Dryden Counting Down to Dudley Hewitt Cup

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DudleyHewitt-Game2-James Mirabelli-photo

Dudley Hewitt Cup Game Two North Stars by James Mirabelli
DRYDEN, Ont. –
The start of the 2018 Dudley-Hewitt Cup in Dryden, Ont., is just three days away.

The four-team event, which runs Tuesday through Saturday at Dryden’s Memorial Arena, features the respective champions of the Superior International Junior Hockey League, the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League and the Ontario Junior Hockey League in the Dryden GM Ice Dogs, the Cochrane Crunch and Wellington Dukes, along with a second SIJHL representative, the Thunder Bay North Stars, vying for the Central Canadian Jr. A title and a berth to the RBC Cup, May 12-20, in Chilliwack, B.C.

Here’s a look at the five-day event and the four competing teams.

SCHEDULE: (All starts Central Standard Time)

Tuesday, May 1
Cochrane vs. Thunder Bay 2:30 p.m.
Wellington vs. Dryden 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, May 2
Wellington vs. Thunder Bay 2:30 p.m.
Dryden vs. Cochrane 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, May 3
Cochrane vs. Wellington 2:30 p.m.
Thunder Bay vs. Dryden 7:30 p.m.
Friday, May 4
Semifinal: 3rd Round Robin vs. 2nd Round Robin 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 5
Final: Semifinal Winner vs. 1st Round Robin 7:30 p.m.

THE TEAMS

DRYDEN GM ICE DOGS (Host & SIJHL Bill Salonen Cup champions)

THE SEASON: Dryden claimed their second straight SIJHL regular season crown finishing with a league-best 88 points on an overall record of 40-8-6-2.

Moving on to the playoffs, after a first round bye, they took on the Fort Frances Lakers and proceeded to take that best-of-seven set in five games.

They then met Thunder Bay in the Bill Salonen Cup final and rallied from a 2-1 deficit to take the last three games of the final to win their second straight SIJHL title and fourth overall in the 17-year history of the league.

FORWARDS: Regular season play saw SIJHL MVP Jacen Bracko runaway with the league scoring title as the CCM first team all-star produced a league-best 81 points. His 48 goals were also tops in the league.

Teammate Eric Stout was second on the squad and third overall in points with 67, including 30 tallies.

Evan Walls’ 50 points was third on the team and No. 3 in SIJHL rookie scoring.

In the postseason, first-year players Ted Davis and Malcolm Huemmert paced the club offensively with a dozen points apiece.

Davis would go on to earn CCM Playoff MVP laurels with three of his eight goals being game-winners in the finals vs. Thunder Bay, including two in overtime.

Stout finished third in playoff numbers for Dryden with 11 points while Bracko had 10.

DEFENCE: Cory Dennis of Dryden would go on to be named the SIJHL’s Top Defenceman award recipient this season.

He finished second in scoring among rearguards, just one point behind Thunder Bay’s Joe Newhouse, with 46.

With 15 goals to his credit, Dennis tied for the league-lead in that category among rearguards.

Brendan Jay was third in points among blueliners with 40.

Topping the GM Ice Dogs in offensive numbers among defencemen in the postseason was the pair of Dennis and Jay.

They both had nine points with Dennis tallying twice and supplying seven helpers and Jay having nine assists.

GOALTENDERS: In regular season play, the GM Ice Dogs duo of Jacob Gnidziejko combined for 29 wins during the campaign.

Gnidziejko led all league nerminders in goals-against average at 2.38 while Pavlisin was third with a GAA of 2.47.

Both Dryden goalkeepers had three shutouts each.

In terms of save percentage, Gnidziejko tied for second-best at .918 while Pavlisin was right behind him at .916.

In the playoffs, Pavlisin saw the bulk of the workload, which included seeing him start every game of the SIJHL final vs. the North Stars.

His stellar play between the pipes played a pivotal role in Dryden winning the title.

Pavlisin was 5-2 in the playoffs with a 2.35 average and a save mark of .934.

As for Gnidziejko, he went 3-1 with a 2.73 GAA and a .889 save%.

SPECIAL TEAMS: The club led the SIJHL in power play proficiency connecting at a rate of 23.7%. They finished second-best on the penalty kill at 85.1%.

The GM Ice Dogs were third overall on the power play in the playoffs clicking at a 17.6% success rate. They were also third on the penalty kill at 86.8%.

GM ICE DOGS NOTES: Dryden is an original member of the SIJHL. … They are playing in their second consecutive Dudley-Hewitt Cup and sixth all-time. … The GM Ice Dogs went 8-3 in the playoffs en route to their second straight Bill Salonen Cup title. … They were 5-1 on Memorial Arena ice and 3-2 on the road. … Ted Davis and Malcolm Huemmert finished tied for fourth overall in SIJHL playoff scoring with a dozen points each. … Eric Stout was knotted for sixth with 11 points and Jacen Bracko was among a group of three with 10. … Davis finished second overall in postseason goals with eight while Bracko tied for third with seven. … Davis also led the way in game-winning markers in the postseason with three, which all came in the Bill Salonen Cup finals. … D-man Brendan Jay and forward Eric Stout tied for third best in playoff assists with nine apiece. … Landon Pavlisin was third overall in playoff goals-against average at 2.35 and fourth in save percentage at .934. … He was second in wins with five and saves with 256. …Huemmert’s dozen points paced all SIJHL rookies in the playoffs as did his seven assists. … Evan Walls was third with eight points. … Dryden D-men Dennis and Jay tied for second in playoff points among blueliners with nine. … Trevor Kavanuagh was fourth with a half-dozen points to his credit. … The GM Ice Dogs were 2-0 in the playoffs in overtime. … In 11 playoff outings, Dryden scored first in nine of them. They had a 7-2 record in those contests. … The club was third overall on the power play at 17.6% scoring nine times in 51-man advantage opportunities. … They were also third on the penalty kill at 86.8% allowing nine man-down markers in the league-high 68 times they were shorthanded. … They did produce a SIJHL-best two shorthanded goals for. … The GM Ice Dogs outscored their opponents in every period in the playoffs (1st:17-8); (2nd:13-12); 3rd:17-8); OT:2-0) … Dryden was 5-2 in games when leading after the first period and 6-0 when up after 40 minutes. … SIJHL MVP Jacen Bracko picked back-to-back CCM Performer of the Months laurels for December and January.

BEHIND THE BENCH: Guiding the GM Ice Dogs behind the bench is their head coach and general manager Kurt Walsten.

THUNDER BAY NORTH STARS (SIJHL finalist)

THE SEASON: The North Stars finished third in the SIJHL standings in 2017-18 going 38-13-4-1.

They were however the hottest team in the league the second half of the regular season finishing up with a record of 22-3-1-1.

In the postseason, Thunder Bay swept the Minnesota Iron Rangers in three straight in quarter-final play before going on and topping the No. 2 seeded Thief River Falls Norskies in semifinal action.

After dropping the series opener on the road to the Norskies, the North Stars reeled off four straight wins to advance.

Moving on to the Bill Salonen Cup. Thunder Bay had a 2-1 series lead in the best-of-seven at one point, only to see Dryden win three straight to claim their second straight league title.

In all they finished with a 9-5 record in the playoffs.

FORWARDS: Thunder Bay produced five skaters among the Top 10 scorers in the SIJHL during the course of the regular season.

Alex Maticic topped the club and was fourth in league scoring with 65 points on 22 tallies and 43 assists.

CCM Hockey first team all-star Bradley Thrower produced 60 points in 54 games for the North Stars, including a team-high 26 goals.

Brendan Gillis and Ryan Mignault had 56 and 54 points respectively.

CCM Rookie of the Year Keigan Gerrie had 51 points in 53 outings as he scored 24 times and helped set-up 27 others.

Playoff action saw Mignault, Thrower and defenceman Kyle Auger finish one-two-three in SIJHL playoff scoring.

Mignault and Thrower tied for top spot with 18 points each with Mignault also leading the way in goals with nine. Auger led all league rearguards with 15 points on five markers and 10 helpers.

DEFENCE: League first team all-star defenceman Joe Newhouse led all SIJHL blueliners in offensive production with 47 points, including 40 assists, which topped all D-men.

Second team all-star Auger, didn’t join the squad until early January, but tied for the league lead in goals among defencemen with 15. He finished fourth in rearguard points with 38. His six game-winning goals paced all SIJHL D.

GOALTENDERS: Brandon Bodnar was named the league’s Top Goaltender award recipient for his on-ice efforts in 2017-18.

The 20-year-old Fort Frances, Ont., product led all SIJHL netminders in wins with 23.

His eight shutouts were just two off the league single-season mark of 10 set by former North Stars’ standout and current St. Louis Blues goaltender Carter Hutton back in 2005-06.

Bodnar tied for second in save percentage at .918 and was fourth in goals-against average at 2.65.

Postseason play saw him lead the way in victories with eight.

He tied again for second with a .936 save mark and was also No. 2 with his 2.01 GAA.

Bodnar played in 2016 Dudley-Hewitt Cup with the Fort Frances Lakers.

Dougie Newhouse went 15-6-2-0 during the regular season and won his only playoff start.

SPECIAL TEAMS: Thunder Bay ended up second in the league on the power play in the playoffs converting at a 19.5% success rate.

They notched 16-man advantage markers in 82 chances.

The North Stars were also No. 2 on the penalty kill at 90.9%.

At 23.6%, the club sat second on the P.P. during the regular season notching a league-best 60 power play goals.

While shorthanded during the campaign, they were third overall at 82.8%.

NORTH STARS NOTES: This is Thunder Bay’s seventh Dudley-Hewitt Cup appearance. … They are one of two SIJHL sides to have won the event, taking the title back in 2006. … The North Stars led the SIJHL in playoff attendance averaging just under 900 fans per game at home. … They were 5-2 on home ice and 4-3 on the road. … Thunder Bay had six skaters finish in the Top 10 in SIJHL playoff scoring including the leading three in Ryan Mignault, Brad Thrower and defenceman Kyle Auger. … Turner Santin and Brendan Gillis tied for sixth with 11 points. … CCM Rookie of the Year Keighan Gerrie tied for ninth with 10 points despite missing all six games of the Bill Salonen Cup final due to an upper body injury. … Mignault led the pack in playoff goals with nine while Thrower and Gillis tied for third with seven markers apiece. … Thrower topped the table in assists with 11. … Auger chipped in with 10 helpers and Gillis had seven. …Auger’s four-man advantage markers led all SIJHL skaters. … He tied with Thrower for first in man advantage assists with five and led the way with nine PP points. … Bodnar was first in playoff wins with eight. … Even missing the finals due to injury, Gerrie led all league rookies in playoff goals with six. … The North Stars were just 1-2 in overtimes games in the playoffs. … Thunder Bay scored first three times in 14 postseason contests and went 2-1. … When the opposition opened the scoring, they were 7-4. … The team’s 16 power play goals in the postseason led the SIJHL. … The North Stars scored as many goals as they allowed in first periods in the playoffs at 13. … The second stanza saw Thunder Bay tally 22 times and give up 11. … They held a 17-5 edge in the third period but were just 1-2 in overtime. … Ryan Mignault wrapped up the playoffs on a seven-game point streak. … Brad Thrower was named the SIJHL’s CCM Performer of the Month for November while defenceman Kyle Auger did likewise in February.

BEHIND THE BENCH: Leading Thunder Bay is first-year head coach Rob DeGagne, who was named 2017-18 SIJHL Coach of the Year.

COCHRANE CRUNCH (NOJHL Copeland Cup – McNamara Trophy champions)

THE SEASON: Cochrane advanced to the Dudley-Hewitt Cup after winning their first-ever Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League championship April 24 on home ice by defeating the Rayside-Balfour Canadians 2-1 in double overtime to claim the Copeland Cup – McNamara Trophy in six thrilling games.

This means the Crunch are making their initial Dudley-Hewitt Cup appearance.

Cochrane will host the 2019 Dudley-Hewitt Cup next year at Tim Horton Event Centre.

NOJHL playoff action saw the Crunch produce 12 victories against just four defeats.

Quarter-final play had them defeat the Kirkland Lake Gold Miners in five games before doing likewise against the Timmins Rock in their East Division Final.

Moving on to the Copeland Cup – McNamara Trophy Final they dropped the first two contests to the Rayside-Balfour Canadians before reeling off four straight triumphs to claim the title.

Three of the six match-ups against the Canadians required extra time, including the deciding affair that went to double OT.

Playoff action saw Cochrane go a perfect 9-0 at the friendly confines of Tim Horton Event Centre.

They were just 3-4 though as the visiting side.

In the course of the regular season, Cochrane finished second in the NOJHL East Division with a 36-17-2-1 record after 56 games.

Their 75 points was the fourth highest total in league play.

The Crunch tied for second in league play with 233 goals for and allowed the fewest tallies against in their division at 165.

FORWARDS: Cochrane led the NOJHL in goals scored in the playoffs with 54, including 17 in their the last four games.

They boasted a league-best 25-goal differential allowing only 29 against.

Kyle Herbster of the Crunch tied for the NOJHL lead in playoff points with 17 in just 16 outings on eight tallies and nine assists.

His goal total also tied for tops in the league in the postseason.

Zach Hayes and Austin Whelan were knotted for fifth in postseason points with a dozen each while T.J. Delaney reached double digits as well with 10.

DEFENCE: NOJHL MVP and Top Defenceman award winner Connor Lovie was third in playoff numbers. His 16 points paced all league blueliners.

Thomas Hernandez and Gordon Whalen shared fourth in NOJHL D-man numbers with nine points apiece while teammate Noah Bennett was just one back with eight.

GOALTENDERS: Helping backstop Cochrane’s run to the title was the play netminder Shayne Battler.

His solid playoff saw him lead the way in save percentage with a solid .952 mark. Battler finished second in playoff goals-against average at 1.67. He also tied for first in shutouts with two.

Cochrane’s other netminder, Taylor Unruh went 5-1 overall and sported a 1.83 GAA and a save mark of .919.

Unruh is no stranger to Dryden as he appeared in 37 games in the SIJHL with the Dudley-Hewitt Cup host GM Ice Dogs in 2015-16 and 2016-17.

In all he had a 20-12-0-2 record in those games with a 2.86 goals-against average.

Regular season play saw Battler go 17-7-1-0 with a 2.73 GAA and a .910 save mark.

Unruh meanwhile went 19-8-1-1 with a 2.93 average and a .904 save percentage.

SPECIAL TEAMS: Cochrane’s power play proficiency played a big part of their success in winning the NOJHL championship.

They led all NOJHL teams in the postseason with a solid 27.6% success rate as they scored 16 times on 58-man advantages.

The Crunch ended up third overall on the penalty kill with an 86.2% P.K. mark after allowing nine against while shorthanded in 65 man-down scenarios. They boast two shorthanded goals in the playoffs.

Cochrane finished fifth while up a skater in the regular season with an 18.6 success ratio as they tallied 46 times in 247 chances.

While down a man they were third best in the NOJHL at 84.7%.

They did lead the league with 18 shorthanded goals.

BEHIND THE BENCH: Serving as Cochrane’s Team President, head coach and general manager is Ryan Leonard.

A former NOJHL Coach of the Year award recipient, Leonard was named to the league’s second all-star team in 2017-18 at the GM position.

CRUNCH NOTES: Crunch captain Connor Lovie was named NOJHL Playoff MVP. … Lovie was also selected the league’s Most Valuable Player in the regular season as well and was chosen as the NOJHL’s Top Defenceman for a second straight campaign. … On top of that the 20-year-old from London, Ont., was named a NOJHL CCM Hockey First Team All-Star on defence. … 19-year-old forward Kyle Herbster, who hails from Cary, Illinois, led all NOJHL skaters in scoring with 86 points. … Herbster scored 36 times and assisted on 50 others in 55 games played for Cochrane. … His eight shorthanded tallies topped the table in that category. … He was also named a league CCM Hockey Second Team All-Star at Right Wing. … Crunch head coach and general manager Ryan Leonard was tabbed NOJHL Second Team All-Star at GM. … Cochrane has played in the league championship series twice in the past four years. The team fell in the league finals back in 2015 to the eventual NOJHL and Dudley-Hewitt Cup winning Soo Thunderbirds who won the DHC in Fort Frances, Ont., … Cochrane will host the 2019 Dudley-Hewitt Cup at Tim Horton Event Centre. … The club was 12-4 in this year’s playoffs, including going a perfect 9-0 on home ice. … They scored a league-best 54 times in the postseason and only allowed 29 against. … Kyle Herbster tied for the NOJHL playoff lead in scoring with 17 points. … His eight goals led his team and knotted him for the most in the league. … Playoff MVP Connor Lovie topped all NOJHL defencemen in both points and assists with 16 and 13 respectively. His assist total led all league skaters. … Zach Hayes and Austin Whelan tied for fifth in playoff scoring with a dozen points apiece. … Lovie was No. 1 in power play points with 11 while teammates T.J. Delaney and Herbster were second and third with eight and seven respectively. … Crunch goaltender Battler was tops in the NOJHL in playoff save percentage at .952 and was second overall among netminders in goals-against average at 1.57. He was second in wins with seven while Taylor Unruh was fourth with five. … Unruh spent parts of two seasons with the Dudley-Hewitt Cup host Dryden GM Ice Dogs. … Gordon Whalen finished fourth in NOJHL playoff rookie scoring with nine points on two tallies and seven helpers. … While Lovie led the way in scoring among league defencemen, Thomas Hernandez and Whalen tied for fourth with nine points each while Noah Bennett produced eight. … Cochrane scored the first goal in nine of their 16 playoff games. When they tallied first they had an 8-1 record. … The Crunch were first overall in the league on the power play in the postseason. They finished clicking at a 27.6% success rate by notching 16-man advantage markers in 58 opportunities. … The club was third on the penalty kill at an 86.2% rate. They handled 56 of the 65 times they were down at least one skater. … Their two shorthanded goals tied them for the league lead. … Cochrane outscored their opponents in every period they played in the playoffs. In the first frame they held a 13-6 edge, and were 15-8 in the second stanza, 24-14 in the third and 2-1 in overtime. …They also outshot their opposition in each frame. … The team averaged a league-best 3.38 goals per game and only gave up an average of 1.81 against. … When leading after the first period Cochrane was 5-0 in the playoffs and 8-0 when up after 40 minutes. … Alex Brisson wrapped up the postseason with points and assists in four straight outings. … Kyle Herbster was one of five NOJHL players with a playoff hat trick. … Connor Lovie was one of three skaters to have a four-assist contest. … Shayne Battler made 62 saves in the club’s series-clinching triumph over Rayside-Balfour in Game 6 of the finals, a 2-1 double overtime victory. … Battler and the Crunch won four straight to wrap-up the playoffs and Cochrane’s first-ever NOJHL title. … 14 different Cochrane players produced five or more points in the playoffs. … Austin Whelan tied for the league lead in game-winning goals with three, including the decider in Game 6. … In all nine different Crunch players supplied game-winning goals in the playoffs. … Regular season action saw 16 various skaters provide game-winning markers. Levi Johnson paced the club with five difference makers while Austin Stauffer had four. … Netminder Shayne Battler earned three Eastlink TV playoff 3 Stars honours in the postseason. Fellow goalkeeper Taylor Unruh had one while forward Kyle Herbster earned one as well. … Shayne Battler was named the NOJHL’s CCM Hockey Goaltender of the Month for November. … Crunch captain Connor Lovie was tabbed league CCM Defenceman of the Month for both December and February. … Kyle Herbster garnered CCM Top Forward laurels for February while Taylor Unruh picked up CCM Top Goaltender honours during the same month.

WELLINGTON DUKES (OJHL Buckland Trophy champions)

THE SEASON: Regular season play saw the Dukes finish first in the OJHL’s East Division with a 33-13-3-5 record after 54 games.

That was good enough to boast the second-best mark in the conference while ending up in sixth spot overall in the 22-team league.

Wellington was tested mightily in their first two playoff round as both of those best-of-seven affairs went the distance.

Conference quarter-final action saw them slip past the Pickering Panthers in seven games before also going the maximum against the Newmarket Hurricanes in which they rallied from an early 2-0 series deficit.

Meeting the top seeded Aurora Tigers in the North-East conference final, Wellington took that match-up in just five outings.

Moving on to the Buckland Trophy final against the defending OJHL title holders, the Georgetown Raiders, the Dukes prevailed in six games, including taking the finale in overtime to punch their ticket to Dryden.

FORWARDS: Pacing the club offensively during the regular season was Mitchell Martan, who was a point-per-game player with 67 in 51 contests.

He was followed by Andrew Rinaldi, who collected 58 points, including 25 tallies.

Then came Teddy McGeen, who topped the Dukes in markers with 35, as part of his 56-point campaign.

McGeen’s eight game-winning goals was just one off the OJHL lead in difference makers.

Postseason play saw Wellington captain Colin Doyle pace the squad in scoring as he picked up 24 points in 25 games on eight goals and 16 assists.

Next was McGeen, who supplied 18 points as he scored eight times and helped set-up 10 others.

The Dukes duo of Martan and Ben Evan sat third in offensive numbers on the team with 17 points while Bryce Yetman chipped in with 15.

DEFENCE: In the regular season, Declan Carlisle finished eighth among OJHL blueliners in offensive production.

His 39 points led Wellington from the back end.

Next was Mason Snell with 20 points.

Playoff competition saw Carlisle and Snell lead all Dukes’ D-men in scoring with 13 points each.

They were followed by Zach Uens who chipped in eight points along the way to the title.

GOALTENDERS: Jonah Capriotti appeared in 36 games in net for the Dukes in the regular season as he went 21-11-3 overall with a 2.56 goals-against average and a .923 save percentage. He also posted five shutouts.

Tyler Richardson started the campaign with the Lindsay Muskies of the OJHL before being picked up by the Dukes prior to the January 10 roster deadline.

Richardson went 4-2 in six starts for Wellington with a 3.00 GAA and a save mark of .881.

Playoff action saw Capriotti go 15-5 in nearly 1,200 minutes of game action while finishing with an average of 2.63 and save percentage of .919 along with one shutout.

As for Richardson, he was 1-4 with a 3.92 GAA and .860 SV%.

SPECIAL TEAMS: In the playoffs, the Dukes ended up 12th overall on the power play at 16.09% notching 14-man advantage markers in 87 opportunities.

In the regular season, the Dukes were fourth-best in the 22-team OJHL and they converted at a success rate of 20.55% as they scored 52 times in 253 chances.

On the penalty kill the club was fifth best in the regular season at 86.87%. They also scored nine shorthanded markers, which tied them for the league lead.

Their P.K. slipped in the playoffs as they ended up 13th overall at 74.77%.

DUKES NOTES: Wellington has captured the Dudley-Hewitt Cup twice in franchise history. The Dukes won it back in 2011 in Huntsville, Ont., and also in 2003 when the event was held in Fort Frances. … Wellington hosted the Dudley-Hewitt in 2014, but fell in the final to fellow OJHL side, the Toronto Patriots in the championship game. … Dukes’ defencemen Declan Carlisle and Mason Snell were both selected by NHL Central Scouting to compete in the Canadian Junior Hockey League’s Prospects Game this past January. … Snell also played for Team East at the most recent World Jr. A Challenge event held in Truro, N.S. … He has committed to attend school and play NCAA hockey on NCAA scholarship at Penn State University in 2019. … The Dukes boast a plethora of talent that has committed to compete at the next level along with Snell. … Geoffrey Lawson will go to NCAA D-I Robert Morris in the fall while Mitchell Martan is committed to Canisius. … 2020 has Zachary Uens, Daniel Panetta, Declan Carlisle all choosing D-I programs at Merrimack, Colgate and Clarkson respectively. … You also have netminder Jonah Capriotti heading to D-III Trinity. … The Dukes led the OJHL in playoff attendance drawing over 10,000 spectators through 13 home dates.

BEHIND THE BENCH: Serving as head coach of the OJHL champion Dukes is former NHLer John Druce.

Last season Druce led the Cobourg Cougars of the OJHL to a RBC Cup Canadian Jr. A title on home ice.

ONLINE: All eight Dudley-Hewitt Cup contests will be streamed live online on a pay-per-view basis via HockeyTV.com.

Providing all the play-by-play action will the be long-time voice of the Dryden GM Ice Dogs, Mike Ebbeling.

DHC WEBSITE: The official Dudley-Hewitt Cup website is centralcanadianchampionship.com.

There you follow along with live scoring, news and statistics from the five-day event at Dryden Memorial Arena.

DHC TWITTER: The Dudley-Hewitt Cup Twitter handle is @CJHL_DHC.

WHAT’S NEXT: The Dudley-Hewitt winner will advance to compete in the 2018 RBC Cup Canadian Jr. A Championship, May 12-20, in Chilliwack, B.C.

That five-team event will be hosted by the Chilliwack Chiefs (BCHL).

Joining the host Chiefs and the Dudley-Hewitt title holder will be the winners of the Fred Page Cup (Eastern), ANAVET Cup (Manitoba/Saskatchewan) and the Doyle Cup (Alberta/B.C.)

The Fred Page Cup begins Wednesday and features the host Ottawa Jr. A Senators (CCHL), Carleton Place Canadians (CCHL), Edmundston Blizzard (MHL) and College Français de Longueuil all taking part.

ANAVET Cup action began last night with the visiting Nipawin Hawks (SJHL) taking the opener on the road vs. the Steinbach Pistons (SJHL) in that best-of-seven affair.

The Doyle Cup also began Friday evening with the Wenatchee Wild (BCHL) edging the Spruce Grove Saints (AJHL) in overtime to commence that best-of-seven match-up.

PAST WINNERS: The following is the list of all-time Dudley-Hewitt Cup champions

Dudley-Hewitt Cup champions
Year    Team (League)
2017    Trenton Golden Hawks (OJHL)
2016    Trenton Golden Hawks (OJHL)
2015    Soo Thunderbirds (NOJHL)
2014    Toronto Lakeshore Patriots (OJHL)
2013    Minnesota Wilderness (SIJHL)
2012    Soo Thunderbirds (NOJHL)
2011    Wellington Dukes (OJHL)
2010    Oakville Blades (OJAHL)
2009    Kingston Voyageurs (OJHL)
2008    Oakville Blades (OPHJL)
2007    Aurora Tigers (OPJHL)
2006    Fort William North Stars (SIJHL)
2005    Georgetown Raiders (OPJHL)
2004    Aurora Tigers (OPJHL)
2003    Wellington Dukes (OPJHL)
2002    Rayside-Balfour Sabrecats (NOJHL)
2001    Thornhill Rattlers (OPJHL)
2000    Rayside-Balfour Sabrecats (NOJHL)
1999    Bramalea Blues (OPJHL)
1998    Milton Merchants (OPJHL)
1997    Rayside-Balfour Sabrecats (NOJHL)
1996    Newmarket 87’s (OPJHL)
1995    Thunder Bay Flyers (USHL)
1994    Chateauguay Elites (QPJHL)
1993    Chateauguay Elites (QPJHL)
1992    Thunder Bay Flyers (USHL)
1991    Thunder Bay Flyers (USHL)
1990    Longueuil Collège Français (QPJHL)
1989    Thunder Bay Flyers (USHL)
1988    Pembroke Lumber Kings (CJHL)
1987    Pembroke Lumber Kings (CJHL)
1986    Orillia Travelways (OJHL)
1985    Orillia Travelways (OJHL)
1984    Orillia Travelways (OJHL)
1983    North York Ranges (OJHL)
1982    Guelph Platers (OJHL)
1981    Belleville Bulls (OPJHL)
1980    North York Rangers (OPJHL)
1979    Guelph Platers (OPJHL)

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