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Mount Forest Patriots

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Mount Forest Patriots
CityMount Forest, Ontario[1]
LeagueProvincial Junior Hockey League
ConferenceNorth
DivisionPollock
Founded1987 (1987)[1]
Home arenaMount Forest & District Sportsplex[2]
ColoursBlack, Green, Yellow, and White
General managerJosh Keil
Head coachZac Coulter

The Mount Forest Patriots are a Junior ice hockey team based in Mount Forest, Ontario, Canada.[1] They play in the Provincial Junior Hockey League (PJHL).[3]

History

[edit]

With their expansion into the Ontario Hockey Association in 1987,[1] the Patriots served as a catalyst for the genesis of the Grey-Bruce Junior "C" Hockey League (GBJHL) into the WJCHL. Until 1987, all teams in the GBJHL were from Grey County and Bruce County. Mount Forest, at the Southern border of Grey County, is actually a part of Wellington County and therefore rendered the GBJHL inadequate.[1] The expansion of the Pats came soon after the folding of the Markdale Mohawks[4] and the Arthur Eagles,[5] two local Junior "D" teams.

Following nine years of WJCHL domination by the Hanover Barons,[6] the Patriots came into their own. The team won three consecutive league titles from 1994 until 1996,[7] but could not surpass the Belle River Canadiens (1994),[8] Bowmanville Eagles (1995),[9] or the Paris Mounties (1996)[7] in the early rounds of the All-Ontario Championship to win the Clarence Schmalz Cup. In 1998, the Patriots were designated the farm team of the Ontario Provincial Junior A Hockey League's Durham Huskies.[10] This relationship resulted in the Patriots fielding the first Russian to play in the WJCHL, Valentine Lidvanov,[11] however the teams' affiliation was severed in 2001 when the Huskies left the OPJHL to join the WJCHL.[12] The Huskies were granted leave from the OPJHL,[13] but were voted out of the WJCHL before they could play a game.[12]

The Pats have struggled to obtain their first winning season since 1998. Nonetheless, the arena is often filled at home games.

The 2004–05 season ended with the Mount Forest Patriots on the outside looking in. At the very end of the season, the upstart Goderich Sailors jumped ahead of the Patriots to take control of the fourth playoff seed and leaving the Patriots eliminated from the playoffs.[14]

In 2005–06, the Patriots finished in last place overall but took advantage of an expanded playoff format introduced that season. The playoffs did not last long though as the Hanover Barons swept the Patriots in the league quarter-final 2-games-to-none.[14]

The 2006–07 season ended with the Patriots back up in the fifth seed. They challenged the Hanover Barons in the league quarter-final and were defeated 3 games to 1.[14]

During the summer of 2016 the eight junior "C" leagues in Southern Ontario came together as the Provincial Junior Hockey League. The former leagues became divisions and assigned to one of four conferences. The Patriots were assigned to the North Conference and the Pollock Division.

The Patriots have seen some success recently after the amalgamation of the Provincial Junior Hockey League. This success has been within their own division (Pollock) after winning the 2016-17 and 2017-18 division championships over the Walkerton Hawks. After defeating the Wingham Ironmen 4-0, they would see the 2nd-seeded Mitchell Hawks in the semi-finals for the Pollock Division. Though Mitchell was, on paper, the better team, and the Hawks jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead, the Patriots would fight back and win the series 4 games to 3.[15] On the road in Game 7, the Patriots took the game 5-2 for their first upset in the Pollock division that year. The second upset was when the Patriots defeated the Walkerton Hawks 4 games to 3[16] in the division final to win their first league championship in 20 years. After their division win they would face the renowned Alliston Hornets. The Hornets would end up handling the series fairly easily, 4 games to 1.

The Patriots 2017–2018 season was one for the team's history books. After finishing first with a league record of 31-7-2 and one of the most successful seasons in Patriots history, they received a first-round bye. The second round saw them matched up against a familiar adversary: the Wingham Ironmen. The previous year, the Patriots had swept the Ironmen in the quarter-finals. Though the round initially looked to be close, the Patriots took the series 4-0.[17] The Patriots were once again matched against the Walkerton Hawks in the division final. This series was in the Patriots' favor for the second year in a row, with Mount Forest winning their second division title in as many years, 4-2.[18] After their 2nd division win in 2 years, the Patriots faced the newly acclaimed Carruthers Division champions Stayner Siskins. The Siskins won a closely matched series 4-1,[19] before going on to lose to Schmalz Cup Champions the Lakefield Chiefs.

Season-by-season standings

[edit]
Season GP W L T OTL GF GA P Results Playoffs
1987-88 30 11 14 5 - 129 132 27 4th of 6 GBJCHL
1988-89 30 12 13 5 - 149 148 29 4th of 6 WJCHL Won quarter-final, 3-0 (Bears)
Lost semi-final, 0-4 (Ironmen)
1989-90 30 13 15 2 - 156 180 28 4th of 6 WJCHL Lost semi-final, 0-4 (Barons)
1990-91 30 8 18 4 - 110 126 20 6th of 7 WJCHL
1991-92 29 9 16 4 - 121 142 22 5th of 7 WJCHL
1992-93 29 9 17 3 - 138 170 21 5th of 7 WJCHL
1993-94 32 22 6 4 - -- -- 48 1st of 5 WJCHL Won League
Won CSC QF, 4-1 (Siskins)
Lost CSC SF, 0-4 (Canadiens)
1994-95 29 21 3 5 - 102 74 47 1st of 7 WJCHL Won League
Won CSC QF (Devils)
Lost CSC SF, 3-4 (Eagles)
1995-96 30 22 6 2 - 179 95 46 2nd of 7 WJCHL Won League
Won CSC QF, 4-1 (Siskins)
Lost CSC SF, 0-4 (Raiders)
1996-97 30 15 10 5 - 158 141 35 3rd of 7 WJCHL
1997-98 36 11 21 4 - 145 164 26 5th of 7 WJCHL Won quarter-final (Ironmen)
Lost semi-final (Barons)
1998-99 36 11 18 7 - 103 134 29 5th of 7 WJCHL Lost quarter-final, 0-3 (Bulldogs)
1999-00* 34 8 22 4 - 91 157 20 5th of 7 WJCHL DNQ
2000-01 39 19 17 3 - 152 149 41 3rd of 6 WJCHL Won quarter-final, 3-1 (Wolves)
Lost semi-final, 0-4 (Bulldogs)
2001-02 34 18 13 3 - 126 107 39 4th of 6 WJCHL Won quarter-final, 3-0 (Walkerton Hawks)
Lost semi-final, 1-4 (Bulldogs)
2002-03 35 10 24 - 1 92 168 21 5th of 6 WJCHL Lost quarter-final, 0-3 (Ironmen)
2003-04 33 10 22 1 0 127 154 21 5th of 6 WJCHL Won quarter-final, 3-2 (Walkerton Hawks)
Lost semi-final, 0-4 (Ironmen)
2004-05 40 8 28 4 0 140 225 20 5th of 5 WJCHL DNQ
2005-06 38 4 32 2 0 83 232 10 6th of 6 WJCHL Lost quarter-final, 0-2 (Barons)
2006-07 40 6 32 0 2 126 244 14 5th of 6 WJCHL Lost quarter-final, 1-3 (Barons)
2007-08 40 4 35 - 1 102 267 9 6th of 6 WJCHL Lost quarter-final, 0-3 (Barons)
2008-09 36 1 34 - 1 70 265 3 7th of 7 WJCHL Lost quarter-final, 0-3 (Bulldogs)
2009-10 36 7 27 - 2 98 173 16 6th of 7 WJCHL Lost quarter-final, 2-3 (Mitchell Hawks)
2010-11 36 10 22 - 4 111 166 24 6th of 7 WJCHL Lost quarter-final, 0-3 (Mitchell Hawks)
2011-12 36 14 21 - 1 130 156 29 6th of 7 WJCHL Lost quarter-final, 0-4 (Barons)
2012-13 36 16 17 - 3 162 158 35 5th of 7 WJCHL Won quarter-final, 4-2 (Ironmen)
Lost semi-final, 3-4 (Walkerton Hawks)
2013-14 35 18 14 - 3 157 162 39 3rd of 7 WJCHL Lost quarter-final, 3-4 (Barons)
2014-15 36 16 20 0 - 160 146 32 5th of 7 WJCHL Lost quarter-final, 2-4 (Bulldogs)
2015-16 36 22 13 1 - 179 135 45 3rd of 7 WJCHL Won quarter-final, 4-3 (Barons)
Lost semi-finals, 3-4 (Bulldogs)
2016-17 36 17 17 2 - 126 118 36 3rd of 7
Pollock Div. PJHL		 Won Div. QF, 4-0 (Ironmen)
Won Div. SF, 4-3 (Mitchell Hawks)
Won Div. Final, 4-3 (Walkerton Hawks)
Lost Conf. Final, 1-4 (Hornets)
2017-18 40 31 7 2 - 199 104 64 1st of 7
Pollock Div. PJHL		 Won Div. SF, 4-0 (Ironmen)
Won Div. Final, 4-2 (Walkerton Hawks)
Lost Conf. Final, 1-4 (Siskins)
2018-19 42 32 9 1 - 186 120 65 1st of 7
Pollock Div. PJHL		 Won Div. SF, 4-0 (Walkerton Hawks)
Won Div. Final, 4-2 (Ironmen)
Lost North Conf., 2-4 (Hornets)
2019-20 42 33 7 1 1 214 109 68 1st of 7
Pollock Div. PJHL		 Won Div. SF, 4-3 (M Hawks)
n/d, 1-1 (Ironmen)
Remaining playoffs cancelled - covid
2020-21 Season Lost due to COVID-19 pandemic
2021-22 32 18 11 2 1 115 111 39 3rd of 7
Pollock Div. PJHL		 Won Div. QF, 4-0 (W Hawks)
Lost Div. SF,, 0-4 (M Hawks)
2022-23 42 32 9 0 1 201 130 65 1st of 7
Pollock Div. PJHL		 Div. QF, bye
Won Div. SF, 4-3 (Ironmen)
Won Div. Finals, 4-3 (Barons)
Lost North Conf, 2-4 (Siskins)
2023-24 42 32 7 3 0 183 108 67 2nd of 8
Pollock Div. PJHL		 Won Div. QF, 4-0 (M Hawks)
Won Div SF, 4-1 (Bulldogs)
Lost Div Finals, 3-4 (Barons)

(*) The 1999-00 Season was altered drastically due to the folding of the Lakeshore Pirates. As a disproportionate number of games had been played by each team against Lakeshore, all history of these games were erased. If they had been included, the Patriots' record against the Pirates was 4-0-0.[20]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e Mount Forest Patriots
  2. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-11-13. Retrieved 2008-04-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. ^ Western C Teams | Western Junior C Hockey League | Junior C | Leagues | Ontario Hockey Association Archived 2008-05-09 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ MarkdaleJuniors
  5. ^ AncasterShamrocks
  6. ^ Welcome To The Home of the Hanover Barons
  7. ^ a b Mount Forest Confederate Sports Section, March 1996
  8. ^ Mount Forest Confederate Sports Section, March 1994
  9. ^ Mount Forest Confederate Sports Section, March 1995
  10. ^ The Durham Chronicle Sports Section, August 1998
  11. ^ Owen Sound Sun Times Sports Section, November 1998
  12. ^ a b The Durham Chronicle Sports Section, April 2001
  13. ^ The Durham Chronicle Sports Section, February 2001
  14. ^ a b c http://www.ohahockey.ca
  15. ^ "BlackburnNews.com - Patriots Complete Comeback to Win Pollock Div. Semifinal". 3 March 2017.
  16. ^ "BlackburnNews.com - 2017-18 Pollock Division Season Preview: Mount Forest Patriots". 22 August 2017.
  17. ^ "BlackburnNews.com - Patriots On the Verge of Sweeping the Ironmen". 21 February 2018.
  18. ^ "BlackburnNews.com - Patriots Rally In The 3rd To Squeeze Out 5-4 OT Win, Take 3-1 Series Lead". 12 March 2018.
  19. ^ "BlackburnNews.com - Patriots Eliminated from Schmalz Cup Run". 30 March 2018.
  20. ^ Owen Sound Sun Times Sports Section, November 1999.
  21. ^ Owen Sound Sun Times Sports Section final standings
  22. ^ Mount Forest Confederate Sports Section final standings
  23. ^ Owen Sound Sun Times Sports Section for Goal totals
  24. ^ http://www.ohahockey.ca
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