It was a season full of highs and lows for Battalion netminder Dom DiVincentiis.
DiVincentiis was coming into the playoffs on a high, winning OHL goalie of the month accolades in February while reeling off an impressive 7-1 record along with a stingy 2.39 goals against average.
It was a great start to 2024 for the Jets prospect who Team Canada overlooked for the World Junior Hockey Championships in Sweden over the Christmas holidays.
After making 27 saves and being named the third star in the Battalion's 4-2 win over the Kingston Frontenacs in game 1 of the best-of-seven series, Dom looked poised to lead the Troops through the playoffs once again.
However, two days later, a fluke lower body injury abruptly ended his playoff season and potentially his career with the North Bay Battalion as he looks to jump to pro hockey next season.
"It is unfortunate the way it happened," said Dom.
"It was just such an innocent play going into the post in game 2 against Kingston."
Instead of leading his team onto the ice for series wins against Kingston and Sudbury, Dom was forced to become a cheerleader he never got close to getting back into game action as he only started practicing on the ice with the team during the Eastern Conference finals. He watched as the Troops battled back from a 3-0 series deficit only to lose in game 7 to the Generals 6-1 on Monday, May 6.
"Of course, it is super tough to watch but the character and the sacrifice every single person in that dressing room made all playoffs long ultimately got us to where we got to and it shows the special group we had in that dressing room," said Dom.
However, Dom tried to be a leader and mentor for rookie goaltender Mike McIvor who filled in admirably for the 2022-2023 OHL goalie of the year.
"I remember my first experience back against Hamilton and it was super special and it allowed me to learn a lot from those days and bringing it into the following seasons so my only advice to Mikey would be make sure you are ready for when your name is called.
"Enjoy it, have fun because next year is a quick turnaround and he is going to do great."
DiVincentiis would not elaborate on what his future holds with the Winnipeg Jets organization.
However, one thing is sure. He has loved his time with the North Bay Battalion.
"All I can say is my time here has been nothing but fantastic," he said.
"The community, the city, the fans, the organization."
But leaving North Bay was not easy.
"You know the past few days have been an emotional roller coaster and will continue through the next week," he said earlier this month after exit interviews.
"You head home and you don't have your teammates and coaches with you when you wake up that next morning to go to practice so it will sting for a little while but I think this organization is fantastic and they know what they have for next year so it will be a fun one to watch next year and follow."
