN AND WHITBY
The Buzzers have had a sub .500 season, but still pose a worrying threat—having beaten both Aurora and Cobourg. Perennial powerhouse Georgetown leads the West Conference by a considerable margin. But in their only other meeting this season, the Dukes soundly defeated the Raiders 5-1 in mid-November. The Whitby Fury are locked in a battle with Kingston for third place in the East. The Dukes have struggled against Whitby so far this season—losing all three previous match-ups. It’s time to correct the balance.

CORRECTION
The Dukes will play Buffalo on February 1 in a makeup game in Wellington. Last week’s story reported the wrong date for the game.