Here we go again a day after the Olympic disappointment win are on the eve of a new playoff run. Albert County and Oromocto will begin the long offseason of trying to forget the shortfalls of this season.
Next Year's Alignment is looking like:
Lemieux - South Esk, Cains, Bathurst , Dorchester and Albert County
Gretzky - Miramichi , Saint John , Moncton, Riverview and Oromocto
Hot takes : Depending on Bathurst plan for the draft and Dorchester's youth gains this conference could be ugly but South Esk and Cain are expected to be in the lead. The Gretzky will be expected to be a bloodbath between Miramichi , Saint John and Moncton while youth will be served in Riverview and Oromocto.
Lemieux Conference
South Esk Scotsman (1) vs. Dorchester Devils
With another year of regular season conference the Scotsman mowed though the season efficiently almost winning the Barbarian trophy. The top line combined for a ridiculous +230 yet still had balanced scoring throughout the lineup. With a stacked defence core , a bruising lineup and Askarov being elite they will be a tough out.
Not going to lie, I expected more from the Devils. Matty Beniers seemed to regress from last season and Kaprill the thrill isn’t much thrilling this year. The positive is Caufield has become a top line goal scorer ,Mo Seider could be a Plavsic winner and Samsonov played out of his mind. The factory Kedgwick keeps producing young players and another top pick looks to be joining Recchi from last year.
Player to watch : Ilya Samsonov - My favorite stat is this , his GSAA is 3.26 Times higher than Askarov( 31.3-9.6). When the team in front of him decides to play, look out. He also started every single game for Dorchester this year. His backup played 242 minutes.
Matchup to watch - Forwards Speed vs South Esk Aggression - Speed is one of my favorite stats and it helps solve a lot of problems but when the aggression catches up and finds you it could start to take its toll especially in a 7 game series.
Prediction : South Esk in 6
Moncton Melons vs. Bathurst Angry Ducks
Another year of the Jack Hughes show in Moncton has become the play torment season. Freed from the Conference from hell last the Melons are stitched together with the always bruising Dahlin and Young power forward Kakko the Melons are always expected to be in the mix. Adding some youth Matt Coronto was a bright spot providing top 6 minutes and a leading contender for the Mogilny this year as best rookie.
Those damn Ducks.
With their own Crosby and Malkin, the team is set for years at center with Dach 26 and Yzerman 20 to lead this team into the future. The forwards in the top 6 complement the centers and Sanderson is a stud on the blue line. Blackwood looks to add more hardware to his trophy case before he starts the post 30 goalie regression that plagues even the best.
Player to watch - Matt Murray - Does he have another run in him or is he seeing ghosts out there. Ready to retire and go to the hall of fame after this year is this the last go around for the legend that has been a starter every team since the league's inception. At 36 can he do it one last time or time to be put to bed.
Matchup to watch - Jack Hughes vs. Stevie Y - In the matchup of the first line centers can Yzerman slow down Hughes. Production wise Hughes can put up a disgusting amount of points if given the chance. Yzerman’s 77 Sp and 63 DF will be tested .
Prediction : Ducks in 7
Gretzky Conference
Miramichi Moose (1) vs Riverview Royals (4)
This was very unexpected. My expectation was 2nd or 3rd in the conference while giving my 80 rated rookie goalie the majority of the time and a 85OV backup to keep the team above water. Funny thing happened , my first line was dominant , my crusher on the blue line crushed higher than anyone ever (5.32 hits per game) and my rookie goalie didn’t completely suck.
Hooray for Barbarian #4
In Riverview the front office declared they were done with this rebuilding garbage and said let's make some trades to build up our main roster and not include those guys named Robitaille , Andreychuk or Anderson. The teams top two lines have solid lines but the bottom six could use upgrades . With the youth spoken above and the 4th overall pick this team will be a force to reckon with in the next few seasons.
Player to Watch - Isac Lundestrom - Originally drafted and a member of the back to back Moose winning cup teams is it time to show that team what he’s made of. The offensive leader of the Royals will need to not only set the tone for offence but be a defensive savant to slow down the Moose offense.
Key Matchup - 33 year old Veini Vehvilainen vs 34 year old Igor Shesterkin. It’s a battle of the veteran goalies. I like it when it ends up as a 85OV goalie vs. a 85OV goalie. Does one steal the series or does one self-destruct. Not the best goalies and not the worst this will determine the series.
Prediction : Moose in 7
Saint John Kings (2) vs. Cains River Blues (3)
Another year, another dominant year for the Kings. Had they not started so sluggish we’d be looking at another Barbarian trophy for sure. Jesperi Kotkaniemi had himself a season winning the Sakic, Shanahan and Modano trophy all in a season. Logan Thompson was a statistical nightmare with 7 shutouts and a 33 GSAA and a GAA. The team's lines are solid in both depth and higher end positions as well .
Goaltending and depth is what keeps the Blues consistent, second all time in winning records to the Kings. Auston Matthews has been a revelation since joining the Blues having his best seasons since the season 4 Devils cup winning team. The team has solid depth but in a matchup with the Kings you will need your best players to show up.
Players to watch : Connor Zary - to run the gauntlet of the Kings the most dynamic player on the Blues will need to be the most impactful player. If he could replicate the 18 points in 10 games pace that he had last post-season the Blues could be able to pull off the upset.
Key Matchup - Kings Forwards vs. Blues Defence - The Kings have one of the most dynamic set of forwards in the ODBHL and can run and gun or get in tight scoring battles. The Blues are a very grinding team and like to keep the scoring differential close . If the scores go up it favors Saint John , if it’s a one goal game Cains could have a improved chance
Prediction : Kings in 7
2/23/2026 - 1149 words
