The Kraft Cup regular season returned from a nine-day break with 209 contests on Jan. 2 (82 GP) and Jan. 3 (127 GP).
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Minor Midget A
The West Mall Lightning (13-6-4, 30 points), Toronto Royals (11-7-6, 28 points) and Duffield Devils (11-10-4, 26 points) all earned wins on the weekend to keep pace in the West division, where seeds Nos. 2-6 are separated by only six points. The top six clubs will make the playoffs in the nine-team division.
The Lightning picked up an 8-1 decision over the Humberview Huskies, while the Royals (2-1 vs. Toronto Eagles) and Devils (4-2 vs. Vaughan Rangers) both doubled-up on their opponents.
In the East, the Toronto Aeros (17-2-5, 39 points) and Ted Reeve Thunder (15-7-3, 33 points) both picked up wins to keep pace in the race for first place. The Aeros defeated the Goulding Park Rangers 7-1 while the Thunder moved into sole possession of second place with a 4-1 win over York Mills.
The Toronto Shamrocks (14-6-4, 32 points) and Toronto Aces (13-5-6, 32 points) share third place with 32 points apiece. The Thunder (25 GP) has played one more game than each of the other clubs in the top four.
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Atom AA
The Humber Valley Sharks (12-11-1, 25 points) and Mississauga Braves (9-13-3, 21 points) both swept their weekend doubleheaders to gain ground in the West division playoff race, where the top 12 teams will advance to the postseason.
The Sharks pulled into a tie with the Humberview Huskies (11-10-3, 25 points) – who lost 5-1 to the Vaughan Panthers (15-4-4, 34 points) – for ninth place. Humber Valley posted an 8-0 win against the Avalanche and edged the Streetsville Tigers with a 2-1 decision.
The Braves moved into sole possession of 11th place with triumphs over the Greater Toronto Capitals (5-3 W) and Mississauga North Stars (5-2 W). The Braves’ win over the first-place North Stars (19-2-2, 40 points) ended that club’s winning streak at nine games.
The North Stars’ first loss in ten games allowed the Mississauga Terriers (17-2-5, 39 points) and Vaughan Rangers (17-4-3, 37 points) to narrow the gap in the battle for first place in the division. Both clubs posted shutout wins on the weekend: Terriers – 2-0 vs. Toros (16-7-1, 33 points) and Rangers – 8-0 vs. Mississauga Jets (7-12-6, 20 points).
The Leaside Flames (17-6-2, 36 points) and Ted Reeve Thunder (13-8-4, 30 points) – the No. 3 and No. 4-ranked teams in the East division, respectively – both posted wins in their first game of 2016. The Flames shut out the Goulding Park Rangers 3-0, while the Thunder handled the West Hill Golden Hawks 6-2.
The first-place North York Knights (23-1-0, 46 points) will put their 16-game winning streak on the line when they play a weekend doubleheader against the Toronto Aeros (Jan. 9 at noon, Chesswood 2) and Golden Hawks (Jan. 10 at 1:10 p.m., St. Michael’s Arena).
Other finals from Atom AA weekend action:
West – Toronto Wolverines 10, Duffield Devils 0
West – Toros 7, Avalanche 0
West – Toronto Eagles 3, Ice Warriors 1
East – Scarborough Young Bruins 3, Toronto Aeros 0
East – Forest Hill 3, York Mills 2
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Minor Peewee AAA
The Toronto Jr. Canadiens (20-2-3, 43 points) and Don Mills Flyers (17-3-3, 37 points) – the top two teams in the division – both began the new year with wins to keep pace in the race for first place.
The Jr. Canadiens pushed their winning streak to three games with a 4-0 shutout of the Toronto Titans. Their 1.32 goals-against average paces all teams this season.
The Flyers, meanwhile, scored a season-high 13 goals to skate past the Markham Majors with a 13-4 decision. Don Mills owns two games in hand on Toronto.
The Jr. Canadiens and Flyers are slated to close the month of January with a home-and-home series on Friday, Jan. 29 (7:10 p.m. at Victoria Village) and Sunday, Jan. 31 (3:55 p.m. at Scotiabank Pond). The Jr. Canadiens won 4-1 in their only other matchup this season on Dec. 13.
The Mississauga Reps (8-10-5, 21 points) and Toronto Red Wings (7-10-5, 19 points) also earned wins on the weekend to advance their position in the playoff race. The Reps (No. 6) picked up a 2-1 win against the Toronto Marlboros (13-4-5, 31 points), while the Red Wings (No. 7) blanked the North York Rangers 4-0.
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Minor Midget AAA
First place is still up for grabs as the Minor Midget AAA division enters the home stretch of the Kraft Cup regular season.
The Toronto Marlboros (21-3-2, 44 points), who currently occupy the top spot, opened 2016 with an 8-1 win over the Mississauga Reps to maintain a four-point lead over both the Toronto Red Wings (19-5-2, 40 points) and Mississauga Rebels (17-3-6, 40 points), who also earned wins on the weekend.
After finishing second in the Marlboros’ annual Holiday Classic tournament, the Red Wings started 2016 with a 3-1 win over the Toronto Young Nationals. The Rebels improved to 8-0-2 in their last 10 regular-season games with a 6-1 win over the Toronto Jr. Canadiens (17-7-1, 35 points).
The Jr. Canadiens, who hold the No. 4 position in the standings, skated to a perfect 8-0-0 record in winning the Holiday Classic.
Check out the latest team rankings for the 2016 OHL Cup, which will be hosted by the GTHL at Scotiabank Pond and Mattamy Athletic Centre from March 15 to 21.
Other finals from Minor Midget AAA weekend action:
Vaughan Kings 5, Don Mills Flyers 3
Toronto Titans 2, Markham Majors 2
Markham Majors 4, North York Rangers 2
Congrats @GTHLHockey @JrCanadiensAAA ending 2015 with @TorontoMarlboro Holiday title. Road to #OHLCup continues! pic.twitter.com/k76nkW95g9
— OntarioHockeyLeague (@OHLHockey) January 4, 2016
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