[{"id":38270,"date":"2026-04-12T18:17:55","date_gmt":"2026-04-12T22:17:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/?p=38270"},"modified":"2026-04-12T18:17:55","modified_gmt":"2026-04-12T22:17:55","slug":"danford-the-hero-in-overtime-marathon-to-take-series-command","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/article\/danford-the-hero-in-overtime-marathon-to-take-series-command","title":{"rendered":"DANFORD THE HERO IN OVERTIME MARATHON TO TAKE SERIES COMMAND \u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

NORTH BAY, ONTARIO.<\/strong> The Brantford Bulldogs Eastern Conference Semi-Final series with the North Bay Battalion turned north on Sunday afternoon for Game 3 at the Boart Longyear Memorial Gardens. Entering Game 3 with a 2-0 series lead, the Bulldogs were looking to take a stranglehold on the series.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Ryan Chamberlain made his OHL Playoffs debut on Sunday afternoon with Dylan Tsherna listed as day-to-day after exiting Game 2. The Battalion got exactly the start they were looking for on home ice as just 34-seconds into the game, Cam Warren found himself skating down the middle of the ice alone after Owen Protz had lost his helmet and needed to make a change on the Bulldogs bench. Warren\u2019s shot got into the pads of Ryerson Leenders but just squeezed through for Warren\u2019s 4th<\/sup> of the playoffs and the Battalion\u2019s first lead of the series. Leenders was solid following the early marker, denying Battalion captain Ethan Procyszyn on a one-timer from the left-circle and making a nice blocker stop on a Lirim Amidovski drive from above the left circle. The Bulldogs killed off a delay of game penalty around the mid-point of the period and turned the momentum of the frame from there. Mike McIvor, making his first start of the series, had to be sharp in guiding 10 shots aside through the period. Marek Vanacker poured three on the North Bay goal through the first 20 minutes, while McIvor robbed Zachary Sandhu on a clear breakaway out of the penalty box, to keep the Battalion lead intact to the locker room.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The middle frame was controlled by the Bulldogs, outshooting the Battalion by a 15-2 margin over the period. Mike McIvor was forced to be brilliant under consistent pressure and responded after the Bulldogs knotted the game. Charlie Paquette drew the early period power-play with a power move off the right-wing, dropping his shoulder and driving the front of the North Bay net, forcing Adrian Manzo into a holding penalty. It was Paquette who notched the goal on the man advantage as well. Edison Engle laid the puck low on the right side for Jett Luchanko who sent a cross seem pass through four players to the right circle where Paquette was able to step into a one-timer and drill the shot past McIvor for his 1st<\/sup> of the post-season, and seventh point in seven games, tying the game 1-1 at 2:28. It was McIvor\u2019s show from there, denying another Paquette rocket on an ensuing Bulldogs power-play while holding off another three attempts from Marek Vanacker in the frame as well as a pair of door-step opportunities from Gabriel Frasca to keep the game 1-1 to the second intermission.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The third was as dominant territorially for the Bulldogs as the second with Mike McIvor playing hero for the hosts. The Bulldogs outshot the Battalion by a 15-2 margin for the second straight period but found themselves trailing late after Ethan Procyszyn was able to fly away on a 2-on-1 and mark 4th<\/sup> of the post-season to give the Battalion a 2-1 edge on just their 2nd<\/sup> shot of the period at 9:26. With time running thin and Ryerson Leenders on the Bulldogs bench, Jake O\u2019Brien pulled the puck from traffic on the left-wing side and sent it to the blueline for Adam Jiricek who quickly found Adam Benak in the right circle for a one-time shot that beat McIvor back to his post for Benak\u2019s 2nd<\/sup> of the playoffs and forcing the Bulldogs 2nd<\/sup> overtime of the playoffs.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Battalion raced out for the first overtime session showing desperation to keep from falling behind 3-0 in the series. Ryerson Leenders had to be outstanding early in the frame denying a tremendous Nolan Laird chance off a great North Bay offensive rotation. Laird took a pass from the right corner flying through the slot and Leenders, through a screen, kicked the puck aside to continue the contest as part of 9 overtime stops. McIvor was equally as brilliant at the other end, fighting off goal mouth scramble chances from O\u2019Brien, Vanacker and Frasca as well as a short side corner attempt from Caleb Malhotra to keep his side alive and force a second overtime period.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Ryerson Leenders was brilliant to open the second overtime, making a split save at the side of the Bulldogs goal to assure the game would continue and it paid off. At 14:33 of the 5th<\/sup> period, Marek Vanacker sent Jake O\u2019Brien away on the left-wing side before picking out Ben Danford on the right point who whistled a drive past Mike McIvor on his 1st<\/sup> of the playoffs to give the Bulldogs the 3-2 overtime victory and a commanding 3-0 series lead.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Brantford Bulldogs will return to action in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals against the North Bay Battalion, with a chance for their second straight sweep, on Tuesday night, April 14th<\/sup> with a 7:00pm start at the Boart Longyear Memorial Gardens.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NORTH BAY, ONTARIO. The Brantford Bulldogs Eastern Conference Semi-Final series with the North Bay Battalion turned north on Sunday afternoon for Game 3 at the Boart Longyear Memorial Gardens. Entering Game 3 with a 2-0 series lead, the Bulldogs were looking to take a stranglehold on the series.   Ryan Chamberlain made his OHL Playoffs…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":179,"featured_media":38271,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1233],"tags":[{"term_id":2031,"name":"Ben Danford","slug":"ben-danford","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2031,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":17,"filter":"raw","term_order":"38"},{"term_id":1992,"name":"Adam Benak","slug":"adam-benak","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1992,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":52,"filter":"raw","term_order":"71"},{"term_id":1981,"name":"Edison Engle","slug":"edison-engle","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1981,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":28,"filter":"raw","term_order":"85"},{"term_id":1755,"name":"Charlie 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SHINES AS BULLDOGS TAKE 2-0 SERIES LEAD"},"content":{"rendered":"

BRANTFORD, ONTARIO.<\/strong> The Bulldogs hosted Game 2 of their second-round series on Friday night at the TD Civic Centre, aiming to hold home ice following an 8-1 victory in Game 1.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Bulldogs aimed to carry over their strong start from Game 1, but the Battalion came out with a solid defensive effort. Just like in the opener, Jack Lisson got the start for North Bay, while Ryerson Leenders took the crease for Brantford. Camron Hankai generated an early opportunity, walking in and releasing a shot from the left circle, but Lisson made the stop. Moments later, Gabriel Frasca, stationed behind the net, attempted to set up Charlie Paquette in the slot, but his shot was turned aside. The momentum continued to build for the Bulldogs as Caleb Malhotra blew past the North Bay defence and attempted a backhand move to open the scoring, but he was denied by Jack Lisson. Brantford then headed to their first power play of the game, where Marek Vanacker found a backdoor opportunity, but he too was turned aside by the Battalion goaltender. Shamar Moses fired a shot from the slot, but Ryerson Leenders came up with the save. Moments later, a bad bounce off a North Bay defender landed right on Caleb Malhotra\u2019s stick, and he made no mistake, hammering home his 8th of the playoffs. After 20 minutes of play, the Bulldogs head to the intermission holding a 1-0 lead over the Battalion, with Malhotra\u2019s buzzer-beater giving Brantford the edge, along with an 8-4 advantage in shots on goal.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Bulldogs doubled their lead early in the middle frame at 1:16. Adam Jiricek fired a shot that deflected off Jake O\u2019Brien, with Marek Vanacker jumping on the loose puck and burying his 4th of the postseason. Lirim Amidovski looked to respond, driving the net, but Ryerson Leenders turned it aside with the blocker. Moments later, Cooper Dennis tried to set up Caleb Malhotra on a rush, but Jack Lisson came across with a split save. Back the other way, Adrian Manzo unleashed a drive, but Leenders stood tall, using his shoulder to make the stop. Brantford extended their lead to 3-0 at 9:45. Owen Protz fired a shot from the point, and with Vanacker parked at the side of the net, he tipped it home for his second of the game and 5th of the playoffs. The Bulldogs struck again at 12:43 to make it 4-0. Charlie Paquette moved the puck over to Adam Jiricek, who blasted a shot past Lisson for his 4th of the postseason. Ryder Cali generated a chance from in front, but Leenders made the stop. The Battalion would finally break through at 16:51, as Shamar Moses set up Adrian Manzo, who teed up a shot from the blue line and beat Leenders for his 1st of the playoffs. North Bay headed to the power play late in the frame, where Cam Warren had a look, but Leenders came up with another big stop. After 40 minutes of play, the Bulldogs head to the dressing room holding a 4-1 lead over the Battalion.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The final frame saw both teams trade chances early. Adam Jiricek unloaded a drive, but Jack Lisson came up with a glove save to keep it out. North Bay looked to cut into the deficit as Adrian Manzo generated another opportunity, but Ryerson Leenders turned him aside. Jett Luchanko tried to connect with Marek Vanacker on a rush, but the chance was denied. Moments later, Lirim Amidovski looked to bring the Battalion closer, but Leenders shut the door once again. The Bulldogs continued to press, as Vanacker attempted to set up Jake O\u2019Brien at the top of the crease, but Lisson slid across to make a strong stop. In the final minute, Brantford looked to add one more, with Cooper Dennis finding Adam Benak, but Lisson made a sliding save to deny the wraparound attempt. The Bulldogs would close it out from there, securing a 4-1 victory and taking a 2-0 series lead over the North Bay Battalion.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The series will shift to North Bay on Sunday, April 12, as the Bulldogs and Battalion meet for Game 3 at Boart Longyear Memorial Gardens. Puck drop is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BRANTFORD, ONTARIO. The Bulldogs hosted Game 2 of their second-round series on Friday night at the TD Civic Centre, aiming to hold home ice following an 8-1 victory in Game 1.   The Bulldogs aimed to carry over their strong start from Game 1, but the Battalion came out with a solid defensive effort. Just…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":179,"featured_media":38268,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1233],"tags":[{"term_id":1755,"name":"Charlie Paquette","slug":"charlie-paquette","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1755,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":28,"filter":"raw","term_order":"306"},{"term_id":1664,"name":"Caleb Malhotra","slug":"caleb-malhotra","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1664,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":71,"filter":"raw","term_order":"385"},{"term_id":1475,"name":"Owen 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BRANTFORD, ONTARIO.<\/strong> The Bulldogs embarked on the second round of the OHL Playoffs on home ice at the TD Civic Centre, squaring off against the North Bay Battalion on Wednesday night.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Bulldogs entered the matchup with plenty of momentum following a first-round sweep of the eighth-seeded Sudbury Wolves. They also received a boost to their lineup with the return of Dylan Tsherna and Parker Holmes, while a late adjustment saw Camron Hankai draw in for Vladimir Dravecky. The Bulldogs thought they had opened the scoring early, as Jett Luchanko dropped a pass back to Marek Vanacker, who fired a shot over the shoulder of Jack Lisson. However, North Bay challenged the play, and the goal was overturned due to offside. Brantford didn\u2019t waste any time responding. On the power play at 2:09, Adam Jiricek set up Jake O\u2019Brien for a one-timer that was initially stopped, but Caleb Malhotra pounced on the rebound, burying his 6th of the playoffs to give the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead. The Battalion looked to answer with a man advantage of their own, but the Bulldogs’ penalty kill held strong. Ben Danford disrupted the play, while moments later, Ryerson Leenders turned aside a slot chance from Shamar Moses with a solid blocker save. Back the other way, Cooper Dennis found space in the slot and fired a quick shot, but Lisson came up with the stop. Moments later, the Bulldogs doubled their lead at 9:08. Marek Vanacker connected with Jett Luchanko, who drove the net and jammed the puck under the pads of Lisson for his first of the playoffs. Brantford continued to pour on the pressure, striking again at 12:51. Off a turnover, Caleb Malhotra and Cooper Dennis broke out on an odd-man rush, where Malhotra elected to pass, setting up Dennis for a blast that made it 3-0. The Bulldogs kept rolling at 16:51, as Malhotra followed up his own initial shot and snapped home the rebound for his second of the game and 7th of the postseason. Brantford capped off a dominant opening frame at 18:37. Jake O\u2019Brien led the rush and found Marek Vanacker, who quickly returned the puck across to O\u2019Brien, and he finished the play to make it 5-0. After 20 minutes of play, the Bulldogs headed to the intermission with a commanding 5-0 lead, outshooting the Battalion 19-5.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Battalion turned to Mike McIvor in goal to start the middle frame, looking to spark a response. The Bulldogs, however, showed no signs of slowing down, as Adam Jiricek tried to set up Jake O\u2019Brien early, but his drive went just wide of the net. The Bulldogs added to their lead at 4:35, making it 6-0. Dylan Tsherna found Adam Jiricek, who slipped around a North Bay defender and wired a shot past Mike McIvor for his 3rd of the playoffs. Bronson Ride teed up a shot from the blue line, but Ryerson Leenders made the glove save. The Battalion then headed to the power play, where Nick Wellenreiter generated a chance, but was turned aside. Coming out of the penalty box, Adam Benak looked to spring Cooper Dennis on a rush, but Mike McIvor came up with the stop to keep it out. The Bulldogs struck again at 14:00 to extend the lead to 7-0. Adam Benak set up Luca Testa in front, where he tipped the puck over the pads of Mike McIvor for his 4th of the postseason. Moments later, Cooper Dennis looked to add another, walking in on goal, but McIvor flashed the glove to make the stop. After 40 minutes of play, the Bulldogs head down the tunnel carrying a 7-0 lead, outshooting the Battalion 34-20.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Bulldogs kept the pressure on early in the third, striking at 1:46. Adam Jiricek found Marek Vanacker, who quickly set up Jake O\u2019Brien on the doorstep, and he buried his second of the game and of the playoffs. The Battalion responded at 5:28 to get on the scoreboard. With traffic in front of the net, Carter Kunopaski found a lane and fired a long shot past Ryerson Leenders for his first of the postseason. The Battalion headed to the power play looking to add another, as Ryder Cali found himself on the doorstep with the puck sitting on the goal line, but Ryerson Leenders came up with a key stop to keep it out. The Bulldogs would close out a dominant performance, skating to an 8-1 victory over the North Bay Battalion, while holding a 41-32 edge in shots on goal.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Brantford Bulldogs take their 1-0 series lead into play for Game 2 on Friday, April 10th at the TD Civic Centre. Puck drop set for 7:00 pm.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BRANTFORD, ONTARIO. The Bulldogs embarked on the second round of the OHL Playoffs on home ice at the TD Civic Centre, squaring off against the North Bay Battalion on Wednesday night.   The Bulldogs entered the matchup with plenty of momentum following a first-round sweep of the eighth-seeded Sudbury Wolves. They also received a boost…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":179,"featured_media":38260,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1233],"tags":[{"term_id":1992,"name":"Adam Benak","slug":"adam-benak","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1992,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":52,"filter":"raw","term_order":"71"},{"term_id":1963,"name":"Cooper Dennis","slug":"cooper-dennis","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1963,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":53,"filter":"raw","term_order":"103"},{"term_id":1664,"name":"Caleb Malhotra","slug":"caleb-malhotra","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1664,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":71,"filter":"raw","term_order":"385"},{"term_id":1535,"name":"Jett 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ROAD AHEAD: THE TROOPS COME MARCHING IN"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Brantford Bulldogs are coming off a first-round, four-game sweep of the OHL\u2019s 8th-seeded Sudbury Wolves, their first playoff sweep since 2022.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

They enter round two of the OHL playoffs for the second straight year, where the Dogs look to get redemption after last year\u2019s six-game loss to the Oshawa Generals.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Their opponents this time around, the 5th-seeded North Bay Battalion, Brantford\u2019s first-round matchup from a year ago. The Battalion are coming off an electrifying game six-clincher, and both teams look to carry their built momentum into the second round of the playoffs.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Storylines to watch:<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The two teams split their regular season series 2-2, with the home team winning all four matchups. The scores from the season series were as follows:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

December 6 \u2013 North Bay 2 at Brantford 7<\/p>\n

January 22 \u2013 Brantford 4 at North Bay 5 (OT)<\/p>\n

March 12 \u2013 Brantford 2 at North Bay 3 (OT)<\/p>\n

March 20 \u2013 North Bay 5 at Brantford 6<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Brantford was able to outscore the Battalion 19-15 in this tightly-contested regular season series, despite the last three outcomes only being decided by a single goal each.<\/p>\n

Caleb Malhotra led the Bulldogs with nine points during the season series, with Adam Benak and Jake O\u2019Brien following close behind with eight each. Kaden Pitre led the way for the Battalion, scoring six points.<\/p>\n

Malhotra also leads Brantford in playoff scoring, again putting up nine points in round one vs Sudbury. Camryn Warren leads North Bay with his five points.<\/p>\n

The stage is set for a thrilling second round series, and if the Bulldogs learned anything from the first round, it\u2019s that the wins won\u2019t come easy, and the Battalion will be hungry to keep the ball rolling after a thrilling series victory of their own.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The series schedule is as follows:<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Game 1 \u2013 Wednesday, April 8th at Brantford 7:00pm<\/p>\n

Game 2 \u2013 Friday, April 10th at Brantford 7:00pm<\/p>\n

Game 3 \u2013 Sunday, April 12th at North Bay 2:00pm<\/p>\n

Game 4 \u2013 Tuesday, April 14th at North Bay 7:00pm<\/p>\n

Game 5 \u2013 Thursday, April 16th at Brantford 7:00pm (if needed)<\/p>\n

Game 6 \u2013 Saturday, April 18th at North Bay 7:00pm (if needed)<\/p>\n

Game 7 \u2013 Monday, April 20th at Brantford 7:00pm (if needed)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The series kicks off this Wednesday as the Bulldogs look to continue their trek to the OHL Championship.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Brantford Bulldogs are coming off a first-round, four-game sweep of the OHL\u2019s 8th-seeded Sudbury Wolves, their first playoff sweep since 2022.   They enter round two of the OHL playoffs for the second straight year, where the Dogs look to get redemption after last year\u2019s six-game loss to the Oshawa Generals.   Their opponents…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":179,"featured_media":37836,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1233],"tags":[{"term_id":1450,"name":"NB","slug":"nb","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1450,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":20,"filter":"raw","term_order":"586"},{"term_id":1352,"name":"BFDvsNB","slug":"bfdvsnb","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1352,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":25,"filter":"raw","term_order":"683"},{"term_id":875,"name":"Battalion","slug":"battalion","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":926,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":25,"filter":"raw","term_order":"891"},{"term_id":1163,"name":"Brantford Bulldogs","slug":"brantford-bulldogs","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1219,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":287,"filter":"raw","term_order":"924"},{"term_id":78,"name":"bulldogs","slug":"bulldogs","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":78,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":668,"filter":"raw","term_order":"943"},{"term_id":276,"name":"North Bay Battalion","slug":"north-bay-battalion","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":304,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":29,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1559"},{"term_id":79,"name":"ohl","slug":"ohl","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":80,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":639,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1573"},{"term_id":565,"name":"OHL Playoffs","slug":"ohl-playoffs","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":604,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":26,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1587"},{"term_id":646,"name":"The Road Ahead","slug":"the-road-ahead","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":693,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":46,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1835"}],"class_list":["post-38254","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-nb","tag-bfdvsnb","tag-battalion","tag-brantford-bulldogs","tag-bulldogs","tag-north-bay-battalion","tag-ohl","tag-ohl-playoffs","tag-the-road-ahead","category-1233","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2025\/11\/20102334\/The-Road-Ahead-2025.jpg",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38254","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/179"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38254"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38254\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37836"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38254"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38254"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38254"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":38241,"date":"2026-04-06T17:55:23","date_gmt":"2026-04-06T21:55:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/?p=38241"},"modified":"2026-04-06T17:55:23","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T21:55:23","slug":"caleb-malhotra-named-ohl-rookie-of-the-year-finalist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/article\/caleb-malhotra-named-ohl-rookie-of-the-year-finalist","title":{"rendered":"CALEB MALHOTRA NAMED OHL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR FINALIST"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Monday afternoon the Ontario Hockey League announced that Bulldogs star centre and multi-rookie record holder Caleb Malhotra has been named a finalist for OHL Rookie of the Year.<\/p>\n

Malhotra, the Etobicoke native, was originally the 8th<\/sup>\u00a0overall selection in the 2024 OHL Priority Selection Draft by the Kingston Frontenacs before having his rights acquired by the Bulldogs on September 12th<\/sup>, 2024, and signed with the club on June 5th, 2025. The potential was apparent from the very beginning but the results blew even the loftiest expectations away. Malhotra showed exactly what was to come immediately by recording his first OHL point in his first OHL game in Kitchener on September 19th and followed that by scoring his first OHL goal on September 20th on home ice in his first game at TD Civic Centre.<\/p>\n

Immediately forming a prolific partnership with fellow newcomer Cooper Dennis, helping Dennis to set a new mark for goals by a first year Bulldog, Malhotra racked up 29 goals & 55 assists for 84 points while skating to a plus-33 rating over 67 games. Malhotra has excelled in every situation for the Bulldogs on the season, becoming a trusted member of both the power-play, where he was part of the top unit in the Ontario Hockey League, and a key member of the penalty kill while being entrusted to take important faceoffs as a rookie.<\/p>\n

Malhotra continued to be a dominant force in the opening round of the 2026 Playoffs, leading the Bulldogs with 5 goals & 4 assists for 9 points in the 4 game sweep of the Sudbury Wolves.<\/p>\n

Widely expected to surpass Jake O’Brien (8th overall by Seattle in 2025) as the highest selected Bulldog in the NHL Draft, Caleb Malhotra has been an impact player from the very beginning and looks to continue that dominance as the Bulldogs chase their 3rd OHL Championship and a Memorial Cup.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On Monday afternoon the Ontario Hockey League announced that Bulldogs star centre and multi-rookie record holder Caleb Malhotra has been named a finalist for OHL Rookie of the Year. Malhotra, the Etobicoke native, was originally the 8th\u00a0overall selection in the 2024 OHL Priority Selection Draft by the Kingston Frontenacs before having his rights acquired by…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":179,"featured_media":38240,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1233],"tags":[{"term_id":1664,"name":"Caleb Malhotra","slug":"caleb-malhotra","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1664,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":71,"filter":"raw","term_order":"385"},{"term_id":1638,"name":"Rookie of the Year","slug":"rookie-of-the-year","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1638,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":2,"filter":"raw","term_order":"412"},{"term_id":1631,"name":"OHL Rookie of the Year","slug":"ohl-rookie-of-the-year","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1631,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":2,"filter":"raw","term_order":"418"},{"term_id":1302,"name":"BFD","slug":"bfd","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1302,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":363,"filter":"raw","term_order":"732"},{"term_id":1163,"name":"Brantford Bulldogs","slug":"brantford-bulldogs","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1219,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":287,"filter":"raw","term_order":"924"},{"term_id":78,"name":"bulldogs","slug":"bulldogs","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":78,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":668,"filter":"raw","term_order":"943"},{"term_id":79,"name":"ohl","slug":"ohl","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":80,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":639,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1573"}],"class_list":["post-38241","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-caleb-malhotra","tag-rookie-of-the-year","tag-ohl-rookie-of-the-year","tag-bfd","tag-brantford-bulldogs","tag-bulldogs","tag-ohl","category-1233","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2026\/04\/06174431\/MalhotraROTYFinalist_Web.jpeg",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38241","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/179"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38241"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38241\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/38240"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38241"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38241"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38241"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":38237,"date":"2026-04-06T09:53:36","date_gmt":"2026-04-06T13:53:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/?p=38237"},"modified":"2026-04-06T09:53:48","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T13:53:48","slug":"engle-send-bulldogs-to-second-round-with-series-winner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/ohl-bulldogs\/article\/engle-send-bulldogs-to-second-round-with-series-winner","title":{"rendered":"ENGLE SENDS BULLDOGS TO SECOND ROUND WITH SERIES WINNER \u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

SUDBURY, ONTARIO.<\/strong> Entering the night with a chance to end their Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series with the Sudbury Wolves, the Brantford Bulldogs set for Game 4, looking to capitalize on the momentum from Marek Vanacker\u2019s overtime winner in Game 3 and advance to the Conference Semi-Finals for the second straight season.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Opening the frame with pressure on Sudbury netminder Bjorn Bronas, making his OHL playoff debut, the Bulldogs switch of Jett Luchanko with Jake O\u2019Brien & Marek Vanacker and Adam Benak with Caleb Malhotra & Cooper Dennis looked real smart early with all four lines having extended time in the offensive zone but unable to squeeze a puck past Bronas who made several quality saves amongst 10 in the opening period. Against the run of play, it was Sudbury opening the scoring for the first time in the series as Artem Gonchar fired a shot from the right point that Rowan Henderson tipped on the doorstep past Ryerson Leenders for his 1st<\/sup> of the playoffs to give the Wolves the 1-0 lead 10:28 as they attempted to stay alive. Leenders was strong following the goal making a brilliant shoulder stop at his right post diving forward to deny a shortside opportunity and taking away a point-blank Blake Clayton shot from the slot as part of 10 saves of his own in the opening frame. The Bulldogs exited the first period with work to do, facing a 1-0 deficit, trailing for the first time after 20-minutes in the series.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Bulldogs battled back in the middle frame beginning with a key penalty kill in the early portion of the period that saw Cooper Dennis earn a pair of shorthanded opportunities while Ryerson Leenders made a tremendous split kick save to keep the Bulldogs at the deficit of a single goal. Hard work and persistence led to the equalizer at 12:47 as Gabriel Frasca entered the zone on the left-wing side and dropped the puck for Charlie Paquette who sent it on a cross-ice feed to the right post for Luca Testa to tap in his 3rd<\/sup> of the series equalling the score at 1-1. On a late second period power-play Jake O\u2019Brien tossed the puck to the side of the net where Marek Vanacker batted it on goal and a sprawling Bjorn Bronas and defenseman Luca Blonda had to combine to scramble the puck back under the Wolves netminder to keep the Bulldogs from taking the lead and forcing the game to the second intermission tied 1-1.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Bulldogs were clinical in the final frame, outshooting the Wolves by a 12-2 margin and not allowing the Wolves a shot for the first near 17-minutes of play. Bjorn Bronas was under siege in the Sudbury goal turning away Adam Benak & Cooper Dennis with great high looks to keep the game on even terms, but the Bulldogs cracked though. At 6:54, Jett Luchanko knocked the puck down on the right half wall and laid it on for Jake O\u2019Brien who made a brilliant spinning back pass for Edison Engle who had slid low in the offensive zone. The Arlington Heights, IL, product danced to the net front and lifted the puck over Bjorn Bronas for a 2-1 lead that the Bulldogs held to the end with a tremendous defensive effort to earn the series sweep over the Sudbury Wolves.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Brantford Bulldogs will return to action for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals at TD Civic Centre against the North Bay Battalion on Wednesday, April 8th<\/sup> with a 7:00pm start.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SUDBURY, ONTARIO. Entering the night with a chance to end their Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series with the Sudbury Wolves, the Brantford Bulldogs set for Game 4, looking to capitalize on the momentum from Marek Vanacker\u2019s overtime winner in Game 3 and advance to the Conference Semi-Finals for the second straight season.   Opening the frame…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":179,"featured_media":38238,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1233],"tags":[{"term_id":1981,"name":"Edison Engle","slug":"edison-engle","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1981,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":28,"filter":"raw","term_order":"85"},{"term_id":1755,"name":"Charlie Paquette","slug":"charlie-paquette","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1755,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":28,"filter":"raw","term_order":"306"},{"term_id":1535,"name":"Jett 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CALLS GAME IN OVERTIME; BULLDOGS TAKE 3-0 SERIES LEAD \u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

SUDBURY, ONTARIO.<\/strong> After taking both games on home ice to open their Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series with a 2-0 lead, the Brantford Bulldogs took to the road for the first time in the post-season with Game 3 taking place on Tuesday night from the Sudbury Community Arena and a chance to take a stranglehold on the series on the line.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The lineup news was mixed entering the night with star defenseman & Toronto Maple Leafs 1st<\/sup> round pick, Ben Danford serving the first of a two-game suspension, but the Bulldogs did receive back the services of both Vladimir Dravecky, who missed Game 2 with illness, and Luca Testa who was forced to leave Game 2 following a mid-ice collision. The opening frame of Game 3 gave the Bulldogs exactly what they wanted to open the road slate of the series. At 4:31, Jake O\u2019Brien stole the puck from a Sudbury defender in the left circle and dealt the puck back to the blueline for an on-rushing Adam Jiricek who collected the puck just above the top of the right circle and rifled a shot over Paolo Frasca for his 1st<\/sup> of the playoffs and a 1-0 Bulldogs lead. Ryerson Leenders only faced a pair of shots in the opening period but made a brilliant save on the first one. With Jean-Cristoph Lemieux feeding across the Bulldogs crease to Adam Nemec, Ryerson Leenders went right to left to make a brilliant sliding glove save, taking away an open goal from Nemec for the second time in the last two-games. Nemec was taken off for his 2nd<\/sup> penalty of the opening frame at 18:29 after lifting the puck up and out of play. The Bulldogs cashed in on the man-advantage at 19:29 with Jake O\u2019Brien knocking down a clearing attempt and sending it to the left circle for Adam Jiricek who hit Caleb Malhotra with a cross-crease dart to record the rookie\u2019s 4th<\/sup> in 3 playoff games and a 2-0 lead going down the tunnel through 20-minutes.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The middle frame snowballed against the Bulldogs after Paolo Frasca denied an early Cooper Dennis look that appeared would fly into an open goal with his stick, the Wolves went on the front foot. Blake Clayton opened the scoring for the Wolves at 3:08 with a shot out of the left circle, that hit the top corner to pull the Wolves within a goal. The defecit was entirely erased at 10:31 on a near identical goal with Chase Coughlan firing a shot out of the left circle that Leenders got a piece of but not enough to guide aside tying the game 2-2. The Wolves tooko their first lead of the series at 13:39 when a Genc Ula point shot was deflected in front of Leenders by Chase Coughlan for his 2nd<\/sup> of the game to make it a 3-2 Wolves lead. The Bulldogs looked to fire back late in the frame with a series of chances in tight to Frasca\u2019s goal but weren\u2019t able to find the handle and hit the intermission in the unfamiliar position of trailing to the final 20.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The third period got worse for the Bulldogs before it got better, 4:41 into the period Artem Gonchar sent the puck off the left point towards the Bulldogs goal where it landed for Jean-Cristoph Lemieux to notch his 2nd<\/sup> of the post-season, giving the Wolves a 4-2 lead. Cue the comeback; on the power-play at 7:04, Caleb Malhotra switched off with Marek Vanacker on the right side, with Vanacker moving to the bottom of the circle and opening the lane for a crashing Adam Jiricek to fire in his 2nd<\/sup> of the game and pull the Bulldogs to within a goal at 4-3. Brantford went to a 5-on-3 late after Daniel Berehowsky tripped down Charlie Paquette on the rush and Genc Ula tossed the puck over the glass for a delay of game. With the two man-advantage, Adam Benak & Adam Jiricek combined on the left to feed Caleb Malhotra in the middle of the formation to rifle a shot past Paolo Frasca for his 2nd<\/sup> of the game & 5th<\/sup> of the playoffs knotting the game 4-4 at 15:15. The power-play wasn\u2019t done and struck in the following 5-on-4 at 16:38. Adam Jiricek fed Caleb Malhotra at the top of the left-circle for a drive that was stopped but the rebound fell for Marek Vanacker to bang in his 2nd<\/sup> of the playoffs and give the Bulldogs a late 5-4 lead. The advantage wouldn\u2019t hold, as at 19:10 with the puck bouncing through skates at the front of the Bulldogs net, Jan Chovan was able to get just enough to shovel over Ryerson Leenders for his 2nd<\/sup> of the playoffs tying the game 5-5 and forcing the game to overtime for the first time in the series.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

In overtime, the Bulldogs took control from the opening drop and forced the pressure on Paolo Frasca\u2019s goal, with an offensive zone cycle on, Marek Vanacker took a punch to the face from Gavin Ewles leading to a Bulldogs power-play. It was Vanacker himself to call game, the play began with Jake O\u2019Brien sending Caleb Malhotra forward on the left, dropping for Marek Vanacker. Flying through the circle, Vanacker\u2019s first shot was stopped but the OHL\u2019s leading goal scorer scooped his own rebound and tossed it into the Sudbury goal for his 2nd of the game and a thrilling 6-5 overtime victory<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Brantford Bulldogs will return to action on Thursday night, April 2nd<\/sup> for Game 4 of their Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series with a chance to complete the sweep at the Sudbury Community Arena with a 7:05pm puck drop.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SUDBURY, ONTARIO. After taking both games on home ice to open their Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series with a 2-0 lead, the Brantford Bulldogs took to the road for the first time in the post-season with Game 3 taking place on Tuesday night from the Sudbury Community Arena and a chance to take a stranglehold on…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":179,"featured_media":38232,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1233],"tags":[{"term_id":1664,"name":"Caleb 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MAGNIFICENT; GOVEDARIS NOTCHES WINNER IN GAME 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

BRANTFORD, ONTARIO.<\/strong> The Bulldogs carried a 1-0 series lead into Sunday afternoon as they hosted Game 2 of their first-round matchup with the Sudbury Wolves.<\/p>\n

The Bulldogs looked to carry over the momentum from their 6-2 win in Game 1 and wasted no time doing just that. Brantford got on the board early, striking first on the man advantage to take a 1-0 lead at 4:46. Jake O\u2019Brien set up Marek Vanacker, who quickly found Caleb Malhotra sneaking in backdoor, burying his 3rd of the playoffs past Wolves netminder Paolo Frasca. The Wolves looked to respond on the power play, but Ryerson Leenders shut the door, denying Jan Chovan to keep the Bulldogs in front. Brantford kept rolling and doubled their lead at 7:30, as a turnover sparked a rush the other way. Gabriel Frasca pushed up ice with Charlie Paquette, who fired the initial shot before the rebound kicked right out to Frasca, and he hammered home his 1st of the playoffs to make it 2-0. The Wolves looked to cut the lead in half as Hudson Martin fired a shot on goal, with Jan Chovan knocking it down to his forehand, but Ryerson Leenders came up with the stop. Sudbury would find their breakthrough late in the frame at 18:54 to cut the deficit to one. Artem Gonchar blasted a drive from the blue line, with Leenders kicking out the blocker to make the initial save, but the rebound found Jean-Cristoph Lemieux, who buried his 1st of the playoffs. The physicality carried over from Game 1, as Adam Jiricek laid a heavy hit on Rowan Henderson, sparking a sequence that saw Chase Coughlan take down Marek Vanacker, with Jake O\u2019Brien stepping in to defend his teammate, resulting in a Wolves power play to start the middle frame. The Bulldogs head to the intermission holding a 2-1 lead, while the Wolves hold a slight 11-10 edge in shots.<\/p>\n

The Wolves opened the middle frame on the man advantage, with Daniel Berehowsky getting a look, but Ryerson Leenders came up with the stop. A scary moment followed as Luca Testa and Jean-Cristoph Lemieux collided, with Testa heading down the tunnel as we hope he\u2019s okay. The Bulldogs looked to restore their two-goal cushion as Nik Rossetto tried to connect with Philip Govedaris, but he couldn\u2019t lift it over the blocker of Wolves netminder Paolo Frasca. The play sparked a scrum after the whistle, resulting in a Wolves power play, but the Bulldogs penalty kill stood tall. Brantford then headed to the man advantage, where Marek Vanacker tried to set up Adam Benak for a one-timer, but somehow the puck stayed out. Momentum shifted as Ben Danford was assessed a five-minute major and game misconduct for a check from behind, giving the Wolves a lengthy power play. Sudbury then earned a 5-on-3 for two minutes as Owen Protz was called for cross-checking. During the advantage, Berehowsky fired a shot that slipped through to Artem Gonchar, who tried to go backdoor but was denied twice by Leenders in tight. The Wolves would eventually break through at 13:37 to tie the game at two, as Hudson Martin set up Jan Chovan, who fired a shot past Leenders\u2019 shoulder for his 1st of the playoffs. However, the Bulldogs wasted no time responding, regaining the lead at 15:08. Off a turnover, Caleb Malhotra found Cooper Dennis, who quickly set up Philip Govedaris on the doorstep, and he made no mistake, burying his 1st of the playoffs to make it 3-2. Dennis looked to extend the lead moments later with a long drive, but Frasca flashed the glove to keep it out. After 40 minutes of play, the Bulldogs head to the intermission holding a 3-2 lead over the Wolves.<\/p>\n

The Wolves came out in the final frame pushing to even things up, as Rowan Henderson connected with Chase Coughlan on a chance, but Ryerson Leenders stood tall to make the stop. Brantford then headed to the man advantage, where Jake O\u2019Brien looked to set up Marek Vanacker backdoor, but Wolves netminder Paolo Frasca came up with the save. The Bulldogs continued to press on another power play, with O\u2019Brien getting a look, but Henderson stepped in with a big defensive block. Charlie Paquette tried to wrap one around the net, but Frasca got a piece of it to keep it out. Owen Protz followed up with a blast from the blue line, and Cooper Dennis jumped on the rebound, but Frasca shut the door once again. The Wolves pushed back with a dangerous chance as Adam Nemec broke in alone, but Leenders, down on the ice, stuck out the skate to make a huge stop. Jean-Cristoph Lemieux looked to drive the net moments later, but Zack Sandhu made a strong defensive play to deny the opportunity. Late in the frame, Sudbury pressed with the extra attacker, but it opened the door the other way. At 19:41, Jake O\u2019Brien connected with Marek Vanacker, who fired it home to seal a 4-2 Bulldogs victory over the Sudbury Wolves.<\/p>\n

The Brantford Bulldogs now have the opportunity to take a commanding 3-0 series lead as the series shifts to the Sudbury Community Arena for Game 3 on Tuesday, March 31st. Puck drop is set for 7:05 p.m.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BRANTFORD, ONTARIO. The Bulldogs carried a 1-0 series lead into Sunday afternoon as they hosted Game 2 of their first-round matchup with the Sudbury Wolves. The Bulldogs looked to carry over the momentum from their 6-2 win in Game 1 and wasted no time doing just that. Brantford got on the board early, striking first…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":179,"featured_media":38230,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1233],"tags":[{"term_id":2025,"name":"philip govedaris","slug":"philip-govedaris","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2025,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":9,"filter":"raw","term_order":"45"},{"term_id":1664,"name":"Caleb 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