Neither here nor there

Dukes fade into the middle of the pack

After a poor outing at home on Wednesday, the Dukes rebounded in Pickering on Friday. The team is still reeling from the loss of Jack Lisson, Wellington’s former number-one netminder. Lisson is now guarding the net for the West Kelowna Grizzlies of the BCHL.

Into his place Dario Cantini has been thrust. The New Brunswick 20-year-old struggled in his first game as a Dukes player on Friday night. On Saturday, the defence tightened up, enabling Cantini to turn away all but two of 25 shots, leading his team to a 5-2 win.

It may be that the Dukes relied on Lisson to mask their defensive gaps—Cantini will need more help from his teammates.

MARKHAM 5 – DUKES 2
Friday was also the debut of a talented defenceman, Ryan Castle. Castle had an immediate impact—smart decisions, quick passes and an understanding of when to carry the puck out of the defensive zone.

Wellington managed to control the play in the early going, creating scoring chances on Markham’s Sebastian Monaco. But two quick goals midway through the frame—both partial breaks.

The Dukes tightened up defensively in the second but couldn’t beat Monaco. Then, the killer. The Dukes were on the power play. An errant pass. A breakaway. Low shot, near side. Tough goal.

That bad turn sparked some life into the sleepy hometeam. Riley Noble’s rifle shot got the Dukes on the board while on the power play. Then Quinn McNamara found the puck in a scramble, scoring his first in the OJHL.

The Dukes were within a goal of tying a game they should not have been losing.

But two empty net goals by the Royals squelched any hope for a comeback.

DUKES 4 – PICKERING 2
Sacha Trudel had a night on Friday. By the middle of the second period in Pickering, the Dukes had pelted the Panther’s netminder with more than 20 shots. But no goals. Pickering beat Santini midway through the period. But moments later, Trudel snatched an errant pass and scored short-handed.

Early in the third, Trudel set up Ben Vreugdenhil for his 10th goal of the season. A moment later Zach Mascard widened the Dukes’ lead. Late in the period, the Panthers scored on the power play. But Trudel sealed the Dukes’ win with an empty net goal.

UP NEXT: COBOURG, LINDSAY AND AURORA
Wellington welcomes Cobourg to the Dukedome on Friday night. It is the first meeting of the former divisional rivals. The Cougars are just ahead of the Dukes with 22 points, but have a lesser winning percentage. Cobourg has won three of its last five games including a 5-2 victory over Haliburton on the weekend.

After a strong start, the Lindsay Muskies and Wellington and Cobourg have settled into the middle of the East Conference pack. After Trenton and Haliburton, one of these teams is but a streak away from seizing third spot in the conference.

Saturday’s game in Lindsay will also be the first time Wellington and Muskies meet this season. Lindsay tends to allow a lot of goals—particularly power play goals. One of these teams seems ready to go on a heater soon.

On Sunday, the Dukes welcome Aurora to Wellington for a rematch. The Tigers doubled up on the Dukes 6-3 just over a week ago in Aurora. It was the Tigers’ lone win in five games.

Game time is 2:30 in Wellington.