The North Bay Battalion and the Sudbury Wolves have each defeated their first round opponents in five games, as they move on to round two.
After two short five game series, the North Bay Battalion and the Sudbury Wolves are off to round two of the OHL Playoffs. These two teams were able to dominate in both of their matchups even though the Eastern Conference standings were so tight.
The North Bay Battalion defeated the Kingston Frontenacs, as North Bay was the 2nd seed and Kingston was the 7th.
The Battalion are a very well-structured team which makes them effective in the postseason. They have a lot of big bodies and players that will fight for every inch of space on the ice. Their defensive systems are incredibly strong, and that's all it took to defeat Kingston.
North Bay didn't allow Kingston to score a lot in this series, despite the injury to starting goaltender Dom DiVincentiis. Mike McIvor has been able to come in as the back up and dominate the crease in DiVincentiis' absence.
Centre Dalyn Wakely has continued his regular season tear into the playoffs, as he had 10 points through five games in this series. He was able to take over games on multiple occasions, and he scored a huge hat trick in game four to help them win a tight game by a score of 5-4.
The Kingston Frontenacs didn't have too many high expectations this year as they are still considered a "rebuilding" team. They have a lot of young players in their lineup, and not too much depth. Their captain and first line centre Paul Ludwinski still has one more season in major junior, as the Blackhawks prospect will look to take them deeper into the playoffs next season.
Starting goaltender Mason Vaccari has also been a bright spot for the last two seasons, keeping Kingston in many games that they shouldn't have been in.
Kingston will look to make some key additions at the OHL Priority Selection and also during the offseason, as they will look to make some strides next season.
The Mississauga Steelheads and the Sudbury Wolves were the 4th and 5th seeds in the Eastern Conference heading into playoffs, and the 5th-placed Wolves were able to end it in five games.
The Steelheads had a rocky start in this series that they could never really come back from. They were blanked on the score sheet in game one, and starting goaltender Ryerson Leenders was injured in game two. Mississauga managed to squeak one out in game three, but never really gained back control in the series.
Sudbury's offence is a lot to handle with their three headed monster — David Goyette, Quentin Musty, and Dalibor Dvorsky. All three of those players did their jobs in series number one, and Jakub Vondras was incredible in goal. Vondras finished the series with a .906% save percentage, and a 2.73 goals against average.
The Sudbury Wolves have been good "on paper" for a few seasons now, but it feels like this is the year that they can go all the way. From Goyette, Dvorsky, and Musty, to their boulders on defence, and two solid netminders, this is the year if Sudbury wants to do it.
Because of how close the Eastern Conference standings were, it seems like any team could come out on top. Sudbury is certainly in that conversation, and their toughest competition might just be the North Bay Battalion.
If Oshawa and Ottawa win their series — which both teams are up in — North Bay and Sudbury will play against each other in the second round in a Northern Ontario matchup.