Hockey / Pats clinch regular season title with win over Oakville

Pats clinch regular season title with win over Oakville

Date:  Source: OJHL Toronto Patriots

The Toronto Patriots are the regular season champions of the Ontario Junior Hockey League.

The Pats (39-8-3-2) wrapped up home ice throughout the OJHL playoffs with a 5-3 win over the Oakville Blades Saturday night at their home rink, Westwood Arena in Rexdale.

The Pats are the inaugural winners of the Brant Snow Memorial Trophy, awarded each year to the OJHL regular season winners. Mr. Snow, the longtime governor and president of the North York Rangers OJHL franchise, passed away a year ago.

The Patriots have two more games to play, Monday and Saturday – the final day of the OJHL regular season.

The Rangers (35-10-1-5) have the second most points in the 22-team OJHL.

“We are so blessed with the unbelievable group of human beings and hockey players that we have here,” head coach John Dean told the Patriots’ website this week.

“They have made it really easy for us as a staff to coach, they really help each other, and they hold each other accountable. Any coach who thinks he is the one that can hold his players accountable is wrong; you really find success in this game when players hold each other accountable, so that level of accountability in the room is a huge asset for what we’re trying to accomplish here.”

With a regular spot in the Top 10 of the Canadian Junior Hockey League’s weekly rankings, the eighth-ranked Pats have already surpassed the organization’s record win total of 35, set during the season the club went to the RBC Cup, 2014-15.

The team had three of the top 15 scorers in Canadian Jr. A hockey, Andrew Petrucci, Dante Spagnuolo, and Oliver Benwell, as of earlier this week. Goalie Tyler Fassl had the second most wins in the country.

Below is the CJHL release on the Top 10 from this week:

CALGARY, Alta. – The 100-point Carleton Place Canadians (CCHL) remain No. 1 once again in the latest Canadian Junior Hockey League Top 20 rankings. Holding on to No. 2 is the Okotoks Oilers (AJHL) while the Steinbach Pistons (MJHL) have moved to No. 3 overall.

MHL: CJHL No. 19 Edmundston Blizzard are two points up on Honourable Mention Yarmouth Jr. A Mariners and also hold a game in hand as they vie for first in the MHL.

LHJAAAQ: The No. 11 Cobras de Terrebonne and No. 14 College Français de Longueuil share the lead in the LHJAAAQ, but the defending NAPA Cup Champion Cobras still have two more contests to play.

CCHL: The No. 1 Carleton Place Canadians becomes the first CJHL squad to reach the 100-point plateau on the season while the No. 6 Fred Page Cup-host Ottawa Jr. ‘A’ Senators have hit the 90-point mark.

OJHL: The Toronto Patriots hold at No. 8 in the 132-team CJHL. Fellow OJHL clubs, the Georgetown Raiders and North York Rangers sit No. 18 & 20 respectively with the Aurora Tigers picking up Honourable Mention.

NOJHL: The No. 10 Powassan Voodoos clinched their second straight NOJHL regular season crown while the West Division-leading Rayside-Balfour Canadians are in a tight race there and earned an Honourable Mention.

SIJHL: The Thief River Falls Norskies stay at No. 7 this week while the No. 15 Dudley-Hewitt Cup host Dryden GM Ice Dogs sit three points in arrears in SIJHL play.

MJHL: Now up to No. 3 nationally, the Steinbach Pistons have secured the MJHL’s 2017-18 regular season title with the Virden Oil Capitals earning Honourable Mention.

SJHL: The SJHL is nicely represented in the rankings with the Nipawin Hawks No. 4, the Battlefords North Stars No. 9 and the Melfort Mustangs at No. 17.

AJHL: Winners of 18 in a row, the Okotoks Oilers stay at No. 2 in the CJHL while the Spruce Grove Saints remain No. 5. Also, in the rankings from the AJHL are the No. 12 Brooks Bandits and No. 13 Fort McMurray Oil Barons.

BCHL: It remains close in the quest for top spot in the BCHL with the No. 16 Penticton Vees two points clear of the Vernon Vipers and four up on Honourable Mention Wenatchee Wild in league play overall as well as in the highly-competitive Interior Division, with a game in hand.

CJHL 2017-18 TOP 20 (As of Feb. 19/18)
RANK TEAM (LEAGUE) (LAST RANKING)
1. Carleton Place Canadians (CCHL) (1)
2. Okotoks Oilers (AJHL) (2)
3. Steinbach Pistons (MJHL) (4)
4. Nipawin Hawks (SJHL) (3)
5. Spruce Grove Saints (AJHL) (5)
6. Ottawa Jr. ‘A’ Senators (CCHL) (6)
7. Thief River Falls Norskies (SIJHL) (7)
8. Toronto Patriots (OJHL) (8)
9. Battlefords North Stars  (SJHL) (9)
10. Powassan Voodoos (NOJHL) (11)
11. Cobras de Terrebonne (LHJAAAQ) (10)
12. Brooks Bandits (AJHL) (13)
13. Fort McMurray Oil Barons (AJHL) (12)
14. College Français de Longueuil (LHJAAAQ) (15)
15. Dryden GM Ice Dogs (SIJHL) (16)
16. Penticton Vees (BCHL) (14)
17. Melfort Mustangs (SJHL) (HM)
18. Georgetown Raiders (OJHL) (HM)
19. Edmundston Blizzard (MHL) (19)
20. North York Rangers (OJHL) (18)
    
HONOURABLE MENTION: Wenatchee Wild (BCHL), Virden Oil Capitals (MJHL), Rayside-Balfour Canadians (NOJHL), Aurora Tigers (OJHL), Yarmouth Jr. ‘A’ Mariners (MHL)