In what is quickly developing into an instant classic series between Orangeville and Whitby, the Northmen escaped with yet another overtime victory on their home floor on Wednesday night. Max Kruger scored the overtime winner just 1:49 into overtime to secure the victory for the Northmen.
It was a back and forth affair that saw Orangeville lead most of the night, before a furious comeback by the Warriors put them on top with just more than two minutes to play. However a quick response from Trey Deere sent the game to overtime, and Kruger did the rest from there.
Kruger and Deere led the scoring in the game, each finishing with 2 goals and 4 assists. Julien Belair led the scoring for Whitby with a goal and 3 assists.
Of course, the storyline of the game (and series) is who is not out there. Liam Matthews and Donny Scott did not suit up for the Northmen, while the trio of Lucas Littlejohn, Jack Oldman and Luke Robinson left for their commitments with Team Canada yesterday. Those three will not be available for the rest of the playoffs, including the entire Minto Cup.
Given those realities, the scoring has been much more balanced than you normally see in the OJLL finals, and it has been fascinating to watch the ways in which either team has been able or unable to create offence and find scoring.
For a few specific takeaways, let’s get into a couple things I noticed last night.
Max and Max
Kruger is the headliner last night, and for good reason. He had the overtime winner and led the game in scoring, but it’s his composure and comfort out there that sticks out. The OJLL playoffs are the biggest grind in the sport, and rookies are supposed to wear down, mentally and physically.
Kruger has looked like a veteran and is now leading the playoffs in goals. If that were to maintain, he would be the first 16-year old to lead the OJLL playoffs in goals since Austin Staats did it in 2015 (Staats played as a midget-aged player so was not technically a rookie). It will depend on whether Matthews plays again, but Kruger might be in line for playoff MVP to go along with his presumptive Rookie of the Year award.
But he wasn’t the only rookie named Max to make an impression last night, as Max Weatherup had another very strong night for the Warriors. Playing in a transition role for the Warriors, the son of Whitby coach Phil Weatherup has played well above his age in this series.
Similar to Kruger, it was the attitude and fearlessness that stuck out more than any physical capability. Weatherup was mixing it up throughout the night and played massive minutes on an incredibly hot night inside Tony Rose arena. He eventually scored a key goal in the third period on a slick swim move as well.
Whitby and Orangeville have been rivals for decades, and the two Maxes will be a big part of it, this year and for years to come.
Warriors Didn’t Get the Memo
Many fans may have counted the Warriors out after losing their Team Canada players, but the Warriors players didn’t hear no bell. I was particularly impressed by the competitive spirit displayed by their veterans last night. Owen Tapper was all over the floor for Whitby, as were Ethan and Owen Lee, Ben Kromer and Robert Baxter.
While they have caught a bit of a break with the Matthews injury, losing three star players overnight is nearly unprecedented at this time of the year.
On one hand, the Warriors have to be encouraged by the series thus far. They have a dominant victory and two narrow losses in overtime. On the other hand, it must be hard not to feel as though they let two opportunities slip away, especially with the late goal for the Warriors and subsequently letting one go in on the other end.
But this team is battle tested and features a number of players with Minto Cup rings. Count them out at your own risk.
Who Can Survive?
If there is a big winner last night, it’s the St. Catharines Athletics… let me explain.
First of all, there is a great series going on out west right now, with Victoria winning on Tuesday to tie the finals at 2-2. However, Victoria is running into the same issue as Whitby, with starting netminder Grayson Manning and forward Greyson Thompson heading to play for Team Canada.
So the Adanacs have had to grind for their championship and will play until at least Saturday.
In the RMLL, a somewhat surprising Mountaineers club have shocked the Raiders and lead the final series 3-1. Depending what happens tomorrow night, that series could head into the weekend as well.
Regardless of what happens in Ontario, the BC and Alberta champions will face a battered and bruised OJLL champion.
Coquitlam has played 17 regular season games and 8 playoff games to this point, for a total of 24 games. Whitby has already played 35 games this summer, and Orangeville has played 32. Considering that the OJLL series could go as many as four more times, the mileage on the players in Ontario this summer will be something to monitor.
Whitby is guaranteed at least 17 games in the playoffs, which will be the most since the 2011 Northmen, who ironically lost to the Warriors in game seven of the OJLL finals after winning game seven in the semi-finals. If this series goes further than five games, Whitby will surpass that number, and could play as many as 19 games.
It always is, but this year seems to be a war of attrition to an unusual degree. Both teams were gassed by the end of the game, and Whitby’s physicality really started to take a toll. Sure, legs will be tired with games back to back, but it’s more about the hands, wrists and elbows that are taking contact throughout the game and series. It’s a balance between the physical (adding padding, doing treatment) and the mental (blocking it out of your mind) that will be fascinating to watch.
Another important note is that the Minto starts… soon. Game seven of the OJLL finals would be Tuesday, with the Minto beginning just four days later on Saturday August 16th. That’s an incredible turnaround for teams that have played an awful lot of lacrosse, especially when you consider that the Minto itself begins with three games in three days, and four in four for the teams in the semi-finals.
Meanwhile, no team has entered the Minto with fresher legs than the St. Catharines Athletics, who have been off for the better part of the month. If you are an athletics fan, the carnage around the country is a good thing. You are likely a Whitby / Raiders / Shamrocks fan, at least for now.
Of course, these teams will also be battle tested and incredibly sharp, so there is two sides to the coin. But even more than the average year, this year’s champion will be the last team standing.