By: Ron Valentine
TORONTO PATRIOTS (1) v, COLLINGWOOD BLUES (2)
In the regular season meetings the first two games were played at the Westwood arena in Etobicoke with the Patriots winning 2-1 in double overtime with rookie Owen McGuckin getting the decider, followed by a 3-1 win. Games three and four were at the Eddie Bush arena in Collingwood, were split, with the Patriots winning 6-4 and the Blues taking the final meeting 5-1.
The Patriots, following a 47-win, 95-point season, come into the series with an 8 -0 win/loss record in the playoffs after sweeping the Mississauga Chargers and the Milton Menace, scoring 45 goals while allowing only 14. Their goaltending tandem of Nico Armellin and Trey Caracciolo posted a combined 1.72 goals against average and a save percentage of .952 with a shutout each.
Their powerplay record over the eight games shows a 37.2% success rate, number one in the playoffs and on the penalty kill the club comes in at a respectable.84.6%.
The team boasts seven players in their last OJHL season and have the same number of 2008-born skaters for a strong combination of experience and youth.
Leading the way in scoring in the postseason is Luciano Bruno with 8 goals and 20 points, Tommy Karmiris has the most goals, with 10 and 17 points overall, Cole Cooksey has 7 goals and 14 points, followed by blueliner Lucas Vacca who has 13 points. Tate Collins stands fourth in goals scored with five. Vacca and Hudson Cummins were nominated to the OJHL first All-star team while Bruno, blueliner Luke Howard and goalie Armellin were selected to the second team.
Head Coach Vince Bellissimo looks backward and forward: "The series with Milton was physical. It's astyle our team is very comfortable with, all credit to the Menace they played hard. I was impressed with their captain Graeme MacAuley, he has had a great Jr A career and will be a very good USports defenceman. I thought we played hard and maintained our respect for the game which is very important to us. With Collingwood we know what we are up against, they have a very good organization and have a deep veteran roster. and they are well-coached. With 2 Buckland Cups and a Centennial championship in the last 3 years we kind of felt the road for us would go through Collingwood. We are excited for the challenge and it will be a great series."
The Collingwood Blues, on the heels of a second place finish in the Division with 41 wins and 87 points, beat the King Rebellion in 4 games and the Leamington Flyers 4-1 to reach the Division final, scoring 27 goals and letting in 14. Like the Patriots the club has relied on a goalkeeping tandem with Hagan Bach posting a 0.86 GAA and a save % of .964 with 2 shutouts and Maksim Corovic, nominated to the OJHL Top Prospects first team along with blueliner Heath Bogart, contributing a 1.91 GAA and a save % of .906. Their combined GAA is 1.50.
The Blues have a solid record of a 22.2% success rate, scoring six times on 27 opportunities, with the man-advantage and in the penalty killing department they are at 90.3%.
The club have only 4 players in their final OJHL year on their playoff roster- Declan Bowmaster, Owen McNamara, Tyler Crisostomo and defenceman Easton Andrews but they do have 14 skaters who were born in 2006 so they are not short on experience at the Junior level.
Blueliner Nathan Omeri leads the way with 4 goals and 9 points. Atom Thususka has the most goals with 5 and 7 points overall. Ethan Facchina leads the team in assists with six. Fourteen players have recorded at least one goal in the playoffs to date with Talan Palmer and Thususka netting 2 game winners each.
Head coach Andrew Campoli: "All of our meetings this season have been tight, fast-paced games and that's a credit to the level of competition that both teams bring every night. There is a lot of respect for the Patriots' group, they are skilled and they are talented. From our side the focus for the Collingwood Blues is on sticking to our identity. We are committed to our structure, our habits and the details that drive our 200 foot game. If we stay disciplined in those areas and play to our standard we will give ourselves the best chance to have success in what should be a highly competitive series."
Team captain Will Hughes, along with Omeri an OJHL second team All-Star, is in his second season with the club and he led the team in pointscoring in the regular season with 26 goals and 78 points from 50 games, comments on the post-season: "Our group is excited to have the opportunity to play in the Western Conference final following two tight series against King and Leamington. Our games against the Patriots this regular season have been nothing short of exciting for both teams and this will continue into the final. Both lineups showcase a lot of depth and we know that we are going to have to focus on our good habits and to continue to be successful we have to play Collingwood Blues hockey night after night."
It's shaping up to be a serious meeting of the hockey minds with the prize being a berth in the Buckland Cup, 2026 edition.
