Well Hanover. The wait is finally over.
For the first time in 21 years, the Barons are kings of what is now the PJHL Pollock Division.
A game 6 win back on Saturday, April 6 set the stage for an epic game 7 on Monday night, as April 8, 2024 will forever be remembered in Hanover as a red letter day.
The Barons managed to stave off an intense and unwavering opponent in the Mount Forest Patriots, who have done a lot of winning themselves the last number of years after breaking a 21-year drought of their own.
Game 7 had everything you could want as a fan, and speaking of fans, there were a lot. The announced crowd at a raucous P&H Centre was over 1,100, though it's highly likely there may have been a few more in there. At least, that's what it felt like to yours truly.
A back-and-forth first period would end scoreless as the Barons weathered an early storm from the Pats, who were cycling and pouring on the pressure. Barons goalie Derek Hartley, who put forth one of the great game 7 performances this division has ever seen, held the fort down as Hanover kicked aside some early nerves in the first in front of the packed house.
The second period gave the first offensive outburst of the night, and it came on the ever dangerous, seemingly automatic at times Barons power play. Superstar forward Alex McGillivray sniped his 13th goal of the postseason past Pats goalie Marshall Nicholls off a great feed from Kyle Maloney, with Patrick Brown on the other helper. McGillivray's father, Jim, who was in attendance, was part of the last Barons team to win the title back in '03. Alex put together a vintage McGillivray performance, starting with the PP opener that nearly took the roof off the arena.
Mount Forest would answer back on a man advantage of their own, as a pass back to an open point saw Austin Griffin slip down from the high slot to rifle a water bottle popper past Hartley to tie the score. The teams traded chances in the second, and headed to the dressing rooms knotted 1-1.
The third period was filled with a tense energy as the hometown crowd, who saw this Barons club come agonizingly close the last two years, was trying to will their team to victory. The winning goal would again come on the power play, with McGillivray once again displaying his magic hands and hockey smarts. He came in on a rush down the right wing with a defender in front of him and saw a team mate heading back door. McGillivray rifled a hard shot low off the pad of Nicholls, and Drayton Howell was there to slip the rebound past a helpless Nicholls into a yawning cage. Cue craziness at the P&H Centre.
With the nervous energy behind them and a lead on the board, the Barons seemed to take the crowd's energy and inject it right into their legs. They stifled the Patriots and beat them to loose pucks all over the ice, and with the goalie pulled, Mount Forest tried all they could to get some looks in on Hartley, but the gas tank ran dry. A final face-off came just outside the Hanover zone in front of their bench, and time finally ticked down on the expiration of the drought in Barons Country.
I have to say, I don't think I've ever seen someone jump so high off a bench than Barons Head Coach, Brady Anderson at the final horn. Anderson, a former Listowel Cyclone who won back-to-back Cherrey Cups and the first and only Sutherland Cup so far in Cyclones history, has brought the same winning mentality that made him such an effective player behind the bench. Joined by former Cyclones team mate Brendan Clayton, as well as former Patriots assistant Bobby Kirby, the coaching staff of the Barons led this group of young men to the promised land that for two decades seemed achingly out of reach at times.
It should be noted, when you get this deep in a playoff run, especially to a final series that goes the distance, it's a safe bet the goaltending was next level. It was on both sides of the ledger this year. Marshall Nicholls was a behemoth for the Pats, making 24 stops in the game 7 loss. Derek Hartley turned in one of the most clutch game 7 wins I've ever seen, with 31 stops in the title clincher, many highlight reel saves.
Congrats to the Patriots on another great season. That group still has the winning mojo, and they'll be a contender again next year. A heck of a run that they should be proud of despite how it ended. Chins up, lads. What a series.
To everyone at the Barons, enjoy this. Relish it. You've waited long enough. From the players, the coaches, to the executives and hockey ops staff, well done. Congrats to Director of Hockey Ops, Mike Fisher, GM Peter "The King" Irwin and the entire organization, top to bottom. I feel like a 21-year wait deserves a big time party, and I know you'll deliver on that.
Up next for the Barons, a date with the Alliston Hornets in the PJHL North Conference Final. Alliston is always a tough opponent, but with a drought snapped, a wildly talented club, that goalie, and that fan base? Bet against the Barons at your peril.
(Ryan Drury is a CKNX Jr. Hockey contributor and commentator, covering the PJHL and GOJHL since 2015)