The schedules are set for the two conference championship series in the 2026 GOHL Sutherland Cup Playoffs.
Both series get underway Saturday when the St. Catharines Falcons host the Fort Erie Meteors to open their best-of-7 Eastern Conference Final and the St. Marys Lincolns host the Stratford Warriors in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final.
The 2026 bracket — including all game schedule details — can be viewed here.
SERIES ‘M’
Western Conference Championship:
#3 St. Marys Lincolns vs. #4 Stratford Warriors
The Lincolns — 2024 Western Conference champions — are in their fourth consecutive conference final after eliminating the #2 Sugar Kings in six games.
The Warriors — 2023 Midwestern Conference champions — upended the defending Sutherland Cup champion Chatham Maroons in five games to reach their third conference final in the last four years.
This match-up marks just the fifth time in GOHL history that a conference final will feature neither the #1 or #2 seeds. The most recent was the 2017 Western Conference final when the #3 London Nationals defeated the #4 Leamington Flyers 4-1.
The two storied franchises — separated by just 21 kilometres — have never met in post-season.
The winner of the series will receive the Joe Thornton Trophy as Western Conference champions and advance to the Sutherland Cup Final.
Game 1 is 7:30pm Saturday at the Pyramid Rec. Centre in St. Marys.
SERIES ‘N’
Eastern Conference Championship Series:
#1 Cambridge Redhawks vs. #2 St. Catharines Falcons
The Cambridge Redhawks swept Pelham in their semi-final, outscoring the Panthers 27-10. Dating back to the end of the regular season, the Redhawks have won 18 straight.
This is just the second appearance in a conference final for the Redhawks — who were Midwestern Conference champions in 2022.
The Falcons reached their 14th conference final in the last 17 years after eliminating Fort Erie in a grueling 7-game semi-final in which five games — including game 7 — were decided in overtime.
The only previous GOHL post-season meeting between the two clubs was in the 2022 Sutherland Cup round-robin. The teams split the two games, with each team winning the away game. The Redhawks were eliminated, while the Falcons went on to claim their second Sutherland Cup title.
The winner of the series will receive the Tyson Downs Memorial Trophy as Eastern Conference champions and advance to the Sutherland Cup Final.
Game 1 is Saturday, 7:00pm at the Galt Arena Gardens in Cambridge.
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