As part of my role as team statistician for the Sudbury Wolves, my job description includes the preparation of weekly media notes, featuring various tidbits of information regarding upcoming games.

While these notes have generally been confined to circulating among media types and club officials, it seemed likely that fans of the local OHL team might also have an interest in the odds and ends that I might come across on a weekly basis.

Technically speaking, the Sudbury Wolves can still finish anywhere from first to sixth in the Eastern Conference – which is actually pretty incredible considering that we are entering the final weekend of 2023-2024 OHL regular season play. Realistically, with three games remaining, Sudbury is likely battling more for home ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs as they kick off a critical stretch at home Friday versus the Barrie Colts.

While a stretch of 3-6-1-0 hockey in their past ten games is nothing to write home about with the Wolves season winding down, there are numbers that work in their favour this weekend – not the least of which is a 5-1-0-1 record to date this year against the visiting Colts on Friday.

The Wolves have averaged more than 5.5 goals per game against their divisional rivals with all of their big guns lighting it up with regularity in this season series this year. After picking up just one win in eight tries opposite the Colts last year, the local juniors would dearly love to return the \ favour with a lopsided stat-line this time around.

Despite the gaudy numbers in their matchups with Barrie, the Sudbury Wolves enjoy an even more impressive record versus the Niagara Ice Dogs this year. In fact, when they travel to St Catharines on Saturday, the Pack will be looking to complete a six-game season sweep of the Dogs for the first time since 2001-2002.

Ironically, though it’s been 20 years since they last accomplished the feat, the Wolves actually went 6-0 against what was originally the Mississauga Ice Dogs franchise in three of their first four years in the league. With the fate of this season series already settled, the northern squad will have lost the annual aggregate clash only once in the last six years.

Sure, there is no guarantee that the Sudbury Wolves and Oshawa Generals will meet in the second round of the playoffs – coach Ken MacKenzie and company will be laser-focused on simply earning a first round series win at this point – but if the teams do meet, it would be nice for Sudbury to have not lost three straight versus the Generals.

The Wolves have dropped two drastically different games in the past two weeks against Oshawa, tied 2-2 after two periods at home a few weeks back before losing 6-2 but then falling behind 4-0 on the road last weekend en route to an 8-5 setback.

One of a handful of franchises that the Wolves have faced more than 200 times – Sunday’s encounter will mark the 223rd battle between these teams dating back to a 4-2 Oshawa win at home on October 9th, 1972 – the Wolves head off in search of a third victory in their last four visits to the Tribute Communities Centre, but this after snapping a nine game losing skid on the road versus the Gennies in December of 2022.