2015 OHL Cup Day 4 Recap
Friday March 20, 2015
The 2015 OHL Cup Showcase Tournament hosted by the Greater Toronto Hockey League continued on Friday with 12 round-robin games at Buckingham Arena in Toronto. Here’s a look at how things unfolded.
Game 40: Titans eliminated in tie with Jr. Knights
London Jr. Knights 2, Toronto Titans 2 – OT
It was a valiant effort, but it came up just short.
The Toronto Titans threw everything they had at the London Jr. Knights in the final two minutes of overtime in a 2-2 game, but couldn’t solve goaltender Aidan Hughes as the game ended in a deadlock.
The Titans needed a victory to secure second spot in the Lindros Division. Their loss is the gain of the Quinte Red Devils, who will now advance to the Quarterfinals on Saturday with a record of 3-1-0.
The Knights took out a lead early on as hard-hitting winger Marcel Berube found his first of the tournament just 1:04 into action. The Titans only needed four minutes to draw even though as Daniel Berno tied things up with assists from Alex Daigle and Harrison Toms.
London climbed back ahead early in the second on Jackson Brown’s first of the tournament from Nick Suzuki and Max Vinogradov at 4:19. Toronto’s Joseph Garreffa would use a powerplay to tie the score with one second to spare in the second period.
The two clubs navigated their way through the remaining 20 minutes with the Titans unable to score the big goal they were looking for.
“I think the guys really wanted to prove that we were better than how we finished off in the ALLIANCE Playoffs,” said Jr. Knights Assistant Coach Greg Benedetti. “We’ve had all hands on deck here. Our best players have been our best players and our depth guys have left everything out on the ice. It’s going to take our entire roster to go far in this tournament against the kind of teams we’ll be up against.”
The Toronto Titans, who were the GTHL’s first place team during the regular season, finish their OHL Cup tournament with a record of 2-1-1. They were led in scoring by Ryan Kula (6-0–6) and Ryan Israel (3-3–6) over their four games.
Jr. Knights MVP – Marcel Berube (1G)
Titans MVP – Nicholas Grima (1A)
Game 39: Flyers sneak past pesky Predators
Don Mills Flyers 5, North Central Predators 4
The North Central Predators put a late scare into the Don Mills Flyers on Friday afternoon, striking for two late goals to draw within one of the GTHL Finalists before time ran out on their comeback bid.
Kevin Shirmaly led the way for Don Mills in their fourth win of the tournament, scoring twice while other goals came from Robby Haak, Tyler Weiss and Brad Cocca.
The Predators countered with goals from Dallas Billson, Isaac Emon, Kam Shearer and Parker Bowman who earned MVP honours with a goal and an assist in the game.
In an effort to rest their top players for Saturday’s playoffs, Don Mills Head Coach Lindsay Hofford gave several standouts such as David Levin and Brett Neumann the day off in favour of replacements in the lineup.
“We didn’t want to risk anything in a game like this,” Hofford said post-game. “I wasn’t thrilled with the effort. It was good to see some kids get into the lineup, but our guys have looked a little bit tired at times. Hopefully the adrenaline will kick in now that we’re heading to the playoffs. It’s been a long year and this is what we’ve played for so we need to be ready.”
The North Central Predators finish the 2015 OHL Cup with a record of 1-3-0, notching their lone victory over the Waterloo Wolves to open the tournament after gaining entry as a Wild Card. The Predators were led in scoring by Kole Scott who finished the tournament with five points (3-2–5) in four games.
Flyers MVP – Drake Lafontaine
Predators MVP – Parker Bowman (1G, 1A)
Game 38: Late surge pushes Marlies past Jr. 67’s and into first place
Toronto Marlboros 6, Ottawa Jr. 67’s 2
In one of the most anticipated games of the week, the Toronto Marlboros and Ottawa Jr. 67’s played a fast-paced derby of a game that saw no shortage of puck battles or foot races.
The Marlies rallied for five goals in the final five minutes with talented forward C.J. Clarke scoring two of them for a 6-2 win.
The end result on the scoreboard was not indicative of what took place in the first 55 minutes of the game, one that saw Ottawa lead 2-1 heading into the third period.
Speedy sparkplug Oliver Castleman got the Jr. 67’s rolling in the first with a pair of goals, the first on a breakaway and the second a powerplay rebound on the doorstep.
Trailing 2-0 in the second, blueliner Quintin Hughes flashed shades of Bobby Orr with an electifying end-to-end rush before he chipped a shot over the shoulder of Jean-Sebastien Gratton in the Ottawa goal.
The floodgates opened for Toronto when GTHL Player of the Year Ryan McLeod split the Ottawa ‘D’ and went in to bury a low shot past Gratton at 9:18 of the third. Goals from Clarke, Mackenzie Entwistle and Ben Jones soon followed for the decisive Toronto victory.
“It was a great way to end it off,” said Marlies captain Matthew Strome. “We were facing elimination there and the guys dug deep to put a few goals in the net and turn things around. Ottawa is a great team that is fast, skilled and physical – we just needed to outlast them.”
The Marlies slide into first place in the Subban Division with the victory, inching past both Ottawa and the Mississauga Reps as the result of a three-way tie-breaker.
Marlboros MVP – Quintin Hughes (1G)
Jr. 67’s MVP – Oliver Castleman (2G)
Game 37: Jr. Canadiens roll past Chiefs 6-0
Toronto Jr. Canadiens 6, Elgin-Middlesex Chiefs 0
The Toronto Jr. Canadiens followed up a 4-1 win over the Ottawa Valley Titans in the morning with a sound 6-0 defeat of the Elgin-Middlesex Chiefs on Friday afternoon.
Mathew Rehding had another big game on the scoresheet, tallying a goal and three assists while winger Nicholas Celotti scored twice and added an assist as the Jr. Canadiens wrapped up the round-robin with a perfect 4-0 record.
Rehding and Celotti put Toronto ahead 2-0 after one period before Simon Boyko, Jack Lyons and Celotti tallied in the second. Ryan Derenzis rounded out the scoring in the third.
“We’re playing our best hockey right now,” said Celotti after the game. “We’ve come and had a lot of fun here. Everyone is going to be rested up to get the playoffs started tomorrow.”
The Elgin-Middlesex Chiefs finish the 2015 OHL Cup with a record of 1-3-0 for fourth in the Subban Division. They were led in scoring by Parker Smith (2-1–3) and Eric Guest (1-2–3) through their four games.
Jr. Canadiens MVP – Kirill Maksimov (1A)
Chiefs MVP – Max Racicot
Game 36: Red Devils roll to 5-3 win over Elite Hockey Group
Quinte Red Devils 5, Elite Hockey Group 3
Aidan McFarland loves to score goals. His energetic post-goal leaps into the glass and intense presence on the ice are something the OMHA Champion Quinte Red Devils have fed off all season.
“There’s nothing better,” said the Napanee, ON, native after burying another two on Friday afternoon in Quinte’s 5-3 win over Elite Hockey Group. McFarland’s fourth and fifth of the tournament come after he led the OMHA ETA with 31 goals in the regular season.
The Quinte win wasn’t without its tense moments though.
Elite Hockey Group kept pace with the Red Devils through 40 minutes as a pair of goals from Steven Agriogianis had the score knotted at two after two.
“I think we took them a little lightly from the outset,” McFarland admitted post-game. “That’s not something we can afford to do here. It’s a mistake and we’ll learn from it.”
McFarland lit the lamp 28 seconds into the third period to give Quinte a brief lead before underage forward Jack DeBoer, the son of longtime OHL Head Coach Peter DeBoer, drew the score even at three.
Just 19 seconds after DeBoer’s goal, McFarland fed Quinte’s underage standout and OMHA Championship overtime hero Nathan Dunkley for the eventual winner at 7:40. Tanner Sheppard closed out the scoring at 13:38 to seal the deal on Quinte’s third win of the tournament, one they accomplished without the services of injured captain and OMHA ETA Player of the Year Brady Gilmour.
“It was different without him in the lineup,” said McFarland. “He’s the heart and soul of our team, our go-to guy. It was nice to see the boys come together without him and get the job done.”
Elite Hockey Group finishes the 2015 OHL Cup with a record of 0-4. They were led in scoring by Steven Agriogianis (3-0–3), Christopher Garbe (1-2–3), Dylan Seitz (0-3–3) who had three points each.
Red Devils MVP – Nick Hoey
Elite Hockey Group MVP – Steven Agriogianis (2G)
Game 35: Wild Card Reps skate to third win
Mississauga Reps 6, Halton Hurricanes 4
The Wild Card entry Mississauga Reps won their fourth of five games in the last four days, following up Tuesday’s Wild Card ‘Play In’ win over the Whitby Wildcats with victories over the Toronto Marlboros, Team NOHA, and now the Halton Hurricanes.
Devlin Shanahan and Matthew O’Brien scored 33 seconds apart in the final minute of the first period, but the Mississauga Reps would have a see-saw battle on their hands against Halton.
The Canes clawed back for three straight to lead 3-2 on goals from Matthew Struthers, Nick Deakin-Poot and Orion Hexamer but their effort to hold a lead would fall short as well as the Reps came screaming back.
Nicholas Isaacson, Paul Violo and Jacob Rayner tallied in the latter half of the second period to give Mississauga a 5-3 edge before Halton’s Kyle Waters responded to set the stage for an intense third period with the scoreboard reading 5-4 in favour of Mississauga.
The Reps got some insurance from defenceman Ryan Wells who got his second of the tournament on the powerplay from Shanahan and Nicholas Aromatario at 6:48 of the third.
The eventual 6-4 Reps victory didn’t come by means of their usual tight defensive brand.
“We got away from our approach today,” said Head Coach Frank Evola. “Our defence got caught being over-aggressive and we gave up more odd-man rushes in this one. You tend do give up more goals when you play fast and loose like that. Fortunately we were able to execute on our chances.”
Reps forward Devlin Shanahan finished the round-robin leading the team in scoring with two goals, six assists and eight points in four contests.
“Devlin has been consistent for us all year,” Evola added. “He hit a bit of a wall in the middle of the season but he was able to overcome that. He’s had a whale of a tournament and I’m sure he has caught some people’s attention.”
With a win by the Toronto Marlboros over the Ottawa Jr. 67’s on Friday, the Reps were eliminated from the OHL Cup Playoffs by way of the tournament’s tiebreaking system. They finish the 2015 OHL Cup with a record of 3-1-0 and were led in scoring by Devlin Shanahan who had eight points (2-6–8) in four games.
Reps MVP – Matthew O’Brien (1G)
Hurricanes MVP – Zack McGrath
Game 34: Willms pots trio, Jr. Rangers stop Express
Kitchener Jr. Rangers 4, York-Simcoe Express 1
Another strong effort from Kitchener Jr. Rangers captain Jason Willms saw him net a hat-trick in a 4-1 win over the York-Simcoe Express.
The Jr. Rangers drew strong praise from Head Coach Dean DeSilva after the game.
“Our guys have been getting progressively better as the tournament has gone on. It’s not just our big scorers either, we’ve had contributions from the whole team and received some great goaltending from Daniel Chenard in the win today.”
Shifty Kitchener forward Owen Lane joined Willms on the scoresheet with a goal and two helpers. Power forward Aidan Brown responded with the lone goal for York-Simcoe.
Scrappy winger Keenan Dawdy had another solid game for Kitchener, and got a vote of confidence from DeSilva after the win.
“Keenan has been a man amongst boys in this tournament so far,” said the Rangers coach. “He does such a good job at the net front and along the boards and sometimes we forget about that because we’re so used to seeing it from him. He’s a very underrated part of our team and helps bolster our secondary scoring efforts.”
As a result of the victory, the Jr. Rangers advance to the OHL Cup Playoffs past York-Simcoe by way of the tournament’s tiebreaking policy based on head-to-head performance.
The York-Simcoe express finish the 2015 OHL Cup with a record of 2-2. They were led in scoring by Robert Thomas (3-2–5) and William Sirman (1-4–5) who had five points each.
Jr. Rangers MVP – Jason Willms (3G)
Express MVP – Robert Thomas
Game 33: Brind’Amour leads TPH to victory
TPH Thunder 3, Oakville Rangers 0
Skyler Brind’Amour led the way with a goal and an assist while goaltender Nick Donofrio held the Oakville Rangers off the board in a 3-0 win.
The Thunder pick up their first victory with other goals coming from Brenden Stanko and Harrison Craffey.
“It’s disappointing that we’re not playing to move on,” said Thunder coach Scott Gordon. “I told the players before the game that you write your resume everyday in this game. There’s a ton of scouts here watching and you never know what kind of impression you could make. I think they all responded very well.”
Brind’Amour, the son of 1484 game NHL veteran Rod Brind’Amour, emulates his dad’s approach at the rink. “I once got a description from Peter Laviolette about Rod Brind’Amour and what type of player he was,” Gordon, a former NHL Head Coach continued. “His mentality and intelligence on the ice has been passed on to his son. Sykler prepares and plays like a pro and he was very good for us today.”
The Oakville Rangers fall to 1-3 in the tournament with the loss while TPH moves to 2-2 to close out their tournament.
The Rangers were led in scoring by captain Jack Ricketts who finished with four points, all goals, in four games.
The Thunder were led by forward Jack Studnicka on the scoresheet. He finished the tournament with a goal and three assists in four games.
Thunder MVP – Skyler Brind’Amour (1G, 1A)
Rangers MVP – Cameron McLean
Game 32: Israel’s overtime heroics give Titans 5-4 win
Toronto Titans 5, Thunder Bay Kings 4 – OT
In what some are calling the most exciting game in the 2015 OHL Cup to date, the Toronto Titans and Thunder Bay Kings went to war in front of a packed house at Buckingham Arena.
With the two teams down to three-on-three play in overtime with a pair of penalties on the board, Titans forward Ryan Israel emerged as the difference maker, slipping a bouncing puck past Thunder Bay goaltender Doug Newhouse for the 5-4 triumph.
Israel managed to hold off a Thunder Bay defender and guide a rolling puck into the net for what he calls one of the biggest goals of his career.
“No doubt about it, that’s one I’m going to remember for a long time,” he said with a smile. “That was a big win for us coming into the game with one win and one loss. It sets us up for a big game this afternoon.”
The Titans will square off with the undefeated London Jr. Knights at 5:15pm.
“We haven’t played them this year, so it’s going to be interesting. They have a lot of skill, but we’re going to be coming in with some confidence after this big win.”
Israel was joined on the scoresheet by Ryan Kula who buried his fifth and sixth goals of the tournament as well as Daniel Berno who had two of his own. Big blueliner Robert Proner registered three assists in the game.
Thunder Bay had goals from Logan Mihalcin, Jacob Brown, Brett Hahkala and Baldino Aiello in the loss that saw their 4-2 lead midway through the third period evaporate as a result of a pair of Titans powerplay goals.
The chippy affair saw lots of penalties on both sides as the two teams each scored three powerplay markers.
“It was an intense game,” Israel added. “They’re one of the hardest working teams out there and we found a way to pull through.”
The Thunder Bay Kings finish the 2015 OHL Cup with a record of 1-3-0. They were led in scoring by forward Hunter Buzzi who had six points (3-3–6) in four games.
Titans MVP – Ryan Israel (1G, 2A)
Kings MVP – Doug Newhouse (Goaltender)
Game 31: Flyers prevail in goaltending duel
Don Mills Flyers 1, Waterloo Wolves 0
A goaltending duel between Waterloo’s Max Wright and Don Mills’ Mathew Woroniuk came down to the last shot.
Slippery Flyers forward Jacob Tortora tore down the wing and used a Waterloo blueliner as a screen to rip a wrister over the shoulder of Wright with 1:30 left in regulation for a 1-0 victory.
“The goalies stood on their heads the whole game,” Tortora said after burying the winner. “Woroniuk has been playing great lately and giving us some saves when we need them.”
Now 3-0, the Flyers square off with the North Central Predators later on in the day in a bid to finish off the round-robin with a perfect record.
“We’re out for redemption,” said Tortora after the game. The Don Mills Flyers haven’t forgotten their game seven 1-0 loss to the Toronto Marlboros in the GTHL Finals.
Waterloo Head Coach Shawn Dietrich was pleased with his club after the one-goal loss and felt the game could’ve gone either way.
“We had about four glorious chances that their goaltender took care of,” he said. “They won on a good shot from a good player. I’ll take a 1-0 loss to that team anyday after the way our guys competed.”
The Wolves finish the round-robin with a record of 2-2-0 and will advance to the OHL Cup Quarterfinals on Saturday.
Flyers MVP – Mathew Woroniuk (Goaltender)
Wolves MVP – Max Wright (Goaltender)
Game 30: Marlies bounce back with 5-1 win
Toronto Marlboros 5, Team NOHA 1
Justin Ryyppo put Team NOHA up 1-0 5:56 into the first period and the Toronto Marlboros took note.
After dropping a 1-0 loss to the Mississauga Reps on Wednesday, the Marlies were looking to get back on track. A 1-0 deficit wasn’t exactly what they’d had in mind.
“I think it confirmed for us that they showed up to play,” said Marlies forward Nicholas Pryce. “We knew we needed to start going out there.”
And go they did.
The Marlboros bounced back for five unanswered in a 5-1 victory as Pryce netted a goal and an assist and other markers came from Quintin Hughes, Elijah Roberts, Samuel Duchesne and Mackenzie Entwistle.
The GTHL Champion Marlies will now prepare for an afternoon date with Greg Meireles and the undefeated Ottawa Jr. 67’s.
“They’re a very good team with some dangerous players,” Pryce continued. We managed to beat them at the Marlies Christmas Tournament, but it was a good game and we’ll need to be ready for them to come at us hard today. It’s one of the biggest games of the year.”
Team NOHA closes out the 2015 OHL Cup with a record of 0-4. They were led in scoring by defencemen Justin Ryyppo (1-1–2) and Zach Taylor (1-1–2) along with forward Mark Tassone (0-2–2) who all had two points each.
Marlboros MVP – Elijah Roberts (1G)
NOHA MVP – Brendon Clavelle
Game 29: Jr. Canadiens stay hot with 4-1 win
Toronto Jr. Canadiens 4, Ottawa Valley Titans 1
The Toronto Jr. Canadiens are making themselves a part of the discussion at the 2015 OHL Cup Showcase.
After falling in a seven game semi-final series to the Don Mills Flyers in the GTHL Playoffs, the Jr. Canadiens, with new coach John Winstanley behind the bench, are flashing a whole lot of speed and puck possession through three games this week.
Underage winger Allan McShane scored twice as the Jr. Canadiens handed the OEMHL Champion Ottawa Valley Titans their third loss of the tournament by a score of 4-1.
“We were off for awhile, but we got put through our paces and didn’t get rusty,” said Jr. Canadiens centreman Colton Kalezic who opened the scoring in the win. “We’re a possession team that doesn’t like giving pucks away. Our coaching staff was clear with us entering the tournament that everyone has to work for their ice, because there’s always another guy in line that wants to step up.”
After Kalezic beat Titans goaltender Jacob Smith in the first, McShane buried a pair in the second period before defenceman Daniel Marchese added one in the third. Big centreman Liam Hawel tallied the lone goal for Ottawa Valley.
The undefeated Jr. Canadiens battle the Elgin-Middlesex Chiefs later on in the day while the Ottawa Valley Titans wrap up their OHL Cup tournament with a record of 1-3-0. They were led in scoring by forwards Liam Hawel (3 GP, 2-1–3) and Kristopher Lalonde (4 GP, 2-1–3) along with blueliner Cole Fraser (4 GP, 0-3–3).
Jr. Canadiens MVP – Jack Lyons
Titans MVP – Taylor Carlson
For more information including schedule, rosters, and stats please visit www.ohlcup.ca.
Recaps by Josh Sweetland/OHL