OHL Conference Championship Series set to begin Friday
For the remaining four teams in the Ontario Hockey League playoffs, it’s trophy hunting season.
The Hamilton Bulldogs and North Bay Battalion will open their OHL Eastern Conference Championship Series Friday as they battle for the Bobby Orr Trophy while the Flint Firebirds and Windsor Spitfires will square off for the Wayne Gretzky Trophy to declare the OHL Western Conference Champion. Their series opens Saturday night.
“We’re really looking forward to the next challenge and that’s the number one ranked team in the Hamilton Bulldogs,” Battalion head coach Ryan Oulahen said.
It’ll be a stern test for North Bay. After Hamilton concluded the regular season on a 10-game winning streak, they swept Peterborough and Mississauga in the first two rounds of the OHL Playoffs.
However, the Battalion themselves have played one game over the minimum this postseason after a 4-0 series win over Ottawa and a 4-1 victory against Kingston.
“Anything that both teams are going to get on the ice is going to be earned,” Bulldogs head coach Jay McKee said. “We’re going to have our hands full.”
Offence is going to be front and centre between the two clubs. In its eight playoff tilts, the Bulldogs have averaged 4.75 goals per game, led by Logan Morrison, who after a 100-point regular season, has notched nine goals and 16 points in the playoffs. Mason McTavish has also scored nine times in eight games this postseason.
“Logan has been arguably our MVP,” McKee said. “When you get that combination of skill, the IQ, the leadership and the work ethic, you really get a complete player. We’re really grateful to have a player like him, not only on the ice but in the dressing room, and help be a leader on this hockey club. He’s been fantastic.”
The Battalion counter with Brandon Coe, Matvey Petrov and Mitchell Russell. The three combined for 115 goals and 279 points during the regular season while Russell leads the OHL Playoffs in points per game at 2.44 with 22 points (nine goals) in just nine games.
“What you see at this time of year is that the guys that have the skill and the ability, if they can ramp up the compete along with what the rest of what the other team does, they are going to have success,” Oulahen said.
During the regular season, the teams split their four-game series 2-2. The Battalion won the first two games, both before Christmas, while the Bulldogs won the final two matchups. This will be the first time the two teams have met in the OHL Playoffs.
“We’re a group that looks to take challenges head on and we know that’s what North Bay is going to be,” Bulldogs captain Colton Kammerer said. “This is going to be a big challenge for us but if we can come out of this, it will raise our confidence for sure.”
On the West side, for Ted Dent’s Firebirds, the sole focus is going to be shutting down Wyatt Johnston.
“If you have the answer, maybe let me know,” Dent joked. “He’s obviously a great hockey player … you can’t really stop guys like that, you can only try to contain them and limit their chances. He’s an elite player in this league and someone we want to keep an eye on for sure.”
Johnston led the entire CHL with 124 points this season while his 46 goals were tied for the 10th most. The 23rd overall pick in the NHL Draft in 2021 by Dallas has added eight goals and 23 points in 11 playoff games.
The Spitfires were pedestrian to start the season as they came out the gates with an 8-9-3 record but recovered in an exceptional way to finish atop the Eastern Conference with 44 wins and 95 points under rookie head coach Marc Savard.
“There’s been a lot of ups and downs, especially with Covid, and they just seemed to battle through that without any complaints,” Savard said. “We didn’t have the greatest start to the year, but we stuck with it, trusted the process and here we are today looking forward to a great series against Flint.”
Windsor find themselves in the Western Conference Finals after series wins over Sarnia (4-2) and Kitchener (4-1).
“These kids have battled all year and I’m really proud of them,” Savard said. “We’ve seen some great steps from a lot of our players.”
On the other bench, Dent, also in his first year as an OHL head coach, led the Firebirds to a record setting season as they claimed the third seed in the Western Conference. The team’s 42 wins and 89 points were both franchise bests while captain Brennan Othmann’s 97 points set a new franchise record.
“It’s been a great year for our group,” Dent said.
Flint got out of the first round courtesy of a 4-2 win over Owen Sound in Game 7 before they defeated Sault Ste. Marie in five games.
“Our group’s playing really well right now and we’re really excited for this series,” Othmann, who has 17 points this postseason, said.
During the regular season, Windsor dominated the series. The Spitfires went 7-0-1 versus Flint with the Firebirds lone win coming Feb. 19 in a shootout. This will be the first time the two sides have met in the OHL Playoffs.
“We’re really confident going into it,” Spits captain Will Cuylle said. “We’re going to be ready for whatever they throw at us.”
Hamilton vs. North Bay Series Schedule:
Game 1, Fri., May 20 at Hamilton, 7:00pm
Game 2, Sun., May 22 at Hamilton, 7:00pm
Game 3, Wed., May 25 at North Bay, 7:00pm
Game 4, Fri., May 27 at North Bay, 7:00pm
Game 5, Sun., May 29 at Hamilton, 7:00pm*
Game 6, Tues., May 31 at North Bay, 7:00pm*
Game 7, Wed., June 1 at Hamilton, 7:00pm*
*if necessary
Flint vs. Windsor Series Schedule:
Game 1, Sat., May 21 at Windsor, 7:05pm
Game 2, Mon., May 23 at Windsor, 7:05pm
Game 3, Wed., May 25 at Flint, 7:00pm
Game 4, Fri., May 27 at Flint, 7:00pm
Game 5, Sun., May 29 at Windsor, 7:05pm*
Game 6, Tues., May 31 at Flint, 7:00pm*
Game 7, Wed., June 1 at Windsor, 7:05pm*
*if necessary