Friday Night Faceoff: Bulldogs at Frontenacs

Three of the OHL’s four divisions have been claimed, all that remains is the East.

The Brantford Bulldogs (42-19-5-0) head into Kingston for tonight’s OHL Friday Night Faceoff with an opportunity to clinch the division crown and earn the Leyden Trophy for the third time in Bulldogs history. A win would get the job done, but a loss would leave the door open for the Frontenacs (40-18-5-3) to be able to claim their first since 2016.

Brantford’s lead storyline centres on OHL goal-scoring leader Nick Lardis, who sits at 71 with two games remaining on the schedule. The Chicago Blackhawks prospect is one of eight players to score more than 70 goals in a season dating back to 1980, one shy of John Tavares’ 2006-07 mark of 72. The Bulldogs feature another 100+ point producer in Washington Capitals prospect Patrick Thomas (27-76–103) while NHL Draft prospect Jake O’Brien (32-65–97) is three points away from giving them a third.

The Frontenacs have been unbeatable on home ice dating back to early December, winning 16 in a row at Slush Puppie Place. Tonight marks their last home date of the regular season as dual 90-point producers Jacob Battaglia (40-50–90) and Tuomas Uronen (38-52–90) lead the attack offensively. Overage centreman Cedrick Guindon, who recently had an ironman streak snapped at 267 consecutive games, remains a consistent producer as his OHL career winds down, having produced 270 points (111-159–270) over 269 games between Kingston and Owen Sound over four seasons.

There’s a lot on the line tonight! Tune in for free to the OHL Friday Night Faceoff when the puck drops at 7:00pm. The game will air live on OHL Live, the League’s YouTube channel as well as X and Facebook accounts.