SUDBURY, Ont. – Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League (NOJHL) semifinal action between the Hearst Lumberjacks and the Timmins Rock gets underway Friday evening at Claude Larose Recreation Centre with a 7:30 p.m. start in Game 1.
Here’s a preview of the best-of-seven affair:
HEAD COACHES
LUMBERJACKS: Marc-Alain Bégin
ROCK: Brandon Perry
SERIES SCHEDULE
NOJHL semifinal
No. 2 Hearst Lumberjacks vs. 4 Timmins Rock
Best-of-seven series
Game 1: Friday, April 4 @ Hearst 7:30 p.m. (Claude Larose Recreation Centre)
Game 2: Saturday, April 5 @ Hearst 7:30 p.m. (Claude Larose Recreation Centre)
Game 3: Monday, April 7 @ Timmins 7 p.m. (McIntyre Arena)
Game 4: Tuesday, April 8 @ Timmins 7 p.m. (McIntyre Arena)
Game 5*: Friday, April 11 @ Hearst 7 p.m. (Claude Larose Recreation Centre)
Game 6*: Monday, April 14 @ Timmins 7 p.m. (McIntyre Arena)
Game 7*: Tuesday, April 15 @ Hearst 7 p.m. (Claude Larose Recreation Centre)
*-if necessary
PLAYOFF RECORD
LUMBERJACKS: 4-0
ROCK: 4-2
REGULAR SEASON RECORD
LUMBERJACKS: 39-11-1-1 (2nd overall)
ROCK: 33-16-2-1 (4th overall)
HOW THEY ARRIVED
LUMBERJACKS: Hearst punched their ticket to the semifinals after sweeping the Powassan Voodoos in their opening round match-up.
They won by scores of 7-4; 7-3; 7-3, before closing it out with a 4-3 victory on the road, in overtime.
ROCK: Timmins had a tougher test against the Soo Eagles prior to eventually prevailing in six games.
Their triumphs were 4-1; 4-0 and 5-2 at home as well as a 3-2 win on the road. They also dropped a pair of contests at Pullar Stadium, falling in a pair of 5-3 results.
LAST TIME: The most recent postseason match-up between the Lumberjacks and Rock was back in April of 2022 when they met for the East Division title.
That tightly-contested affair eventually saw Hearst prevail in a thrilling seven-game series that went the distance.
Three of those games were decided by just one goal, including two in overtime.
Current Lumberjacks forwards Mathieu Comeau and Tyler Patterson both played in that series, highlighted by Patterson’s three tallies.
HEAD-TO-HEAD: Hard-fought through six get togethers, it was Hearst that took the season set by a narrow 3-2-1 margin.
Four of the six games were decided by just one goal, while another finished in an overtime draw.
The Lumberjacks were 2-1 on home ice and the Rock went 1-1-1.
In all, Hearst outscored Timmins by a margin of 23-20.
RESULTS
Nov. 22: @ Timmins (3-2 Rock)
Dec. 6: @ Hearst (8-5 Lumberjacks)
Dec. 20: @ Timmins (3-2 Lumberjacks)
Feb. 1: @ Hearst (3-2 Rock)
Feb. 17: @ Timmins (3-3 OT Tie)
March 14: @ Hearst (5-4 Lumberjacks)
LUMBERJACKS: Despite only playing the four quarter-finals contests with Powassan, Hearst tops each of the remaining squads in goals-scored, with 25. … A total of 15 different skaters had at least one point in the triumph over the Voodoos. … Nine players notched two, or more, goals versus Powassan … They’ve given up the second fewest at 12. … They are first overall in power play efficiency, clicking at a more than impressive rate of 66.7%. … The Lumberjacks scored six times on nine man-advantage opportunities. … They were sixth however on the penalty kill in the first round at just 60%. … They allowed four power play goals-against in 10 man-down moments.
FORWARDS: Leading the team offensively so far in the playoffs is DonHeaven Veilleux. … He had a team-best 10 points on four goals and six assists. … Veilleux etched his name on the game-sheet in each game of the Voodoos series, including three multi-point performances. … His overall totals tie him for second in NOJHL playoff scoring. … Up next on the squad, in terms of offensive production among forwards, is veteran Tyler Patterson. … He has tallied four times and aided on two more. … Following him is the trio of Bronson Babyak; Aiden Kalin and Henry Ouellet, who have five points (2G-3A) apiece. … Both of Ty McKay’s playoff goals have been game-winners. … Patterson and Veilleux share the team lead in power play points (3). … Patterson has scored in each of his past four playoff games. … He also shares the franchise record for most points in a single playoff game with four, which was set back in 2022 against Powassan. … Dating back to last season, Veilleux has points in five straight postseason contests, including four multi-point performances, totaling 12 of his 13 points overall in that span.
DEFENCE: Leading the Lumberjacks defensive corps has been team captain Adam Shillinglaw. … The NOJHL’s top defenceman award winner and 1st Team All-Star, has eight points to his credit on a pair of markers and a half dozen assists. … Shillinglaw’s numbers presently pace all league defencemen. … He’s also knotted for fourth overall among all skaters. … Hearst also got solid production at both ends of the ice from the trio of William Pâquet; Brayden Hindman and Jean-Pierre Audras. … They each had three points against the Voodoos.
GOALTENDERS: Having yet to suffer in defeat early in his playoff tenure, Lumberjacks’ rookie netminder Alexandre Boivin is a perfect 4-0 entering the series with the Rock. … Boivin sits with a 2.93 goals-against average and a save percentage of .909. … That places him fourth and eighth respectively in each category. … He’s fifth in minutes played at 245. … Owen Bonthuis, the club’s other goalkeeper, has yet to see any playing time in the postseason.
ROCK: Through the six match-ups against the Eagles, Timmins scored 22 times and allowed 15. … They are third-best in goals-scored and have given up the third-fewest. … The Rock had 18 different players collect at least one point in the series win against the Eagles. … They had 10 skaters score a goal with six having multiple tallies. … Timmins sports the fourth-best power play rating so far in the postseason at 26.9%. … They led the league in man advantage markers in the opening round with seven, in a NOJHL-high 26 opportunities. … The squad sits third on the P.K. at 78.9%. … They allowed four against on the 19 times they have been short.
FORWARDS: The Timmins forward duo of Jack Kelly and Reece Liu are tied for sixth in league playoff scoring. … They have seven points each with Kelly collecting four goals and adding three assists. … Liu has scored twice and set-up five more. … Liu leads all rookie forwards in scoring with his point totals. … Next up front are the duo of Lucas Lowe and Brant Romaniuk. … They have four tallies and two helpers each. … Romaniuk’s two game-winning goals lead the team and ties him for the most in the NOJHL in the 2025 postseason. … Kelly and Lowe have six-game point streaks on the go to start the playoffs and entering the series with Hearst.
DEFENCE: Leading all Rock defencemen in scoring is Braedyn Cyr. … The second-team NOJHL all-star has seven points to his credit, all assists. … Cyr’s numbers place him in a tie for second overall in offensive production among blueliners. … He also shares sixth with all league skaters. … A three-pack of Rock rearguards are next on the squad in D-man numbers. … They are captain Tenzin Nyman; Elijah Pool and Matthew Kim, who have a pair of points apiece.
GOALTENDERS: Dryden Riley played every minute in net for Timmins in their series win over the Soo Eagles. … He has seen the second-highest playing time total in these playoffs at 357 minutes. … Riley currently leads the NOJHL in save percentage at .944, while making the most stops at 248. … His 2.36 goals-against average is second-best overall. … He’s tied for first in shutouts with one. … Rookie Rock netminder Graham Gee has yet to see any playoff action.
NOJHL AWARD WINNERS
LUMBERJACKS
Best Defenceman: Adam Shillinglaw
Top Defensive Forward: Bronson Babyak
Best Overall Team Player: Mathieu Comeau
1st All-Star Team – Defence: Adam Shillinglaw
2nd All-Star Team – Forward: Tyler Patterson
2nd All-Star Team – Forward: Mathieu Comeau
2nd All-Star Team – Coach: Marc-Alain Bégin
3rd All-Star Team – Goaltender: Alexandre Boivin
3rd All-Star Team – Forward: Aiden Kalin
1st All-Rookie Team – Goaltender: Alexandre Boivin
ROCK
Best goals-against average: Dryden Riley
2nd All-Star Team – Goaltender: Dryden Riley
2nd All-Star Team – Defence: Braedyn Cyr
2nd All-Rookie Team – Forward: Reece Liu
2nd All-Star Team – Trainer/Equipment Manager: Richard Plourde
UP NEXT: Awaiting the winner of this series will be a berth in NOJHL Final for the Copeland Cup – McNamara Trophy, which is slated to run between April 17-29.
There they’ll take on either the Greater Sudbury Cubs or Soo Thunderbirds.
The league champion will then advance to represent the NOJHL at the Centennial Cup, presented by Tim Hortons, May 8-18 at the Max Bell Centre in Calgary, Alta.
BROADCASTERS
LUMBERJACKS: Denis J. Puska & Martin Grenier
ROCK: Andrew Autio & Jason Kelly
WHERE TO WATCH: All NOJHL playoff games can be streamed online via FLOHockey.tv.
PHOTO CREDIT: Thomas Perry / Timmins Daily Press
