The Collingwood Junior A Blues team will again be heading to the playoffs, this time as first seed after their best regular season yet.
After winning the Ontario Junior Hockey League playoffs (the Buckland Cup) last year, the team played a record season with 10- and 14-game winning streaks earning them the top seed position for the west division heading into playoffs. The team is currently ranked second in the Canadian Junior Hockey League rankings.
Blues goalie Noah Pak, who won MVP for last year's OJHL playoff series, broke a league record this year with 12 shutouts.
"The Mike Jackson GM Collingwood Blues are officially the 2023-24 OJHL regular season champions. This comes after capturing the Western Conference for 2023-24 some games ago," states a news release posted to the team's website.
Along with bragging rights, the Blues get the home-ice advantage through the playoffs, which will start around March 8 with a game at the Eddie Bush Memorial Arena.
“I’m very pleased with the team's success, from our hockey operations to community impact," stated Blues president and co-owner Dave Steele in the news release. "We look forward to representing Collingwood as we compete in play-offs this March.”
