PHOTO: Matthew Hayami of the Minor Midget AAA Toronto Red Wings (AARON BELL / OHL IMAGES)
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As the temperature drops outdoors, the Kraft Cup races heat up in the rink. Another 289 regular-season contests were completed over the weekend, including 132 games on Sunday.
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Atom A
Twenty-five games into the Kraft Cup regular-season and still no losses for North Toronto, who improved to 23-0-2 (48 points) with a win over the Ted Reeve Thunder on Sunday (11-0 W). The club leads the East division with a 0.88 goals-against average this season, aided by 11 shutouts.
Challenging for first place in the East are the Leaside Flames (20-2-3, 43 points), who skated to a 5-3 victory over the North York Knights on Friday.
The Flames and North Toronto will meet for the third time this season on Tuesday, Jan. 12 (7:10 p.m. at Forest Hill/Larry Grossman). North Toronto owns a 1-0-1 edge in their first two meetings (Flames: 0-1-1).
A tiebreaker game for both first place and the final playoff position is a possibility in the East, as teams Nos. 4-9 are separated by only four points:
4. North York Knights: 13-10-3 (29 points)
5. Forest Hill: 13-11-3 (29 points)
6. Markham Islanders: 11-9-5 (27 points)
7. Goulding Park Rangers: 12-11-3 (27 points)
8. Toronto Aeros: 12-13-1 (25 points)
9. West Hill Golden Hawks: 10-11-5 (25 points)
Despite a mark in the loss column, the West-leading Vaughan Rangers (23-1-0, 46 points) are having a season as equally impressive as their counterparts from North Toronto. The Rangers pushed their winning streak to 19 games over the weekend with victories over the Avalanche (7-0 W) and Toronto Wolverines (5-0 W).
The Rangers’ lone blemish in the regular-season was a 2-1 defeat to the Vaughan Panthers (19-2-1, 39 points) on Oct. 5. The Panthers, who sit in second place in the division, resume their Kraft Cup schedule tonight (Monday, Jan. 11) against the Humber Valley Sharks (8-16-2, 18 points) before facing the Rangers on Saturday, Jan. 16 at Vaughan Sports Village (9:00 a.m.).
Other finals from Atom A weekend action:
East – Don Mills Mustangs 3, Markham Islanders 3
East – West Hill Golden Hawks 2, Forest Hill 0
East – Markham Islanders 10, Scarborough Ice Raiders 1
West – West Mall Lightning 6, West Toronto Renegades 1
West – Avalanche 4, Humber Valley Sharks 1
West – West Mall Lightning 2, Humber Valley Sharks 1
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Midget Jr. AA
The Humber Valley Sharks (10-11-5, 25 points) had a very important weekend. The Sharks, who currently hold the No. 6 spot in the West, faced the only two teams behind them in the race for the final playoff position in the division.
After suffering a 5-2 defeat against the Toronto Wolverines (7-16-2, 16 points) on Friday, the Sharks rebounded with a 5-3 victory over the Streetsville Tigers (9-12-4, 22 points) to pull into a tie – in terms of points – with the Vaughan Panthers (11-12-3, 25 points).
The Panthers fell 1-0 to the Mississauga Jets (15-6-2, 32 points) in their lone weekend contest, but hold the tiebreaker against the Sharks by virtue of having one more win.
The Greater Toronto Capitals (14-10-4, 32 points) pulled within one point of the East Enders Ticats (15-7-3, 33 points) for first place in the East by splitting their two weekend contests. The Capitals first cruised to a 5-1 victory over the Toronto Aeros before falling 4-3 to the West-leading Mississauga Terriers (17-4-4, 38 points).
In the only other weekend contest, the Markham Islanders (11-9-5, 27 points) picked up a 5-2 win over North Toronto to keep pace in the East, where only six points separate teams Nos. 1-6.
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Minor Atom AAA
All signs point toward a race to the finish after the top four teams posted wins over the weekend.
The Toronto Jr. Canadiens (21-2-2, 44 points) continue to lead the pack after blanking the North York Rangers on Sunday (2-0 W). That came on the heels of a 4-1 loss to the Vaughan Kings (20-3-1, 41 points) – their first defeat in seven games.
The Kings have won 12 consecutive games dating to Nov. 11 and sit three points back of the Jr. Canadiens. The Toronto Marlboros (20-3-1, 41 points) share the same record as the Kings following 5-1 and 3-1 wins over the Toronto Young Nationals (7-15-4, 18 points) and Toronto Red Wings (12-10-1, 25 points), respectively.
The No. 4-ranked Mississauga Senators (18-4-1, 37 points) kept pace with a 4-2 win over the Don Mills Flyers (13-9-3, 29 points).
The Mississauga Rebels (8-13-3, 19 points) picked up a 4-2 win over the Markham Majors to move into the No. 7 seed, one point ahead of the Young Nationals.
The North York Rangers and Toronto Titans played to a 2-2 tie in the only other weekend contest.
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Minor Midget AAA
Make it six consecutive regular-season victories for the Toronto Marlboros (23-3-2, 48 points), who posted a 3-1 win over the Toronto Titans (8-16-4, 20 points) on Friday. The Marlboros hold a four-point lead over the Mississauga Rebels (19-3-6, 44 points) and Toronto Red Wings (20-5-4, 44 points) for first place in the Kraft Cup standings.
The Red Wings pulled even – in terms of points – with the Rebels following a 5-0 victory over the Vaughan Kings (10-14-3, 23 points). The Rebels, who were idle on the weekend, have played one fewer game than the Red Wings.
The Toronto Jr. Canadiens (19-7-2, 40 points) have earned points in both of their games since climbing into the No. 1 position in the OHL Cup rankings last week, including a 4-1 win over the Mississauga Reps on Sunday.
Other finals from Minor Midget AAA weekend action:
Markham Majors 3, Vaughan Kings 2
Don Mills Flyers 4, Toronto Titans 2
Markham Majors 2, Mississauga Senators 2
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