By: Ron Valentine: Featured Writer (Ron will be covering the Centennial Cup from PEI)
The Toronto Patriots will play the Greater Sudbury Cubs of the Northern Ontario Jr Hockey League, the Flin Flon Bombers of the Saskatchewan Jr Hockey League, the Maritime League’s Truro Bearcats and the College Francais de Longueuil of the Quebec Jr League in the round robin portion of the Centennial Cup as 10 teams from across the country vie for the National Championship.
The Patriots will open the Cup schedule with a game against the Cubs at noon on Thursday May 7th. They take a playoff record of 16-3-0-1 into the tournament courtesy sweeps of the Mississauga Chargers and the Milton Menace, a hard- fought seven game set with the Collingwood Blues and a 5-game Buckland Cup victory over the Newmarket Hurricanes. This followed on the heels of a regular campaign that saw the club post 95 points, including 47 wins and a goal differential of +148 in the Western Conference. They were led in postseason scoring by playoff MVP Luciano Bruno who put up 37 points including 10 goals along with Tommy Karmiris, with a team high of 16 goals and 27 points. Tommy was tied with Cole Cooksey who had 15 goals and they were followed by blueliner Lucas Vacca with 24 points. In goal, the dynamic duo of Trey Caracciolo and Nico Armellin combined for a goals against average of 2.19, 3 shutouts and a save percentage of .938.
The Cubs ran rampant in the NOJHL playoffs with a 12-0 record, getting past the Kirkland Lake Gold Miners and the Soo Eagles before claiming the Copeland Cup, beating the Timmins Rock. That followed a regular season where they finished first in the 11-game league with 83 points from 52 games and boasted a goal differential of +174. The Cubs’ leading playoff pointscorer was Briir Long with 10 goals and 28 points followed by Mason Walker with 9 goals and 27 points. Former Niagara Falls Canuck goalie Ian Wintle played in 10 games and posted a 2.28 GAA, a save % of .934 and 2 shutouts. Other former OJHL’ers on the team are forward Owen King (Milton) and blueliner Tyson Rismond (Haliburton CountyHuskies).
Game 2 for the Patriots goes Saturday May 9th at 4 o’clock with the opposition being the Flin Flon Bombers of the SJHL. The Bombers were Canterra Seeds Cup champions, topping the Yorkton Terriers in 4 games straight. In the first round of the playoffs they got past the Estevan Bruins in 4 games, followed by a 7-game series win over the Weyburn Red Wings. In their regular season Flin Flon finished first in the 4-team UPL Division earning 41 wins and 86 points, tops in the League, from 56 games. Leading the way in the playoffs for the Bombers was Connor Miller with 9 goals and 15 points followed by Reid Arberry with 5 goals and 9 assists for 14 points. In goal Charlie Tritt had a GAA of 1.67 and 4 shutouts in 14 games.
Game 3 for the OJHL champs is Monday May 11th at 7.30 against the MHL playoff winners, the Truro Bearcats. In round 1 of the playoffs the Bearcats beat the Weeks County Crushers 4-1. In round 2 they edged the host Summerside Western Capitals in 7 games enroute to the Metal Fab final where they beat the Edmundston Blizzard in 5 games. Their playoff points leaders were Callum Aucoin with 11 goals and 15 points, Eli Baillargeon with 14 points, Jake Todd on 13 and Antoine Fontaine and Liam Walsh posting 11 points. Sam Berthiaume and Louca Connolly shared goalkeeping duties and combined for a GAA of 1.99. It was a close call in the regular season for the Bearcats in the Eastlink South Division as they finished tied with Summerside on 72 points. The Capitals who won first place with the most regulation wins. On defence for the Truro will be Jayden Connors who played in the OJHL for the St Michael’s Buzzers for a season and a half while another defenceman, Alex Hendry, a former Wellington Duke, will suit up for the host Capitals.
The final game of the round robin goes Wednesday May 13th at noon against the LHJAAAQ champion, College Francais de Longueuil. In the regular season they topped the 13-team League with 41 wins and 83 points from 48 games while posting a goal differential of +136. In the playoffs quarter final the club got past the Valleyfield Braves 4-1, next up L’Everest de la Cote-du-Sud in 4 straight and then in the championship came a sweeping of the Condors du Cegep-Beauce Appalaches. Isaiah Parent led the College’s playoff scorers with 10 goals and 18 points, tied with Gabriel Provencher who had 4 goals and 14 assists. In net, Mathis Lacroix-Goulet played all 13 games posting a .946 save percentage and a GAA of 1.42.
The Patriots Head Coach is Vince Bellissimo. He is in season 3 with the club, having spent 3 years with the Toronto Jr Canadiens and a season with the Aurora Tigers. The Cubs bench boss is Daryl Moxam. He is in season 4 with the team, following 6 campaigns as Assistant and Associate Coach for the OHL’s Sudbury Wolves. The Bombers’ GM/Head Coach is Mike Reagan, he started as bench boss in 2006. The Bearcats’ Jon Greenwood is in his second season as Head Coach and for the College, Jonathan Castonguay is in his first season after being Assistant in Valleyfield for 2 years.
