The Barrie Colts are two games away from punching their ticket to the OHL’s eastern conference final.
In Barrie’s second-round series against the Kingston Frontenacs, the Colts won their first two games at Sadlon Arena before dropping game three on the road earlier this week.
The two squads will square off again in Kingston on Thursday for a pivotal game four that will either even up the series or bring Barrie to the brink of victory.
Forward Dalyn Wakely (an Edmonton sixth-round pick in 2024) continues to lead the Colts in scoring with 15 points through eight playoff games, while Anthony Romani (a Vancouver sixth-round pick in 2024) has already notched nine goals in the postseason.
Interestingly, Barrie has maintained its regular season practice of giving near-equal playing time to the team’s two goalies, Sam Hillebrandt and Ben Hrebik.Â
After a phenomenal first season in the OHL, Hrebik’s numbers have come back to earth, as he’s posted an .889 save percentage in three playoff appearances, which is well short of his impressive regular season average of .920. Currently, Hrebik has a 1-2 record in this year’s playoffs.
Meanwhile, Hillebrandt is rocking a .905 through five postseason games, nearly identical to his regular season statistics, and he remains undefeated with three wins against Niagara and backstopping Barrie’s two victories over Kingston so far this series.Â
The Colts’ starting goalie for Thursday night’s game has not yet been announced.
Should Barrie go on to close out the series, they will play the winner of the Brantford Bulldogs and Oshawa Generals, with Brantford currently holding a 2-1 series lead.Â
The Colts have won the Bobby Orr Trophy, given to the eastern conference champions, four times in franchise history, with the latest coming in 2012-2013. Barrie has also only won one OHL title, which came in 1999-2000.
Earlier this year, the Colts wrapped up the central division title, clinching the team’s first Emms Trophy since 2017-2018.
