support local hockey Share this Support Local Hockey: Junior Hockey Rundown – Sept.27/26 September 22, 2026 By: Brock Ormond / InQuinte.ca WELLINGTON DUKES TUESDAY The gutsy Wellington Dukes found another victory versus a difficult opponent. In a game that got chippy at times, the Dukes pulled away from the Milton Menace in their only trip this season to the ‘Madhouse’ on Tuesday night, winning 5-3. Jordan Mayo led the Dukes with a pair of goals to help the Dukes soar to a 4-1-1 on the season. Milton broke the seal on the game’s scoring with a quick strike on a powerplay backhander nine seconds in from Paul Mazanik at 6:42. Chris Soares beat Dryden Riley just over two minutes into the second stanza, but the gritty Dukes managed to turn things around fairly quickly. About a minute-and-a-half later, the Dukes answered on a powerplay. For the second time in as many games, Oliver Coyle hit the net with a turnaround shot that eluded Austin McKillop on a powerplay at the 3:34 mark. The Menace’s penalty trouble continued in the frame, with back-to-back infractions leading to a Mayo goal on the ensuing five-on-three powerplay, accepting a pass off the rush and beating McKillop under the catching arm for his second of the season. Wellington ended up taking the lead through a Landon Marleau goal after a five-minute major was assessed to Dallys Hibbert for a high stick to the face of Zach Mascard. After missing on a close try, the Los Gatos, California product got another chance on a pass behind the net from Jordan Mayo and he didn’t miss on the second effort, burying his fifth of the year with less than 90 seconds left in the period. The Menace largely managed to weather the storm and score a game-tying goal while four-on-four through a Luca Spano goal, but the Dukes fortunately returned to the five-on-three powerplay after a tripping penalty and a bench minor were called against Milton. Mayo stuffed home a Mascard feed out of a cycle for his second of the night at to re-establish the lead that the visitors would hold on to for good. Sammy Longo’s fourth of the season in the dying seconds from Mascard iced the win and handed Milton its first loss of the season. Riley was outstanding again in helping the Dukes erase a two-goal deficit for a second straight game, making 39 saves. Wellington returns home for a matchup with the winless North York Rangers at 7:30 p.m. Friday. FRIDAY A strong start to the season for the Wellington Dukes continued with a workmanlike 3-1 win on Friday night over a pesky North York Rangers outfit. Landon Marleau paced the offence with two goals and an assist to help the Dukes go to 5-1-1 on the early campaign. In a penalty-laden first period that saw the Dukes lose veteran defenceman Brandon Mann due to a fighting major, leaving the team with just three regular blueliners, Wellington escaped with a 1-1 tie, yielding a Nathaniel Adams goal less than two minutes into the game and answering on a Jayden Levesque scramble goal on a powerplay. The Milton native’s second of the season was assisted by Jordan Mayo and Zach Mascard, who registered his 100th OJHL point on the goal. Another man advantage was capitalized on by Marleau, who caught Joseph D’Angelo down and out and beat him up high for his sixth of the year, assisted by Levesque and Justin Doak 4:30 into the second. That lead hung perilously into the third, when Presley Kelly made two outstanding defensive plays to block Rangers passes across the seam before shipping the puck ahead to Mascard, who hooked a feed to Marleau for a one-timer into the mesh about halfway through the period. The goal was Marleau’s seventh of the season, putting him into the sole goals lead in the OJHL. The Dukes played lockdown defence the rest of the night to secure the ‘W’ and keep the Rangers winless. Dryden Riley was a rock again in his seventh straight start with 25 saves as the Dukes outcounted the Rangers in shots 41-26. After seven games in the first two weeks, the Dukes will relax a little before tuning up for the much-anticipated Battle of Quinte next Friday in Trenton against the Golden Hawks at 7:30 p.m. TRENTON GOLDEN HAWKS FRIDAY It’s unchartered territory for the Trenton Golden Hawks. The Hawks have fallen to 0-3 after a tough 6-3 loss on home ice Friday night in their home opener versus the Stouffville Spirit. After player introductions and pomp and circumstance, the Hawks gave their home fans a positive jumpstart with defenceman Michael Domina’s first OJHL goal and Hayden Jeffery’s 20 saves. Domina, a resident of Severna Park, Maryland, opened the scoring at the 16:17 mark by taking a creative pass from Ryan Chamberlain and beating Spirit netminder Calem Yorke through a screen Captain Wyatt Gregory added a secondary assist. Stouffville’s offence came alive in the second with three goals, but the second frame ended in a 3-3 tie thanks to Hawks markers from Mason Musclow on a cycle started by rookies Ryan Foley and Jax Martin and Kale Mace on a powerplay one-timer set up by Nathan McHattie and Ethan Brassard. For both, it was their second goals of the season. The Spirit managed to break away in the third, with Justin Sekulovski striking early in the period, followed by Christian Armstrong’s second of the game and an insurance marker from Clarence Allain into a gaping Trenton cage for the road win. The game ended on a rough-and-tumble note with a spirited fight between Quinte Red Devils graduate Sterling Poff and Griffin Boyle. Jeffery made 42 saves in another high shot contest, 48-30 in favour of Stouffville. Next up for the Hawks is a visit to Herb Carnegie Arena for the first of four matchups with the North York Rangers at 2:30 p.m. Sunday. The Hawks were originally scheduled to play at Herb Carnegie Arena Sunday, but due to what the team described as a ‘rink booking error,’ the game against the North York Rangers was postponed to a future date. PICTON PIRATES The Picton Pirates’ lone game over the weekend ended in a loss in Amherstview. The Jets broke a 2-2 tie in the third with three unanswered tallies to win 5-2 Sunday night in an affair that turned chippy in the third period. Isaih More and Jaxson Payne had Picton’s goals, with Alex Lavender, Matt Petrut and captain Gerrit Kempers assisting. Former Wellington Duke Quinn McNamara scored twice and assisted on the game-winner for Amherstview as the hosts outshot Picton 32-27. Nick Parodo made 27 saves in the losing cause. THE WEEK AHEAD: Tuesday, September 22, 2026 Toronto Warriors @ Hawks 7:30 p.m. Thursday, September 24, 2026 Lakefield Chiefs @ Pirates 7:30 p.m. (Pirates Home Opener) Friday, September 25, 2026 Dukes @ Hawks 7:30 p.m. Saturday, September 26, 2026 Hawks @ Stouffville Spirit 7:30 p.m. Pirates @ Frankford Huskies 7 p.m. Sunday, September 27, 2026 Hawks @ Toronto Warriors 5 p.m.
