Montreal Canadiens: Will Bitten is a 2018 OHL Champion
By Omar L
The OHL Playoffs are finally over and Montreal Canadiens prospect Will Bitten along with his Hamilton Bulldogs are the team on top.
Four series’ and 16 wins are all it takes to win a championship. Saying it like that makes the journey sound so easy, but it’s far from being the case. However, despite a few bumps in the road along the way, the Hamilton Bulldogs made it look easy. Now they, and most importantly, Montreal Canadiens prospect Will Bitten are OHL Champions.
Many thought Hamilton would struggle on their way to the finals, especially in the second-round. But they stuck to the game plan and continued to execute. Whenever they did find themselves on the other side of a victory, the team quickly came together and responded well. Their toughest task came in their series against the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (no duh) as they were the clear underdogs.
The Greyhounds had a phenomenal regular season leading the entire league with 116 points. Despite some personnel losses in the post-season, including Habs prospect Hayden Verbeek, they too made their way to the finals.
It was a lot more evenly matched, but Hamilton walked into Game 6 with a 3-2 series lead. They expected the Greyhounds to come out with their best, and there were no disappointments on that front. The Soo took charge scoring the game’s first two goals, but the Bulldogs responded with two of their own in the second.
However, tensions started to rise after Barrett Hayton made it 3-2 heading into the third for the Greyhounds. The most important 20 minutes of the year was ahead of both teams as the game was looking for a hero. Well, they got it.
Hamilton scored eight minutes in to tie the game at 4, but then Robert Thomas scored the go-ahead goal. It was about holding off the Greyhounds at that point who desperately tried to get the equalizer. Eventually, it was too late, and Nicholas Caamano‘s empty-net goal sealed the deal.
The Soo would score a final time before the buzzer, and the writing was already on the wall.
Bitten didn’t produce as much offensively as he did in the regular season, but the 19-year-old scored when it counted. His growth as an all-around player came up in this post-season as Hamilton relied on him more for shutdown purposes with the likes of Thomas and co. on the scene.
The 2016 third-round pick finished with 4 goals and 7 assists in 21 playoff games. He’ll have a chance to improve on that number as he and the Bulldogs have cashed a ticket to the Memorial Cup. That’s a conversation for a later time, for now, a member of the Habs organization is showing some silver, and it has to be a good feeling for everyone.
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