CALGARY, Alta. – As the quest for the RBC Cup begins with the 10 members of the Canadian Junior Hockey League getting set to begin, or are nearing the commencement of their respective league playoffs, here is some league-by-league postseason insight.
The following is a glance at the OJHL.
REGULAR SEASON CHAMPS: The Toronto Patriots claimed the Ontario Junior Hockey League’s regular season title in 2017-18 as their 40-8-3-3 record and 86 points put them in top spot in the 22-team loop.
The Patriots were six points clear of the North York Rangers and seven on the Oakville Blades as those three OJHL South Division sides boasted the best three winning percentages in the league.
TOP SCORER: Pacing the OJHL in scoring during the course of the regular season was forward Andrew Petrucci who was a 100-point man for the front-running Toronto Patriots.
His 52 goals and 48 points saw him become the first skater in the league with 100 or more points in a season since Steve Hladin registered 104 during the 2014-15 campaign for the Georgetown Raiders.
TOP NETMINDER: Colby Muise of the North York Rangers led all OJHL netminders in goals-against average this season at 1.81.
The 19-year-old Muise, who hails from Yarmouth, N.S., also topped the league in save percentage at .934.
Meanwhile his four shutouts put him one off the league lead, which was held by four others in the OJHL.
PLAYOFFS: There are a total of eight first round playoff match-ups set to go in the OJHL, all of which are best-of-seven affairs.
Postseason action begins Wednesday evening with the North York Rangers hosting the Buffalo Jr. Sabres in a South-West Conference affair.
Here’s brief breakdown on each series:
SOUTH-WEST CONFERENCE
No. 1 Toronto Patriots vs. No. 8 Orangeville: The top-ranked Patriots will be favoured in this one finishing with 18 more victories and 35 more points than the Flyers.
No. 2 Georgetown vs. No. 7 St. Michael’s: Georgetown is the defending OJHL Buckland Trophy champions as they begin their quest to repeat with this opening round series vs. the Buzzers, who finished 24 points in arrears.
No. 3 North York vs. No. 6 Buffalo: North York boasted the second-best record in league play as they prepare to tangle with Buffalo.
No. 4 Oakville vs. No. 5 Toronto Jr. Canadiens: 10 points separated the two sides in the regular season, but has the makings of a good series.
NORTH-EAST CONFERENCE
No. 1 Aurora vs. No. 8 Trenton: The Tigers are the top seed in the North-East, but the Golden Hawks are the two-time defending Dudley-Hewitt Cup champions.
No. 2 Wellington vs. No. 7 Pickering: The Dukes won the East Division while the Panthers were fourth in the North. Wellington also finished 18 points ahead of Pickering.
No. 3 Newmarket vs. No. 6 Markham: The Hurricanes held the edge on the Royals in the North standings and boasted a 2-1-1 record vs. the Royals in four regular season meetings.
No. 4 Kingston vs. No. 5 Cobourg: Only three points separated the Voyageurs and Cougars in the standings with Kingston having the edge. Cobourg is the defending RBC Cup champions.
NATIONALLY RANKED: The most recent CJHL Top 20 rankings saw the OJHL well represented.
The Toronto Patriots jumped to No. 6 nationally in the 132-team CJHL while the North York Rangers were tabbed at No. 18 and the Oakville Blades came in at No. 20.
You also had the Georgetown Raiders and Aurora Tigers picking up Honourable Mention recognition in the listings.
RBC CUP: For all the latest information on the 2018 RBC Cup, visit the championship website at hockeycanada.ca/rbccup or via social media on Twitter @HC_RBCCup or facebook.com/RBCCup.
THE OJHL
Commissioner: Marty Savoy
Director of Communications: Jim Mason
Defending champion: Georgetown Raiders
Website: ojhl.ca
Twitter: @OJHLOfficial
Facebook: /OJHLOfficial
FINAL REGULAR SEASON STANDINGS
| NORTH |
GP |
W |
L |
T |
OTL |
PTS |
| Aurora Tigers |
54 |
36 |
12 |
1 |
5 |
78 |
| Newmarket Hurricanes |
54 |
33 |
14 |
6 |
1 |
73 |
| Markham Royals |
54 |
26 |
22 |
1 |
5 |
58 |
| Pickering Panthers |
54 |
26 |
24 |
1 |
3 |
56 |
| Lindsay Muskies |
54 |
11 |
40 |
0 |
3 |
25 |
| Stouffville Spirit |
54 |
8 |
43 |
2 |
1 |
19 |
| EAST |
GP |
W |
L |
T |
OTL |
PTS |
| Wellington Dukes |
54 |
33 |
13 |
3 |
5 |
74 |
| Kingston Voyageurs |
54 |
31 |
19 |
2 |
2 |
66 |
| Cobourg Cougars |
54 |
29 |
20 |
2 |
3 |
63 |
| Trenton Golden Hawks |
54 |
24 |
26 |
2 |
2 |
52 |
| Whitby Fury |
54 |
18 |
31 |
4 |
1 |
31 |
| SOUTH |
GP |
W |
L |
T |
OTL |
PTS |
| Toronto Patriots |
54 |
40 |
8 |
3 |
3 |
86 |
| North York Rangers |
54 |
37 |
11 |
1 |
5 |
80 |
|
Oakville Blades |
54 |
38 |
13 |
2 |
1 |
79 |
| Toronto Jr. Canadiens |
54 |
33 |
18 |
1 |
2 |
69 |
| St. Michael’s Buzzers |
54 |
24 |
25 |
3 |
2 |
53 |
| Mississauga Chargers |
54 |
19 |
29 |
4 |
2 |
44 |
| WEST |
GP |
W |
L |
T |
OTL |
PTS |
| Georgetown Raiders |
54 |
36 |
12 |
3 |
3 |
78 |
| Buffalo Jr. Sabres |
54 |
26 |
22 |
0 |
6 |
58 |
| Orangeville Flyers |
54 |
22 |
25 |
1 |
6 |
51 |
| Burlington Cougars |
54 |
18 |
28 |
2 |
6 |
44 |
| Milton Icehawks |
54 |
4 |
47 |
0 |
3 |
11 |
SCORING LEADERS
PLAYER POS. TEAM GP G A PTS
Andrew Petrucci F TLP 54 52 48 100
Jake Bricknell F AUR 53 35 64 99
Dante Spagnuolo F TLP 54 23 66 89
Lucas Condotta F MAR 54 35 47 82
Jack Jeffers F MAR 54 23 56 79
GOALTENDER LEADERS
GOALTENDER TEAM GP W L T/OTL GAA SV% SO
Colby Muise NYR 31 22 7 1 1.81 0.934 4
Fraser Kirk NMK 41 27 9 3 1.86 0.923 5
Mario Cavaliere GEO 28 19 8 1 2.05 0.932 3
Christian Purboo OAK 19 14 3 1 2.05 0.919 1
Jett Alexander NYR 27 15 9 0 2.09 0.929 1