NEWS

(pictured - although the Georgetown Raiders were regular season champions, the Oakville Blades defeated them in three of five meetings this season - photo credit:  Tim Bates/OJHL Images)

It's as it should be in the South/West Conference Final where the number one seed Georgetown Raiders will play the number two Oakville Blades. Georgetown took the West Division with 94 points while Oakville won the South with 73. The Raiders beat the Junior Sabres 4 games to 1 and the Toronto Junior Canadiens 4-0 to advance to this point while the Blades beat North York 4-1 and then defeated Burlington by the same count. 

In regular season meetings between the two the Blades came out on top three games to two. At the start of the season (Sept.9) Bryce Misley had the game winner in the 5-3 final but the Raiders rebounded on Sept. 24 when Ethan Wiseman scored in double overtime for the 4-3 victory. (Wiseman later would be traded to the Rangers of North York and they received Keegan Blasby in exchange, days before the club had sent Bailey Molella to Orangeville, getting goalkeeper Nicholas Latinovich in return). Mark McJannet had the winner as Georgetown took the third meeting on Nov. 9 by a 3-2 score. The Blades Ryan Foss was the scorer of the game winner Dec. 16 with the Blades' taking it 5-3. Jan. 25 Tyler Hildebrandt had the decider and the final was 3-2 Blades. Game five was the only one in which the road team were the victors.

Balanced goal scoring has been a highlight for the Raiders in their nine playoff games to date. Blasby and Jordan Crocker lead the way scoring five times. Josh Dickinson and Ryan Takamatsu have registered four each. Jack Jacome, Jon Hampton and Louis Kereakou have three goals. Dickinson leads in points with 12, followed by Takamatsu and Jacome with 10 and Blasby with 9. Latinovitch has a 1.36 GAA, including a shutout, in four appearances while Josh Astorino sits at 1.94. 

Astorino came to the Raiders after one season with the Jr. C. Grimsby Peach Kings and two with the GOJHL's Thorold Black Hawks. At the Jan. 10 trading deadline the Raiders got Kereakou from the Rangers while sending rookie Daniel Berno to Orangeville in exchange for the Flyers' veteran captain Colin Rigney. They also picked up rugged forward Scott Docherty from the Junior Canadiens. To start the season they boosted their secondary scoring by adding Matt McJannet from the St. Thomas Stars.

For Oakville Ryan Foss has accumulated 11 points in the post-season to date while line-mates Bryce Misley (9 points) and Chris Brill-Morgan (8) being the next two. Captain Jackson Bales and Drew Worrad each have seven points. In goals Foss leads with seven, Bales has five and Misley and Peyton Reeves have found the net four times. Jack Jeffers has three in eight games. Brendan McGlynn has played in goal for all ten games with a 1.87 GAA and a .947 save percentage.

At the trading deadline the Blades acquired veteran defenceman and J.C's captain Sal Filice. In late September they picked up Jeffers from Orangeville and on Dec.1 they added another blue-liner in Bailey Newton, born in Blackpool, England, from the Smiths Falls Bears of the CCHL. Both Filice and Newton have been positive forces on the Oakville back end. Big additions this season have been veteran forward Tyler Hildebrandt, obtained from the St. Catharines Falcons and tough defenceman Jeff Clarke from the Strathroy Rockets.

Five of the current Raiders' squad have commitments after Junior..blue-liner Austin Cho is headed to RPI, Dickinson, Jacome and Carson Pearce are off to Clarkson and second-year defenceman Matthew Thom is going to Princeton. 

Of the current Blades captain Bales is committed to Merrimack, Clarke to St. Lawrence; rookie blue-liner Matthew Kellenberger has committed to Princeton; Misley is off to Vermont; Christian Rajic is going to Alabama/Huntsville and Worrad to Clarkson.

The series will tentatively get underway at the Alcott arena (Mold-Masters Sportsplex) in Georgetown on Wednesday. It must be completed by April 11th. Please check the OJHL website for full details.

Raiders' Head Coach/GM Greg Walters is looking forward to a terrific series being played on contrasting ice surfaces. There is no way the Blades can be taken lightly, he says, and his club will have to be at their best to take this series. He cites the friendly competition between goalies Astorino and Latinovich and the strength of both as a big plus for his side. Picking up a veteran presence in Blasby who has brought size and extra scoring to the team and the hard-working  Rigney were important moves but loves the depth on his squad and the fact that (like the Blades) players take turns on being the game 'hero'. He could not say enough about Jacome who put up great numbers this season in winning the League scoring championship despite the team regularly playing four lines in games. He sets an example for others to follow, he says, through his hard work, his fearlessness in blocking shots and his scoring ability. Looking at the Blades he notes the power of the top two lines led by Foss and Bales but like his own club they have other players who step up when the chips are down (and the chips will for sure be down in this highly-awaited series).

Blades' Head Coach Mike Tarantino says he was happy with the win against Burlington and a bit surprised that it took just five games. He was very pleased with the way his club played at the Appleby (where the team won all three games). Though he feels the confidence level of the players is obviously high at the moment he stresses the need to take this series one game at a time but feels they are well prepared to take on the Raiders in what he notes will be a hotly-contested affair. He knows that the number one ranked Raiders are going to be very tough and points out their positives in balanced scoring, a tough and mobile 'D' and two very strong and experienced goalkeepers. Though reluctant to single out individual players he mentioned the strong series against Burlington by Reeves as a highlight but notes that a different player is capable of stepping to the forefront in each game. He has also been happy with AP's like Ryan Shaw and Nick Boehmer who have fitted in seamlessly in the dressing room and on the ice.

Fans at both centres taking in this series will witness top-notch hockey with the winner advancing to meet Trenton or Cobourg for the Buckland Cup.

The South-West Conference Championship Series playoff preview is written by longtime Hamilton Junior hockey supporter and OJHL website contributor Ron Valentine. Follow Ron on twitter - @ronandlynda