Ultimate Drivers Weekend Preview: Uncharted Waters
Battle in Barrie
The Brampton Steelheads (19-15-7-0) have an early start to their weekend, as they travel to Barrie Thursday to square off with the Colts (26-14-1-1). It will be the fifth of six matchups this season against their central division rival. So far, the teams have split the series with each team securing a win both at home and on the road. In those matchups, the Trout have narrowly outscored the Colts 15-13. At this point in the season, every division matchup will be an important two points to get.
Despite a slow start to 2025, the Barrie Colts have found their stride as of late, securing their first two wins of the new year against a pair of contenders in Windsor and Niagara last weekend. Since the last matchup against the Colts, an already loaded Barrie team has added even more reinforcements to their lineup. In the days leading up to the deadline, the Colts completed a blockbuster deal with the North Bay Battalion that reunited the trio of Dalyn Wakely, Anthony Romani, and Owen Van Steensel in Barrie. Shutting down this top line will be the key to success for the Trout, as the trio combined for 28 points against the Trout last season.
Fortunately, the Steelheads have a stellar group of forwards themselves, with Porter Martone, Luke Misa, Carson Rehkopf, and Angus MacDonell leading the way. In the two wins against Barrie, this group combined for a total of 18 points, while adding 8 more in their narrow defeat. If the top four can keep producing at this level, in combination with the tremendous depth on the roster the Steelheads should be able to compete with Barrie and any other top team in the OHL.
You can watch all Steelheads away games by purchasing CHL TV, accessible on the CHL mobile app, in addition to Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire, and online at watch.chl.ca.
Faceoff in Flint
The Steelheads have a day off Friday, as they begin to travel west for a two-game weekend starting in Flint. It will be the second matchup of the month with the Flint Firebirds (18-21-2-2). Led by a three-point performance from Finn Harding, the Trout pulled off an epic comeback overtime victory in the prior matchup with Flint on January 4th. The Trout will look to sweep the short two-game series with the Firebirds this Saturday.
Much like the Steelheads, Flint made a big trade deadline acquisition from Owen Sound when they added Sam McCue. The Toronto Maple Leafs prospect used his physicality and two-way play to tally 31 points in 35 games with the Attack. Since joining the Firebirds, McCue has further improved his offensive production with five points in four games with the club. Despite his stellar play, the Firebirds have still struggled as of late with just two wins in their last ten games.
A key to victory for Brampton will be their strength on the blue line. The aforementioned Finn Harding led the way in their last matchup, but he will be far from the only contributor on the Trout backend. Jakub Fibigr has returned from his World Junior run with Czechia, Parker Von Richter has notched three points in the past three games, Spencer Sova will always be a threat to create, and the duo of Stevie Leskovar and Konnor Smith have been excellent at shutting down other teams stars. If the Steelheads can use their strength at defence to their advantage, they should be able to secure the series sweep against Flint.
You can watch all Steelheads away games by purchasing CHL TV, accessible on the CHL mobile app, in addition to Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire, and online at watch.chl.ca.
Showdown with the Spitfires
The Trout have no time to rest, as they travel to Windsor Sunday to complete the second half of a back-to-back against the Spitfires (31-10-2-1). It will be the second, and final, matchup between these teams this regular season. The Steelheads and Spitfires first faced off back in October when the Trout hosted their annual Pink in the Rink night. In that game, Windsor got the best of Brampton, so the Trout will travel to Windsor motivated to even the season series.
In order to defeat the West Division-leading Spitfires, the Steelheads will need to shut down the high-flying duo of Liam Greentree and Ilya Protas, who sit first and third in league scoring. Greentree and Protas’ combined five points propelled Windsor to their win in Brampton. Their unique blend of size and skill makes them a threat to light the lamp on any given night.
Thankfully for the Steelheads, they too have built up a big, strong, physical lineup. The Trout have seven forwards who are likely to dress, as well as every defenceman except Jared Harding listed at six foot or higher. Included in that bunch is Stevie Leskovar, Vilmer Alriksson, and Konnor Smith, who all measure upwards of six foot three. The latter of the two were acquired since the last matchup and will be used to help reverse the size advantage that Windsor is used to having. If they can disrupt the dominance of Greentree and Protas, then the Trout will be in a good position to knock off one of the titans of the Western Conference.
You can watch all Steelheads away games by purchasing CHL TV, accessible on the CHL mobile app, in addition to Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire, and online at watch.chl.ca.