Signs of life

Dukes rally to defeat Stouffville

Will Cook weaves through the Trenton defence like a rabbit in the woods.The last time the Dukes finished a season with more losses than wins was the 1996-97 season, when Andrew Raycroft was the netminder. Raycroft won the rookie of the year honours that season, despite his team’s less-than-stellar performance. He went on to a 12-year NHL career.

The 2015 Dukes have spent the season tripping back and forth over the .500 line. With a big win on Sunday, the Dukes edged closer to a winning record. The team currently has a .488 record—that is, it has won 48.8 per cent of its regular season games. But the season isn’t over. There are 13 games remaining—13 opportunities to improve their record and secure a playoff spot.

According to statistics master David Brown, the Dukes are seeking to run their consecutive playoff appearances to 26. But to do so, they will have to finish stronger than they began the season.

Both Pickering and Lindsay would love to knock the Dukes out of the eighth and final playoff spot in the North East conference. But it is unclear either team has the horses or schedule to make it happen. Pickering, just two points behind the Dukes, is stumbling down the stretch with only three wins in its nine games since the Christmas break. Lindsay is farther back, seven points behind Wellington, yet the Muskies appear to have a bit more vigour since the break, with four wins in nine games as well as an over-time loss against Whitby last Friday.

After a lacklustre game on Friday against Quinte Bay rivals Trenton Golden Hawks, the Dukes summoned an inspired performance versus the visiting Stouffville Spirit on Sunday.

They were led, as usual by captain Joe McKeown who scored a hat trick. But it was linemate Will Cook who has become the Dukes’ barometer of success. When fully engaged, Cook is the most talented player on the ice. On Sunday, he moved the puck through the Stouffville team as though they were orange pylons. He dug the puck out of the corner over and over again, navigating his way to a shooting lane. His power and skill force opposing teams to chase him, freeing up his linemates.

Though his name appeard only once on the game sheet on Sunday—an assist—Cook was unquestionably the difference in the Dukes’ performance compared with the previous game. Yet it remains an open question whether the 20- year-old has the fire to play that kind of game night after night. The Dukes will need that fire to ensure the decades-old record of playoff appearances remains unbroken.

The test will come tonight, when the Dukes travel to Trenton for the final match between the Bay of Quinte rivals in the regular season.

Dukes defenceman Jake Falcao positions himself to block a shot by Trenton’s Brady Wiffen.

TRENTON 5 – DUKES 1
Many Wellington fans hadn’t yet made it to their seats when Trenton scored—just 25 seconds into the game. But despite the early setback, the Dukes battled back—pushing Trenton into their own end. Wellington put 14 shots on net in the first period—likely as many fired just wide—but none crossed the goal line.

Before the period was done, Trenton’s Blayne Olivier made a strong rush into the Dukes zone, dropped a pass back to the trailing forward. Loren Ullett’s slapshot gave the Trenton the 2-0 lead, though the Dukes had controlled much of the play.

When Cook was tagged for interference early in the second period, Trenton needed just four seconds to capitalize. The Golden Hawks added another goal midway through the frame to widen their lead to 4-0.

Late in the third, Cook broke up a Trenton power play pass, moving the puck to McKeown, streaking up the wing.

McKeown buried his chance, finally giving the hometown crowd something to cheer about. Sadly, the celebration for his shorthanded goal was shortlived. The Golden Hawks scored just 27 seconds later, and the game ended 5- 1 in favour of Golden Hawks, who enjoyed the support of a large flock of visiting fans.

DUKES 4 – STOUFFVILLE 2
This was the fifth game for the Dukes without defenceman Andrew Coupland, who has been sidelined by injury. Fellow defenceman Brody Morris played with the Bulls earlier in the afternoon, earning an assist. It had the makings of another long evening.

But Wellington stepped on the ice on Sunday night with a renewed sense of determination, outshooting and outplaying the North division’s second best team. Cook dominated every shift—carrying the puck brilliantly, weaving through traffic and winning skirmishes along the boards. After one such display the Stouffville team was exhausted attempting to stop him, but couldn’t get off the ice. Jacob Panetta made the long pass to McKeown, who skated past the Spirit defence and lasered a shot into the top corner.

Early in the second, Stouffville beat Dukes’ netminder Daniel Potter to knot the score at one. Then, as the buzzer sounded to end the period, the Spirit’s Brill-Morgan was caught delivering the butt-end of his stick to the Dukes agitator. Panetta and Cook combined on the power play to deliver McKeown the puck. The captain’s shot slipped through the netminder’s pads. But moments later Stouffville evened the score again, beating Potter on a broken defensive play.

With the clock winding down, it seemed the game might end in the lottery of overtime. But Jacob Hetherington hit Luc Brown with a long lead pass at the Stouffville blueline. With a neat flick of the incoming puck, both Brown and the puck were around the defenceman. Brown took another stride and hammered a shot on net, cleanly beating the flatfooted netminder. McKeown added an empty net goal to seal the win.

UP NEXT: TRENTON, ORANGEVILLE AND BUFFALO
The Dukes visit Trenton tonight. It is the fifth and final time they face the Golden Hawks in the regular season. The Dukes and Trenton have each won two.

The Dukes welcome Orangeville to Wellington on Friday night. The Dukes beat the Flyers 6-2 in their only other regular season match on November 1. Orangeville is likely to hang on to second spot in the weak West Division—sixth overall in the South East conference.

The Dukes are scheduled to face the Buffalo Junior Sabres in a make-up game on Super Bowl Sunday at 3:30 p.m.

Buffalo is in third place behind Orangeville in the West Division. Wellington defeated the Junior Sabres 7-2 when they visited Buffalo in late September.