No team has played more hockey to get to Chilliwack than the Wellington Dukes, and no team has come closer to elimination.

In all, seven of Wellington’s 30 playoff games have been win-or-go-home, including Game 7s in each of the first two rounds, the second of which capped a long climb out of a 3-1 hole against Newmarket.

But the Dukes took out Aurora, the OJHL regular-season champion, in the semis before ending Georgetown’s hopes of a repeat in the Buckland Cup final, and capped their run through the Dudley Hewitt Cup with a 7-4 win over previously-unbeaten Dryden – avenging a preliminary-round loss – to head west as Central Region champions.

HOW THEY GOT TO CHILLIWACK

Ontario Junior Hockey League
Preliminary round: defeated Pickering 4-3 (6-3, 4-2, 1-3, 2-3 OT, 5-4, 4-5 OT, 6-2)
Quarter-final: defeated Newmarket 4-3 (0-3, 1-8, 2-1, 2-3, 3-2, 3-2, 3-2 OT)
Semifinal: defeated Aurora 4-1 (2-1, 6-2, 2-6, 3-0, 3-2 2OT)
OJHL championship: defeated Georgetown 4-2 (4-3 OT, 6-1, 0-8, 2-7, 3-2, 4-3 OT)

Dudley Hewitt Cup
Preliminary round: second place – 2-1 (lost to Dryden 4-1, defeated Thunder Bay 4-1, defeated Cochrane 6-3)
Championship: defeated Dryden 7-4

REGULAR SEASON

Record: 33-13-3-5 (6th in OJHL)
Goals for: 207 (4th in OJHL)
Goals against: 153 (7th in OJHL)
Power play: 52 for 253 (20.6% – 4th in OJHL)
Penalty killing: 258 of 297 (86.9% – 5th in OJHL)
Longest winning streak: 7 (Nov. 27-Dec. 8)
Top 3 scorers:
Mitchell Martan (26G 41A 67P – 12th in OJHL)
Andrew Rinaldi (25G 33A 58P – 18th in OJHL)
Ted McGeen (35G 21A 56P – 22nd in OJHL)

PLAYOFFS

Record: 20-10
Goals for: 101
Goals against: 93
Power play: 18 for 107 (16.8%)
Penalty killing: 109 of 143 (76.2%)
Top 3 scorers:
Colin Doyle (9G 18A 27P)
Ben Evans (7G 16A 23P)
Bryce Yetman (15G 6A 21P)

NATIONAL JUNIOR A CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY

2011 | Wellington Dukes | 1-4 – 13GF 20GA | 4th place
2003 | Wellington Dukes | 2-3 – 10GF 16GA | 3rd place

CJHL NATIONAL RANKINGS – WEEK-BY-WEEK

Preseason – NR
Sept. 25 – NR
Oct. 2 – Honourable Mention
Oct. 9 – Honourable Mention
Oct. 16 – 18th
Oct. 23 – 15th
Oct. 30 – Honourable Mention
Nov. 6 – 20th
Nov. 13 – Honourable Mention
Nov. 20 – Honourable Mention
Nov. 27 – Honourable Mention
Dec. 4 – 13th
Dec. 11 – 20th
Dec. 18 – 18th
Jan. 8 – Honourable Mention
Jan. 15 – NR
Jan. 22 – NR
Jan. 29 – NR
Feb. 5 – NR
Feb. 12 – NR
Feb. 19 – NR
Feb. 26 – NR
March 5 – NR

COMMITMENTS

Jonah Capriotti – Trinity College (2018-19)
Declan Carlile – Merrimack College (2019-20)
Geoff Lawson – Robert Morris University (2018-19)
Mitchell Martan – Canisius College (2018-19)
Ted McGeen – St. Lawrence University (2018-19)
Daniel Panetta – Colgate (2020-21)
Frank Pucci – Brock University (2018-19)
Mason Snell – Penn State University (2019-20)
Zach Uens – Merrimack College (2020-21)