St. Catharines holds off Cambridge in regular season finale

Cambridge and St. Catharines faced off in the final game of the ACHL regular season with a playoff berth on the line. The St. Catharines Saints needed a regulation win to secure their spot in the 2026 J. Robertson Cup, while any other result would have sent the Cambridge Hornets to the postseason instead. When the final horn sounded, it was the Saints who delivered, winning their third consecutive game to jump into third place and eliminate the Hornets by a 5-3 score.

Ryan Donovan got the home side on the board first, potting his tenth of the season just 33 seconds into the contest. Cambridge responded quickly, tying the game on a power play goal from Kolton Maguire just over five minutes later, then taking the lead 29 seconds after that on Dan Brewer's seventh of the year. St. Catharines fought back, with Niki Petti scoring at 8:20 and David Pacan adding a marker at 12:57 to give the Saints a 3-2 lead through 20 minutes of play.

The second period proved decisive. Justin Brack notched his 15th goal of the season just 2:53 into the frame — what would prove to be the game winner — to push St. Catharines ahead 4-2. Cody Freeman extended the lead to 5-2 at 9:15, and while Brett Wilson cut the deficit back to two for Cambridge just over two minutes later, the Hornets couldn't find another gear.

Cambridge continued to press in the third period, but neither team would add to their totals, and the Saints held on for the 5-3 victory.

Between the pipes, Trevor Micucci turned aside 27 shots to earn the win and send St. Catharines to the playoffs. It was a tough night for Cambridge netminder Marc Williams, who was peppered with 53 shots and stopped 48 of them in a losing effort.

Cambridge and Dundas finished the regular season tied with 23 points, but the Real McCoys held the tiebreaker to claim fourth place. In the semifinals, St. Catharines will face defending Allan Cup champion Wentworth Gryphins, while Dundas takes on the Stoney Creek Tigers. Both schedules are expected to be released in the coming days, with games set to begin the first weekend of March.

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