The Toronto Jr. Canadiens have had a lot to celebrate thus far in the 2021-22 Ontario Junior Hockey League season. They have the most wins and the best winning percentage in the 21-team league. (Photo by Paul Mauceri / OJHL Images)

The Ontario Junior Hockey League is set to return from a four-week, COVID-19 mandated shutdown on Feb. 1. Ron Valentine looks at all 21 teams as they head for the stretch drive – and the playoffs:

BY RON VALENTINE

1.  TORONTO JUNIOR CANADIENS (.776). The J.C's had an eight-game win streak from Nov. 21 to Dec. 12. Their 23 victories so far are the most to date in the league and they have been involved in a season-long race with North York and St. Michael's atop the South Division. Matthew Wilde leads the club with 19 goals while Eric Vitale and Christian Catalano (six game winners) have 18 each while goalkeepers Christian Trianni and Selby Warren have allowed only 64 goals in 29 contests. Tyler Fukakusa is currently on a 10-game point scoring run and ranks third in the league in assists with 29. Team captain Liam Fedak has recently got back into the lineup but he's only been able to make eight appearances this season. Since his return he has put up five points in four games. The J.C's  and North York have met three times this season with a win, a loss and a tie. The battle for top honours in the South will be ongoing.

2.  NORTH YORK RANGERS (.750). A stingy team defence, just 61 goals against, has keyed the Rangers to a first place spot in the South leading the J.C's by three points with three more games played. Veteran goalie James Gray and OJHL rookie Hardy Westman have combined for a League-leading goals against average of 1.91. The team has won 12 times in 15 games at their home rink, the Herb Carnegie Memorial arena. Max Donohoe leads the club with 13 goals and 30 points but their offence like their defence is a team affair. On the blueline, captain Jason Condotta and rookie George Fegaras have 25 points each, tied for second in the League while another rearguard, Wilson Farrow, leads the league in goals with nine goals. The club has a goal differential of +59. In a late December deal the Rangers added some scoring punch by picking up Nick Cordeiro and Daniel Baldassarra from the Mississauga Chargers. At the enforced break the team was on a five-game winning streak.

3.  BURLINGTON COUGARS (.726). The Cougars cut off the Raiders early season seven-game winning streak and eventually moved to the top of the West themselves. Their 128 goals scored puts them first overall in that category. On a balanced lineup Matthew Zebedee leads the way with 21 goals and 44 points. Josh Belgrave has 19 goals and Jack Richard is on 18. Goalies Kyle Metson and Zach Dietz have shared duties and combined for a 2.65 goals against average and on defence Crossley Stewart, traded to them from the Toronto Patriots, has 24 points, good for fifth spot in League blueliner pointscoring. The Cougars have a goal differential of +46. In a move before the trading deadline they acquired captain and veteran forward Bailey Kirwin and rookie Jax Bellwood from the Stouffville Spirit. In the competitive West have opened up an eight point lead over Milton, who have played two games less.

4.  PICKERING PANTHERS (.719). The Panthers hold an eight point advantage in the North. They have been road warriors with 15 away wins, tops in the OJHL. Brendan Tomilson's 33 points in 32 games have put him in number one spot in OJHL pointscoring by a defenceman. It's a veteran lineup including eight '01-born players including goalie Zach Roy. The Callender native has 8 wins, including three shutouts, in 13 games and a 2.01 GAA. Jake Partridge, who was captain of the Brantford 99'ers was traded to the Panthers and has put up 16 points in 11 games and 38 overall. As well as Partridge and Tomilson, Lucas Rowe and Ian Martin appear in the OJHL's top 20 point scorers. Elijah Pilosof has recorded 22 points in only 11 appearances. The team has nine shorthanded goals, tops in the league. An eight point lead in the North puts them firmly in the driver's seat as play resumes.

5.  TRENTON GOLDEN HAWKS (.690). The 'Hawks reeled off nine consecutive victories to start off the season and then between October 1st. and the 22nd. they won eight games straight for a very impressive start. They lead the League in powerplay goals with 29 and are second in PP percentage at 23.20. Veteran Dalton Bancroft ranks second in the League with 53 points. Also in the top 20 OJHL scorers is Jake Campbell with 19 goals and 35 points. Before the trading deadline they added defencemen Jackson Barnes from the NOJHL, Austin D'Orazio from the Markham Royals and Rajvir Sangha from the SIJHL as well as former Stouffville forward Tanner MacEachern from the GOJHL and forward Daniel Beaupre from the NOJHL. On resuming play the 'Hawks will be looking to break off their five-game losing streak. 

6.  HALIBURTON COUNTY HUSKIES (.655). The first-year Huskies (formerly the Whitby Fury) trail the Golden Hawks by just two points in the East. Oliver Tarr leads the way in goalscoring with 24 and has amassed 44 points in 29 games. The opposition have managed to keep him off the scoresheet just four times to date and he has racked up fourteen multi-point games. After being sidelined with an injury Patrick Saini has 24 points in 18 appearances. Veteran Christian Stevens has 23 points in 18 games. Captain Nathan Porter leads a solid Huskies' blueline corps. The team, based in Minden, has conceded the fewest goals in their division and has won eleven games away from home, also best in the East. Goalie Christian Cicigoi has posted 16 wins in his 23 starts. In 2019-2020 the Thunder Bay native played in the OHL and NOJHL.

7.  MILTON MENACE (.638). A successful campaign so far for the Menace in the very competitive West Division where all five teams boast a record of above .500. Holden Rogers' 22 goals puts him third in the League scoring list. The defence was bolstered with the signing of goalkeeper Ryan Dugas from the OHL's Kingston Frontenacs who has won 8 of 9 games and posted a GAA of 1.65. At the trade deadline they also picked up goalie depth in re-acquiring Carter Tahk from the Wellington Dukes. Captain Jordan Stock has 16 goals and 33 points to his credit. Veteran Aidan Hughes and rookie Lucas Buzziol have both posted 11 goals. James Barbour, picked up from the Oakville Blades has a point per game in his 13 appearances. The club has succeeded in making their Thompson Street arena a tough place for their opposition to be in. 

8.  AURORA TIGERS (.633). The Tigers lead the OJHL in penalty killing sporting a 93.07% rate and have posted a strong first half of the season following a disastrous '19-'20 campaign when the team won a total of just seven games. The club is sitting currently in second place in the North. A 10-4 road record has contributed to that success. Captain Luc Reeve has 13 goals and 38 points and Justin Biraben has 11 goals and 22 assists. Lee Chiang has the lead in goals with 16. Goalkeeper Nolan Boyd has won 13 of his 16 games played on the way to a 2.06 GAA. A major resurgence this season by the Tigers. The club has a very good road record with ten wins in 14 games. 

9.  St. MICHAEL'S BUZZERS (.625). The boys from Bathurst Street reeled off ten wins in a row, for a season record to date, from October 20th. to November 11th. Team captain Brad Somers leads all scorers in the League with 55 points and Bryce Sutherland's 23 goals, including six game winners, put him in second place overall in that category. Giacomo Martino, younger brother of alumnus Ayrton, has contributed 18 goals and 37 points. Riley Sutherland (28 pts.) and Jared Coccimigkio (25) round out their top five point scorers. The Buzzers picked up forward Christopher Castrignano from the Chargers, he had played most of the season in North York. They look forward to keeping the race for numero uno in the South a three-way contest.

10. WELLINGTON DUKES (.607). The Dukes lead the OJHL in powerplay proficiency with a percentage of 24.36 but are 21st in penalty killing at 74.24%. They acquired Creo Solomon, a top defensive prospect from the NOJHL's Soo Thunderbirds, at the trade deadline. When the League was forced to shut down the club was on a four-game winning run after what was, for them, a slow start to the season. As usual, the club features a balanced offence with captain Emmet Pierce leading the way with 17 goals and 12 assists, tied for the club lead with Jacob Vreugdenhil on 29 points. Impressive rookie Harrison Ballard has 24 points while Jonathan Balah leads their blueliner scoring with 22 points. Defenceman Erilk MacNiel joined the team from Trenton.

11. OAKVILLE BLADES (.583). With rookie Head Coach Ross Sloan behind the bench the Blades, despite a surprising 6-7 record at Sixteen Mile arena, trail the second-place Menace in the West by just two points. Eleven road victories have helped in that regard. Team captain Brendan Bowie is just one place out of the top 20 scorers with 31 points. Cole DeFazio and former OHL-er Tristan Malbouef give the team solidarity between the pipes. Chase Strychaluk leads the way with 13 goals and a total of 29 points. Michael Tiveron has 11 and Evan Pringle have 10. The Blades are truly a 'hometown' team with 14 players on the roster born in Oakville. 

12. GEORGETOWN RAIDERS (.571). Like greyhounds out of the trap the Raiders won their first seven games of the season outscoring the opposition 35-17. They have cooled off somewhat since then but on winning percentage they currently sit fourth in the West just behind Oakville. Looking for a little more offense they signed the Mughal twins, Trystan and Jordyn from Trenton. Eric Russell, despite missing several games through injury, as have many Raiders this season, heads all players with 15 goals. Chris Ishmael and Eric Bertelsen are on ten. Jack Guvenal with 20 points and Robert Strachan (15) have made strong contributions from the blueline. Ex-Buzzer Sebastain Labora and rookie Mikael Kingo have combined for a team GAA of 2.68.

13. COLLINGWOOD BLUES (.550). Despite playing the majority of their games on the road, the Blues have managed to stay above the .500 mark and they have promoted Andrew Campoli to Interim Head Coach. On a very balanced team, Will Redick is the top scorer with 23 points. Adam O'Marra has 21 and both players have scored 10 goals. Noah Pak has shouldered the load in net and has a sparkling 2.25 GAA in 23 games. They added at the deadline, two players from Mississauga in defenceman Eamon Fitzpatrick and forward Taylor Barnett (21 points) as well as a strong blueliner in Pearce Baker from the Stouffville Spirit. Team captain Cam Garvey has only been able to play in 12 games this season following an injury suffered at the Showcase tournament.

14. BRANTFORD 99'ERS (.531). The up and down 99'ers have been led by the just turned 17-year old Easton Wainwright who has netted 20 goals. In a very competitive West they have been able to bounce back from tough losses so that they have been able to stay in contention. Rookie Adrian Rebelo has been an offensive threat with 19 points. Kurt Watson's 10 goals represent a career high. Lucas Thompson has nine. In late November the 99'ers acquired forward Alex Cunningham form the Panthers but they stayed put at the trading deadline despite the promotion of Brenden Anderson to the OHL 's Hamilton Bulldogs. The 99'ers are rapidly losing the underdog role.  

15. COBOURG COUGARS (. 517). The Cougars have scored 111 goals but have allowed an equal number. They have a balanced attack with just three players in double digits in goals scored- Kallaway Mercer (14), Zach Smith (11) and George Krotiris with 10. They won four of their last six before the shutdown so go into the rest of the campaign on a positive note. All season so far the team has been flirting with the .500 mark and will be looking for a prolonged winning streak on the recommencement of play. The Cougars picked up Burlington native Justin Easter from the Panthers and the veteran has posted a 2.74 GAA in 12 games. The Cougars have been involved in seven overtime games winning four and tying one.

16. LINDSAY MUSKIES (.455). A big bounceback season for the Muskies who are very much in contention in the East. Boyd Stahlbaum has 30 points, including 15 goals and captain Will Jones has 10 goals and 13 assists while Killian Rowlee has nine goals to his credit. Goaltender Yacine Chemrouk has 2.46 goals against average in 13 games and Ethan Fraser is at 3.14 in 21 appearances. The young squad contains only five players in their last year of Junior hockey. One thing that may stand the Muskies in good stead is that if they finish fifth in the East and have more points than the fourth place finishers in the South they would be involved in a sudden victory game to advance to the postseason. The Muskies fervent fans have something to cheer about this season.

17. TORONTO PATRIOTS (.379). 25 points in 33 games is not where the Patriots wanted to be but at least they seem to have a strong hold on fourth place in the South. The club stood pat at the trading deadline. McKay Hayes leads the team with 14 goals and 30 points. They have lost ten of their contests by a single goal including three in overtime. The Patriots were 3 and 3 after their opening six contests but proceeded to lose their next seven in a row. Nolan Lowe, Carter Diceman and Ryan Forberg have all had nine goals. Lowe, team captain Tyler Vaccari, forward Adam Miwa, defenceman Ethan Eliopulos and goalie Kyle Curtin are the five 2001-born players on the squad.

18. MISSISSAUGA CHARGERS (.196). The Chargers are 4-10 at home but have won just once on the road. As has been the case in recent seasons the club have been 'sellers' at the trading deadline. While the club has held the lead in several games they have had much trouble holding on to it accounting for their total of just five wins. Cole Lonsdaie leads the team with 9 goals and 21 points. In second spot is Owen Sclisizzi with seven goals and nine assists.

19. MARKHAM ROYALS (.194) Their power play with a success rate of 8.91%, is the lowest of the 21 teams and the club has struggled to score goals so far. Khaden Henry has scored nine with Matthew Minichiello and Colton Krzeminski finding the net eight times. Matthew Perciballi leads all Royals with 18 points. Four of their five wins have come on home ice. The Royals added defenceman Erik Bannister from the CCHL. The good news is that either the Royals or the Spirit will make the postseason. 

20. STOUFFVILLE SPIRIT (.172). The 2011-12 Buckland Cup winners have not had an easy season so far with losing streaks of seven and eight games. They are now a young club with just three last-year players on their roster. Their 61 goals (in 29 games) is the lowest total of the 21 clubs. Ryan Cutler heads their point scoring list with 17 including eight goals. Anthony Lamanna  and Carson Whitson have each scored seven times.

21. CALEDON ADMIRALS (.129).  A tough season to date for the former Brampton club who had two 10-game losing runs. No player has played in all of their 31 contests. A bright spot is recently named captain Sebastian Bulovs who has posted 29 points in 28 games. The team recently appointed a new Head Coach in Steve Hodson and the club won its last game before the break beating the Buzzers 6-5 to give them some optimism going forward.