Without a doubt, the biggest story in the OHL this week centered around the Belleville Bulls being sold to Michael Andlauer and relocated to Hamilton.
The news came as a bit of a shock to many. I feel for the diehard fans in Belleville, but understand the business side of the situation. One thing is for sure: Something had to be done about the old Yardmen Arena, and to my knowledge, nobody had gotten the ball rolling on any improvement.
Hamilton will bid farewell to its American Hockey League team, the Montreal Canadiens’ affiliate, and welcome the newest OHL franchise: the identically named Hamilton Bulldogs. We know the Bulldogs will remain in the East Division, and that they’ll keep the same red, white and blue colours. (R.I.P. beautiful golden sweaters.)
In other relocation news, Flint’s OHL team will be named the Firebirds, which, other than the fact that they aren’t going to be called the Tropics, I am OK with. In their final season, the Plymouth Whalers will not make a playoff appearance, confirmed with a 6-3 loss at the hands of the Saginaw Spirit on Sunday afternoon. Saginaw, in turn, secured its post-season, thus filling the last piece of the Western Conference playoff puzzle.
Over in the Eastern Conference, the Peterborough Petes need just one more win to clinch their spot, and then the match-ups can sort themselves out. I don’t imagine the Petes suiting up against the first-place Oshawa Generals would make for a heck of a playoff series, but only because there’s such a long haul between first and eighth place. (You’ll recall Oshawa’s record: 50-10-5.) The same goes for the Soo Greyhounds and the Saginaw Spirit, but for some reason I have less faith in the Petes.
Ottawa versus Niagara? Sign me up. Here’s hoping for a speedy return for 67’s captain Travis Konecny, who missed the first weekend of an expected 2-to-4 week recovery from an upper-body injury after a collision in Mississauga on Sunday.
The Kingston Frontenacs have kicked it up a notch the past couple weeks with the return of Sam Bennett. They’re 8-2-0 in the ir poast 10 and Bennett has 21 points in nine games. If the fact that they got pummeled 9-1 on Sunday evening seems off to you, well, there were some mitigating circumstances for the almost assuredly sixth-seeded squad.
(It was 5-0 at the end of the first.)
Three Stars
Joseph Blandisi, C, Barrie Colts After scoring twice on Petes goaltender Matthew Mancina on Satuday night, the New Jersey Devils prospect became the first OHLer to notch 50 goals this season. Just another great accomplishment to tack onto his final year of junior. I can’t help but keep rooting for this guy.
It was a milestone of a week for the Colts, who, for the first time in franchise history, had three players reach the 100-point mark in one season. Andrew Mangiapane joined Blandisi and Kevin Labanc in the century club over the weekend.
Sam Bennett, C, Kingston Frontenacs It’s been said over and over again but it’s as true as ever: Bennett really couldn’t have returned to the team at a better time. He’s had no trouble finding his game and this past weekend was a perfect indication. Bennett picked up 10 points in three games—six goals and four assists—and rounded out the weekend with a plus-four rating. He also helped the Frontenacs secure their sixth-place spot in the East and a definite taste of the post-season.
Robby Fabbri, C, Guelph Storm In keeping with players who have recovered from injury and made epic returns, Fabbri is right there. We all know how much of an impact player he is by now (and how much more of an impact he may have made if not for injuries the past year—chances are he may have stuck around with the St. Louis Blues), but in case you forgot, Fabbri scored four goals and four assists in just two games over the weekend.
NHL Draft Tracker
Dante Salituro, C, Ottawa 67’s A five-point weekend in two wins for the 67’s, one of which was against the top-seeded Oshawa Generals. With Travis Konecny out of the lineup Salituro was given a spot on the first line. Friday night against Oshawa, he was hit into the boards early in the first period. Only minutes later, he skated down the ice and put his team up on the board. This guy isn’t slowing down, and Oshawa’s a tough team to crack.
Vince Dunn, D, Niagara IceDogs The IceDogs are going to make for some wild playoff hockey, just you watch. Dunn picked up five points in two games, both victories. Dunn has a total 53 points in 65 games this season.
Mitchell Stephens, C, Saginaw Spirit Six points in three games. Saginaw had a solid weekend, scoring a collective 16 goals.