By Andrew Heliotis
WELLINGTON – A lot can change in a quarter-century. Luckily for Wellington Dukes fans, one thing has remained the same: the local Junior A hockey team is going to the playoffs.
On Wednesday the Dukes will travel to Cobourg to face the Cougars in the first round of the Ontario Junior Hockey League playoffs.
Playing out of Wellington since 1988, the Dukes have never missed the post-season. A record as impressive as that means extra pressure can come from all areas.
Dukes head coach Marty Abrams sees the pressure a little differently.
“You want to play and you want to coach on a team and in a community where standards are high, and I think we’ve accomplished that here,” says Abrams.
The Dukes finished sixth in the OJHL’s North East Conference this year, which means they will begin the playoffs on the road. But Wellington fans won’t have to wait long, as their Dukes return home to the Essroc Arena Friday night.
Dukes veteran forward Mike Robinson said he expects the place to be loud when the puck drops at 7:30 p.m. in Wellington.
“I think (the fans) will come out flying like we will, cheering for us every game, and we’re going to give ’em something to cheer for,” said Robinson.
Robinson, 20, came to the team in December after spending two years with the Niagara Ice Dogs of the Ontario Hockey League. His time in the OHL will certainly come in handy during the playoffs, but it’s another of Robinson’s hockey experiences the Dukes may have coveted most. Robinson won an OJHL championship with his hometown of Stouffville before playing in the OHL. If any player knows what it’s going to take for the Dukes to win this year’s championship, it Robinson.
Robinson compared this year’s Dukes team to his team in Stouffville.
“I think we have more character then my other team, but it’s all about the team trusting each other and if the boys want to win. I think we have that in this room so I think we will do well.
Another Dukes player who has also seen some time in the OHL – with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds and the Sudbury Wolves – is defenceman Chad Thibodeau.
Thibodeau, 20, also feels pretty strongly about the team’s chances in the playoffs: “Our mindset is to win. No one wants to lose. We have a veteran presence on the team so we are going to be a championship-quality team.”
This will be Thibodeau’s last year of eligibility in the OJHL so a title is something he wants badly.
“I’ll do anything to win the championship,” says Thibodeau.
When Wellington played its last regular-season game Friday night, it lost a fast-paced shootout with the Mississauga Chargers, 6-4. The Dukes had already clinched a playoff spot so some veterans were noticeably absent from the lineup. Mississauga, on the other hand, needed just a single point to take one of the two last playoff spots.
Despite losing, Wellington put 49 shots on net and was able to score a respectable four goals. With a 9-0 win over Trenton two nights before, the Dukes’ offence is firing, scoring 13 total goals over that two-game period. That’s something Coach Abrams is happy to see given some of the team’s struggles throughout the season.
“Our offence has been good at times but at other times it’s been dry. I think overall our season is best described as consistently inconsistent. We’re capable of scoring, then we go on a bit of a drought and we have to earn every single goal we get.”
The Dukes will need to continue putting the puck in the net if they have any hopes of making it past Cobourg.
The Cougars finished the season third in the conference. Abrams credits a lot of that to sound defence and good goaltending.