The Barrie Colts are coming home from the opening two games of the Eastern Conference Final on even ground and home-ice advantage tucked in their back pockets.
Cole Beaudoin, who was celebrating his 20th birthday, added the icing on the cake with two goals and an assist. Brad Gardiner and Ben Wilmott added a goal and an assist each to power the Colts to a 5-3 win over the Brantford Bulldogs on Friday night at TD Civic Centre.
The best-of-seven series is now tied at 1-1, with Game 3 at Sadlon Arena on Sunday night.
“It’s important,” said Colts’ head coach Dylan Smoskowitz regarding splitting the opening two games on the road and earning home ice. “I don’t think it was a do-or-die game. I didn’t feel like our backs were against the wall. I don’t ever hop on a bench thinking I’m going to lose... but it’s a compliment to the guys, with how hard they worked and really bought in."
“I loved the buy-in tonight. I loved the team chemistry. I loved the jam we played with, and the energy on the bench was high all night. For me, it was just a pleasure to be behind the bench for that game.”
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Beaudoin couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate his special day than winning a big game with his “brothers.”
“Yeah, it’s obviously super nice, but it’s the whole team,” Beaudoin said of his first-star performance, which now has him leading all OHL playoff scorers with 10 goals and 27 points in 12 games. “It’s the buy-in, the sacrifice. Every single day, putting in the work. I’m so proud of this group.
“It’s a really special 20th birthday, spending it with those brothers that I’ve been battling with since Day 1.”
Kashawn Aitcheson also scored his fifth goal of the playoffs and his 12th in 36 career playoff games. This broke the franchise record for playoff goals by a defenceman, previously held by current Florida Panthers star Aaron Ekblad (11).
Adam Jiricek, with a pair, and Marek Vanacker scored for the Bulldogs, who lost for the first time in these playoffs after sweeping Sudbury and North Bay in the opening two rounds.
“The message is that it’s not supposed to be easy,” said Brantford head coach Jay McKee following the Game 2 loss. “At this point in the playoffs, every day you are up against a very strong opponent. We knew that coming into this. Barrie finished the season with only a few more losses than us, so we’re up against a very strong opponent. We’re very aware of that.”
“It’s also the time of season where you don’t get too high when you have success, and you don’t get too low when you have a lack of success. So, it’s back to the drawing board—looking where we can be a little bit better, getting a little bit of rest here between games, and getting ready for Game 3.”
Up 3-2 heading into the third, the Colts needed to kill off the remaining 1:55 of a Wilmott boarding penalty to start the period. In Game 1 on Wednesday, while down 2-1, the Colts watched as the OHL’s top power play struck to add to the lead. This time, the penalty kill produced a huge stop to hold the lead.
Just under two minutes later, Barrie made it 4-2 when Beaudoin circled into the high slot and wired a shot into the top corner over the right shoulder of Bulldogs goalie Ryerson Leenders.
A little more than two minutes after that, the Barrie penalty kill put the game away with a shorthanded goal. Gardiner raced into the corner for a loose puck and skated around the net, drawing three Bulldogs before hitting a wide-open Beaudoin with a perfect pass; the Utah Mammoth prospect ripped it far-side past the right pad of Leenders.
“Big kills,” said Smoskowitz of the penalty unit, which held a potent Brantford power play to 1-for-6 while also scoring one.
The Colts’ bench boss praised assistant coach Patrick Sexton for the adjustments he made after the series opener, when Brantford went 2-for-4.
“Patty is such a student of the game and such a good teacher,” Smoskowitz said. “I knew after Game 1 that our guys were going to understand the game plan at a higher level. He’s never disappointed me. I’m always impressed with what Patty does, and I was very impressed with the players as well.”
Barrie’s power play was equally effective, going 2-for-3.
“The bigger factor was special teams,” McKee admitted. “They were better than us. We had some looks and chances, but they did a good job of shutting our power play down. We obviously had a mental lapse on the last one, where we gave up the shortie, and they scored a couple. Special teams were certainly stronger for them tonight.”
Wilmott, who missed Game 1 with an illness, wasted little time making a mark upon his return. After a Vanacker power-play goal opened the scoring at 11:17 of the first, the big winger tied it less than three minutes later on a Barrie power play, burying a rebound off a Parker von Richter point shot.
It was a significant lift for the Colts to have their popular winger back. Wilmott now has nine goals and 15 points in 11 playoff games.
“It was fantastic,” Smoskowitz said of seeing Wilmott score after the winger practically begged to be in the lineup for Game 1. “We call Benny our ‘golden retriever.’ He’s just the happiest, go-lucky kid. He’s always got a smile on his face. He loves being here, and the guys love him. When you’re missing a guy like that... he’s just part of the brotherhood. When you’re missing a brother, it’s emotionally difficult. To have Ben back and have him get us on the board—the bench was going crazy.”
Gardiner gave Barrie its first lead of the series 5:22 into the second when he buried a rebound. The overage veteran was a force all night.
“Gardiner has been playing unbelievably,” Beaudoin said. “It’s not always about getting on the scoresheet. It’s the little things he does: he wins draws, blocks shots, and is smart in the defensive zone. He made a heck of a play there and found me on a nice pass.”
Aitcheson’s record-breaking goal was a familiar sight for fans. With the Colts on the power play, Cole Emerton slid the puck down to the New York Islanders prospect, who was parked in his usual spot in the faceoff circle. The blueliner launched a missile that rocketed past Leenders to put Barrie up 3-1.
There were no lulls in Barrie’s game; it was a complete 60-minute effort.
“That’s something our group has really stressed,” Smoskowitz said. “I credit guys like Beaudoin. Cole just turned 20 today and was the best player on the ice at 16, so now that he’s 20, he’s a man among boys out there. Guys like him who push the pace on a shift-to-shift basis really set the tone.”
Ben Hrebik made 25 saves in goal for Barrie to improve his playoff record to 9-2.
“The scoresheet may show a couple of guys who contributed, but you don’t win a game like that without having 20 guys contribute,” Smoskowitz added.
SHOT BLOCKS KEY IN COLTS WIN
Smoskowitz didn’t overlook the commitment to shot blocking his team made throughout the game and how important it was in the win.
Mason Zebeski, who was limping for a bit after blocking a blast in the opening game, was at it again. He had at least three on Friday. Beaudoin also threw his body in front of a hard shot late in the third when the Bulldogs had their goalie pulled and were pressing.
“Everyone was a big guy tonight,” said Smoskowitz. “You look at our penalty kill, our shot blocking, the guys on the forecheck, the guys with good sticks. Our shift lengths were very good.”
SMOSKOWITZ: WILLIAMSON NOT WINNING GM OF YEAR ‘A CRIME’
Colts’ vice-president and general manager Marty Williamson finished second in voting for the Jim Gregory Trophy, presented annually to the OHL's General Manager of the Year.
The award, voted on by league GMs and ratified by a selection committee of accredited media, was given to Flint GM Dave McParlan.
While paying his respect to the job done by McParlan and other GMs, Smoskowitz felt Williamson deserved it.
“The first thing I think of when you construct a team is getting guys who know how to win,” said the Colts’ head coach. “For Marty Williamson to construct this team off a year we just went to the conference final, and to retain players and bring others in, who are just these warriors, it’s a credit to all the other GMs in the league, but for Marty to not win the GM of the Year with the team he has given us is a crime.”
COLTS CONTINUE TO DOMINATE FACEOFFS
Barrie continued its dominance in the faceoff circle, winning 43 draws, compared to 19 by Brantford.
Over two games, the Colts have come out on top in 81 faceoffs, while the Bulldogs have won 41.
It’s given the Colts a huge advantage in terms of possession.
“There’s no magic pill that is just going to flip that,” said McKee, who is hoping to get his wingers to help out by tying up players. “They’ve been a very strong faceoff team all year. They have some strong centres that are, obviously, very good at what they do.”
ICE CHIPS
Beaudoin’s playoff point streak is now up to 12 games.
Brantford outshot Barrie 28-27.
The Colts juggled their lines to start the game. Carter Lowe and Calvin Crombie were on Beaudoin’s wings, while Schneid moved into the centre spot between Joe Salandra and Wilmott. Emil Hemming and Zebeski joined a line with Gardiner at centre. Jaiden Newton centred rookies Jonah McCormick and Eamon Edgar.
ADD. OHL
WESTERN CONFERENCE FINAL
Kitchener 4 Windsor 3 (OT) (Rangers lead series 1-0)
