The Haliburton County Huskies secured a playoff berth this week after momentum-boosting wins over rival outfits the Cobourg Cougars and Wellington Dukes.
This marks a fifth successive post-season appearance for the Huskies since they relocated to the Highlands in 2021. Head coach Ryan Ramsay indicated there’s a different feel to this year’s run, with the hometown team seeming to hit top form at the perfect time.
After a disappointing 6-2 defeat on the road to the King Rebellion Jan. 30, the Huskies rallied to knock off the Cougars 5-3 on home ice Feb. 1 and followed up with a 4-0 shutout win over the Wellington Dukes Feb. 4. The team sits third in the Ontario Junior Hockey League’s East Conference with 69 points from 47 games – four back of the Toronto Jr. Canadians, who visit S.G. Nesbitt Memorial Arena on Saturday.
Ramsay noted the match-up is the Huskies’ biggest of the season.
“Finishing second would secure home advantage for at least two rounds of playoffs. We’re trying not to look too far ahead of ourselves, but second place would be nice,” Ramsay said. “We’re in the middle of a tough five-game segment. The boys got the job done against Cobourg and Wellington, which is good on them, but the work doesn’t stop.”
After the Canadiens, the Huskies travel to the table-topping Trenton Golden Hawks Feb. 11 to face the number one ranked Jr. A team in Canada, before a Valentine’s Day trip to the GTA to face the Burlington Cougars Feb. 14.
Huskies 5-3 Cobourg
Saturday’s tilt was a hard-hitting affair, as is tradition anytime the Huskies and Cougars lock horns, Ramsay said.
Goals from Noah Lodoen and Declan Bowmaster put the home side in a commanding position early in the first. After Beckett Ewart responded for the Cougars, Bowmaster added a second in the middle frame to make it a 3-1 game.
The Cougars rallied in the third – Wyatt Gregory and Zachary Carrier scoring 56 seconds apart to tie the game, but a powerplay marker from Daniel Vasic at the four-minute mark stood up as the game-winner. Co-captain Ty Petrou made sure of the result at 7:39 for his 19th goal of the season.
There were fireworks at the final buzzer with the two teams engaging in a line brawl. Defencemen Raine Nadeau and Tyson Rismond received three and two-game suspensions for their part, ruling them out of Tuesday’s tilt in Wellington.
Huskies 4-0 Wellington
Goaltender Tyler Hodges turned aside 35 shots to record his second shutout of the season as the Huskies kept the fourthplace Dukes at arm’s length in the league standings.
Alongside the missing defencemen, the Huskies were also without key forwards Nathan Poole (sickness) and Alex Bradshaw (injury), while Bowmaster departed hurt early in the first. Ramsay confirmed the injured pair would likely be out of the lineup “for a while.”
In a fine display of the Huskies’ depth, fourth liners Chase Del Colombo, Ryan Gosse and Isaac Larmand combined for three of the team’s four goals. Centre Kieran Litterick was also on the scoresheet.
“It speaks volumes of the character and quality of players we have, that even when guys are hurt and teams are shutting down our top lines, we have guys ready to step up and chip in,” Ramsay said.
The coach also commended the team’s defensive display in recent weeks – since a New Year’s Eve win over the Lindsay Muskies, the Huskies have conceded two goals or less in seven of 12 games and recorded three shutouts.
“We’re playing good defence. This late in the season, we don’t need guys rushing up too much. Looking at our forward depth, the message is just to let everyone play their positions and their role. If everyone does that, we’re going to be well-off and I think that’s shown with the results,” Ramsay said.
“It’s building momentum and driving home good habits, which is huge at this time of the year with what’s coming (playoffs).”
