Uxbridge Bruins’ playoff run ends in Game 6 thriller before packed Bear Den

DARRYL KNIGHT, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter for The Standard

A season defined by resilience and a raucous home crowd came to a close, in dramatic fashion, for the Uxbridge Bruins, on Tuesday, April 14th.

Backed by more than 800 fans, at the Bear Den, the Bruins battled until the final horn, but fell, 4–3, to the Frankford Huskies, in Game 6 of the Provincial Junior Hockey League Eastern Conference championship series, ending their playoff run one step short of the finals.

The atmosphere was electric from puck drop, with the hometown crowd still buzzing, after Uxbridge forced Game 6, with a statement 3–1 win, over the Frankford Huskies just two nights earlier.

“We fed off that energy all night,” said Bruins head coach Dan West. “Our group never quit on a shift, never quit on each other. That’s been our identity all season, and it showed again tonight.”

The Frankford Huskies opened the scoring, late in the first period, on a goal by Avery Wease. Then, Uxbridge responded, in the second, when Bensen Moore evened things up with a slick finish, off a feed from Jack Kemp. The Huskies regained the lead before the intermission, on a short-handed marker from Keegan Juchau, setting the stage for a tense third period.

The Bruins refused to go quietly. Cameron Meek pulled Uxbridge even, early in the third, igniting the crowd and shifting momentum squarely in the home side’s favour. However, the Huskies answered quickly, restoring their lead, on a power-play goal from Nolan Donnelly, before Juchau struck again, midway through the frame, to make it 4–2.

Uxbridge pushed hard in the dying minutes, and forward Ryan Shier brought the Bear Den to its feet with a late goal, with just over a minute remaining in the third period, to cut the deficit to one. Despite a frantic final push, the Bruins couldn’t find the equalizer.

“We believed right to the end,” said Shier. “That last goal gave us a spark, and, for a moment, you could feel like we battled, especially in front of our fans.”

Defenceman, Jordan Bonner echoed that sentiment, pointing to the team’s growth over the course of the season.

“This group came a long way,” said Mr. Bonner. “We faced adversity all year and kept finding ways to respond. It hurts right now, but there’s a lot to build on.”

Coach West credited both his players and the community for a memorable playoff run.

“That crowd tonight was unbelievable,” he said. “You don’t get that everywhere, in junior hockey. Our players gave them everything they had, and I think everyone in that building felt how special this group is.”

With the win, the Frankford Huskies advance to the provincial semifinals and will face the Northern champion, the Fergus Devils, in the next round. In the other semifinal, the Western Conference’s Lakeshore Canadiens hold a 1–0 series lead over the Southern Conference champion, Tavistock Braves, as the race for the Clarence Schmalz Cup continues.

For the Bruins, the loss marks the end of a season which saw the team emerge as a contender and re-energize its fan base; something West believes will carry forward.

“This isn’t the end of something, it’s the start of something,” he said. “We’ve set a standard now.”