2021-22 Hamilton Bulldogs: Record Breakers
What a year it’s been for the Hamilton Bulldogs from breaking several single season records, to winning the Leyden Trophy for the second time, winning the Hamilton Spectator Trophy for the first time, and breaking the franchise wins record with an incredible 51, the Bulldogs have had a tremendous season despite dealing with injuries that have only ever allowed the team to ice their full line-up together once all year.
When looking at the individual records being broken, threeplayers lead the charge from different positions, with each earning the title of OHL Player of the Month along the way this season. Logan Morrison, Nathan Staios and Marco Costantini have each taken their game to new heights this season and spurred on team success in the process. Bouncing back from a lost season last year, these three wasted no time setting the standard for their team, leading both on and off the ice. Earlier this season we sat down with Logan Morrison to talk about his success to that point and standards he has set for himself from being part of the leadership teamand as one of the older players. Being in the top 10 for assists all season Morrison broke the franchise single season record for assists with 66, surpassing Arthur Kaliyev’s 64 in 2019-20. Morrison previously told us “It’s pretty cool and I kind of expected that out of myself this year obviously being an older guy now and being a leader on the team and that’s what I know the coaches want me to do is provide offence so it’s obviously really nice to have that but I kind of expect that to myself at the same time”. The expectations he’s set for himself have definitely been met if not exceed now adding the franchise’s second 100-point season to his total, with his 4-point effort on the last day of the season joining him with Arthur Kaliyev as the only Bulldogs to accomplish the feat.
Passing Morrison for most single season records broken this year we see another member of the Bulldogs leadership team collecting milestones as defensemen Nathan Staios racked up three. An offensive grand slam for the sublimely talented rearguard, setting new Hamilton Bulldogs marks for most goals, assists and points for a defensemen in a single season while leading the Ontario Hockey League in total for points by a defenseman. Staios’ 15 goals surpassed the 2018-19 total of Nicolas Mattinen, while his 51 assists & 66 points each propelled him past former defense partner Kade Landry’s 2018-19 marks of 45 & 51 to claim each of those marks as well. Dynamic from the moment he dawned the black & gold, Staios’ 66 points made him the first Hamilton Bulldogs defenseman to lead the league in defensive scoring.
Not to be outdone, “Marvelous” Marco Costantini has had a season to remember setting five Hamilton Bulldogs franchise records, while also leading the OHL in Goals Against Average, Save Percentage and Shutouts. Costantini wrestled away the single season records for GAA (2.32), SV% (.917), and shutouts (6), which is also the new Bulldogs career shutouts record, along with the longest winning streak by a goaltender in Bulldogs history winning his final 17 starts of the season while his 31 total wins in 45 games on the season put him second in franchise history. In addition to re-writing the Bulldogs goaltending record book, Costantini also teamed with Matteo Drobac & Tristan Malboeuf to win the OHL’s Dave Pinkney Trophy for the fewest goals allowed in the 2021-22 season at 176, 13 less than the nearest challenger. Recognized as the top goaltender in the Ontario Hockey League this season, Costantini gave the Bulldogs the chance to win each and every time he stepped between the pipes and set record marks that may stand in Hamilton for a long, long time.
Though those record breakers stand out, they were far from the only major accomplishments by Bulldogs players this season, defenseman Gavin White also passed Kade Landry’s previous single season defensive scoring record finishing now only second to Nathan Staios with a 55-point season of his own. Avery Hayes joined Arthur Kaliyev as only the second Bulldogs player to record 40 goals in a season, while George Diaco & Ryan Humphrey each had ironman seasons, playing in all 68 games while recording career highs in goals, assists and points.
The individual success of these Bulldogs though was part of something more than any one of them individually, it was a piece of the puzzle to a historic season in Hamilton hockey that saw the Bulldogs break a record that had been held for nearly a half-century. The 1975-76 Hamilton Fincups & the 2017-18 Hamilton Bulldogs shared the long-standing Hamilton junior record of 43 wins in a regular season, the 2021-22 Hamilton Bulldogs not only broke that record but took it to 51 wins and 107 total points, both new records in the city of Hamilton. Inside that team success, the will to win of each player is infectious, with each player committing to a 200-foot game, team first approach and has led to the Bulldogs finishing the season with the top 8 players in plus/minus in the OHL and 9 of the top-10.
For these Hamilton Bulldogs, the records broken, the history written, the memories made for them and their fans has brought them the opportunity to make it just the beginning as they begin their chase for the franchise’s second J. Ross Robertson Cup & first Memorial Cup on April 21st.
