The Collingwood Junior A Blues have once again won the Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL) playoff series and the Buckland Cup trophy.
The local team won the sixth game of the seven-game series against the Trenton Golden Hawks with a 3-2 victory, also their first away win against Trenton for this series.
It was a scoreless first period, and the Hawks were leading 2-1 after the second period. The Blues' captain Dylan Hudon netted two in the third period –the second with only 57 seconds to spare – making the Collingwood team the OJHL champs for the second year in a row.
The Blues swept through the playoffs winning three series in four games each against Brantford, Oakville and Leamington to meet up with Trenton again. Last year's Buckland Cup games also came down to the Blues and Trenton playing six games, with the Blues winning the sixth on home ice.
This year, the Blues won the first two match-ups against Trenton (5-4 and 4-0), then it was Trenton's turn to host and win games three and four. The Blues won 7-2 for game five, setting them up for tonight's game at Duncan Memorial Gardens.
Collingwood's Spencer Young was named playoff MVP and received the Brent Ladds trophy for his 30 points (12 goals/18 assists) in 19 postseason games.
The Blues are the third team to win back-to-back Buckland Cups since the series began in 1994. The Milton Menace did it first in 1997 and '98, followed by the St. Michael's Buzzers in 2005 and '06.
As OJHL champs, the Blues qualify to play in Canada's National Junior A Hockey Championships, the Centennial Cup, which takes place May 9-19 in Oakville.
🏆 The Collingwood Blues win their second straight OJHL Nutrafarms Championship Series final in Trenton tonight.
— OJHL (@OJHLOfficial) April 30, 2024
The Blues return to the Centennial Cup, May 9-19 in Oakville. #leagueofchoice #ojhl ^ojjm pic.twitter.com/3WXcwceLqd
