Gryphins Stay Alive In Defence Of Allan Cup Title

If the Wentworth Gryphins are going to repeat as Allan Cup Champions, they will have to do it the hard way — fighting through every round of the tournament playoffs. On Wednesday afternoon, they took the first step toward the finals by defeating the Minto 81's by a score of 5-1.

Early in the contest, Minto controlled the play and were outshooting the Gryphins 10-4, but Wentworth drew first blood at the 7:25 mark when Matt Hore picked up a rebound and lifted it over Jonathan Reinhart's shoulder and into the top of the net. As play continued, both teams grew increasingly physical with their Allan Cup hopes on the line. The Gryphins extended their lead to two just six and a half minutes later when Alex Hutchings undressed the netminder and lifted the puck just under the crossbar. Wentworth wasn't done there, as Brett Flemming picked up the puck at the blue line, skated in, and unleashed a slap shot from the faceoff dot that went through the five-hole to give the Gryphins a commanding three-goal lead after the opening frame.

The second period saw both teams generate quality chances, but it was the 81's who broke through for the only goal of the frame. Chayse Herrfort danced through the Gryphins' defense and put a backhand past Joe Murdaca on the power play at 12:36. With no further scoring in the period, the teams headed to the intermission with Wentworth leading 3-1.

The Gryphins put the game away late in the third when Elijah Roberts picked up a loose puck and found a hole on the low blocker side with 4:01 remaining. After several failed attempts on the empty net, Mark Corbett finally cashed in with a long-range shot to close out the scoring and seal the victory.

Murdaca earned the win in the Wentworth crease, turning aside 36 of 37 shots faced. Reinhart made 31 saves on 36 shots in a tough outing for Minto.

With the win, the Gryphins advance to face the Conception Bay Blues in the quarterfinals on Thursday night at 7:30 PM local time (6:00 PM Eastern).

All games can be streamed through AO Live.

Fans can stay up-to-date with all the scores, stats and news on the 2026 Allan Cup website.

Scoring
1^st Period
Gryphins – Matt Hore (1), Cameron White, Brett Flemming | 7:23
Gryphins – Alex Hutchings (1), Elijah Roberts | 13:56
Gryphins – Brett Flemming (1), Tyler Hore | 17:55

2^nd Period
81s – Chayse Herrfort (1), Keaton Willis, Adam Logozzo | 12:34 PPG

3^rd Period
Gryphins – Elijah Roberts (1), Alex Hutchings, Ryan Foss | 15:59
Gryphins – Mark Corbett (1), Alex Hutchings | 19:36 ENG

Upcoming Schedule
Playoffs (Eastern Time)
Wednesday, April 22
GM 7 – Stoney Creek vs Clarenville – 6:00pm

Thursday, April 23
GM 8 – Wentworth vs Conception Bay – 6:00pm

Friday, April 24
GM 9 – Winner GM 8 vs Loser Gm 7 – 6:00pm

Saturday, April 25
GM 10 – Winner GM9 vs Winner GM 7 – 3:00pm

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For more information contact Allan Cup Hockey Commissioner Rick Richardson at 905-328-4727 or email: rickystar911@outlook.com