With 30 seconds remaining, Burlington Blaze assistant coach Kevin Brownell grabbed head coach Dan MacRae and said, “We did it.”
MacRae wanted nothing to do with celebrating. “Crazy things can happen,” he said.
Half a minute later when the final buzzer sounded, MacRae could finally relax. Burlington held off the Orangeville Northmen for a 9-6 win Saturday that clinched the team’s first Ontario Jr. A championship in its 48-year history. It also earned the Blaze a place in next week’s Minto Cup national championship tournament in Edmonton.
For captain Andrew Vradenburg, who grew up watching the team while playing minor lacrosse in Burlington, the win took on extra meaning.
“It felt amazing,” the 21-year-old defender said. “Especially to do it in own arena. We have the best fans in Ontario, and they’ve supported the team for years. Coming on to the floor, all the young kids are high fiving the guys. That let me know what it meant to them because I’ve been on the other side.”
Orangeville came into the best-of-seven Ontario Junior Lacrosse League final having won all 27 games it played this season, making them the overwhelming favourite. But crazy things can happen.
“There was no pressure on us,” Blaze general manager Sean Gillies said. “We’d overcome some bumps along the way. They hadn’t had to do that.”
Hindered by injuries and players away at school, the Blaze went 6-4 to start the season, including two losses to Orangeville. As their lineup came together, Burlington rose in the standings.
Gillies did not want to end another season talking about how close the team was to winning it all, though. At the trade deadline, he made a blockbuster, acquiring goalie Deacon Knott, forward Zach Thompson and Ben Trumble, the league’s transition player of the year.
The Blaze finished in second place with a 14-6 record before sweeping St. Catharines in the opening round of the playoffs. After dropping the first game of the semifinal to Mimico, Burlington evened the series with a key overtime victory. The Blaze then won the next three to advance to the final for the first time since 2019, when the Northmen denied them their first title.
Despite their acquisitions, the Blaze remained a local team at its core. With the Blaze clinging to a 9-8 third-period lead in the opener against Orangeville, goals 51 seconds apart by Burlington minor lacrosse grads Ty English and Chuck Rawson sealed a 12-10 win, proving Orangeville was not unbeatable.
“They’re an amazing team, but we were confident,” Vradenburg said. “It definitely helped motivate us a lot and maybe struck a little fear in them.”
Orangeville won the next two games, 10-6 and 12-11, but Burlington refused to give in.
Tied 5-5 with eight minutes to play in Game 4, it was again two Burlington natives coming through as Braeden Saris and Alex Marinier scored 37 seconds apart. Marinier, who finished third in the league with 49 goals, added another as the Blaze won 8-7.
In Game 5, Thompson broke an 8-8 tie with 2:45 remaining in a 10-8 win.
“We played a lot of tight games. We’d been playing playoff lacrosse for months,” MacRae said. “Our guys, there was no panic. It was a proud moment to see how poised they were. We just grinded (Orangeville) down in the last 10 minutes.”
Saturday, Knott made 63 saves to outduel Northmen netminder and league MVP Chris Origlieri. Meanwhile, Saris had two goals and four assists to cap a playoff run that saw him tally 39 goals and 80 points in 14 games and earn playoff MVP honours.
Burlington will open the national championship Sunday against the Edmonton Miners.
“It’s great to get there, but the job isn’t done yet,” Gillies said.
