Fronts and Bulldogs square off on Sportsnet

Tune into Sportsnet Saturday for a classic East Division clash between the Kingston Frontenacs (9-16-2-2) and host Hamilton Bulldogs (13-17-2-0).

The Bulldogs will be hungry to get back into the win column, having dropped their last three contests to the Mississauga Steelheads, Peterborough Petes and Kitchener Rangers. The Steelheads halted Jan Jenik’s 26-game point streak last Saturday  and handed the Dogs their first shutout loss of the season. Hamilton enters action off a 9-6 loss in Kitchener on Friday.

The Fronts will be skating in with eight wins in their last 10 games and a 10-game point streak from 15-year-old rookie Shane Wright. Wright, who was granted exceptional status as a 15-year-old and was drafted first overall by Kingston last April, currently leads the rookie scoring race with 27 points (15-12–27) on the year so far.

The Fronts fell to the Petes 3-1 in the back half of a home-and-home last Saturday after defeating them 7-2 the night before. Wright scored the lone goal in Saturday’s loss, and Dawson Baker picked up a hat-trick in Friday’s victory, which would be the first hat trick from a Kingston player since Dec. 9, 2018. The Fronts pulled-off a 6-3 win over the Barrie Colts on home ice on Friday as Wright scored his first career shorthanded goal.

Saturday’s tilt will be the third of six meetings between the two clubs, with the Bulldogs holding a 2-0 lead in the season series. Their first meeting, a 3-2 shootout decision, included two goals from second-year Kingston centreman Zayde Wisdom as the Fronts came up short. The Bulldogs took the second game 4-2 with a three-point night from L.A. Kings prospect Arthur Kaliyev (2-1–3).

Kaliyev currently leads the OHL scoring race with 60 points (31-29–60) over 32 games, giving him a total of 210 (113-97–210) in his OHL career. Jenik trails close behind with 56 points (22-34–56) on the campaign.

The puck drops at 4:00pm ET on a game that can be seen across the country on Sportsnet East, Ontario and Pacific as well as in the United States on NHL Network.