The Wellington Dukes went dark this weekend.

And it had nothing to do with the lighting system at Lehigh Arena or other opposing Ontario Junior Hockey League venues.

The Dukes managed just four goals through three games this weekend and lost all three contests, putting their record at 18-13-2 and into a tie for third place in the Eastern Conference. Having played as many as five games more than some of the squads hanging around the third to sixth place teams in the loop, Wellington could go tumbling down the Conference standings in the span of a week should the clubs behind them capitalize on their games in hand.

BUZZED AT ST. MIKE’S

On Thursday at St. Mike’s, Wellington would out shoot the host Buzzers but netminder Jacob Gorinsky was virtually unbeatable in the home side’s net.

Haliburton goalie Brett Fullerton scored a goal in the late stages if his club’s 3-1 win Friday. (Jason Parks/Gazette Staff)

Down 2-0 thanks to a pair of St. Mike’s power play goals, Colin Smith finally solved Mr. Gorinsky with under five minutes left in the second to carve Wellington’s deficit in half.

But the Dukes couldn’t locate the game tying goal and Joe Nikac’s fifth of the season with under seven minutes to play proved to be the dagger in the heart of the Dukes.

Brandon Cohen’s second of the game into yawning Wellington cage made the final 4-1.

A GOALIE’S GOAL

A night later in Wellington, the Dukes would give up another empty netter but this gift goal had much more notoriety to it.

After a scoreless first period, the Dukes finally hit pay dirt in the second. Will Whelton’s shot from just inside the blueline skipped past Haliburton goalie Brett Fullerton at 6:12, giving the Dukes a 1-0 lead and sending the stuffed animals onto the ice in Wellington’s teddy bear toss night.

The Dukes tried to make the 1-0 lead stand up but Lucas Stevenson’s goal at the midway point of the third period tied he game up at 1-1. Haliburton’s Antonio Cerqua’s would untie it with his third of the year at the 16:32 mark.

Then, to add insult to injury, Mr. Fullerton would scramble from his crease with 20 seconds left, track down an attempted Dukes dump in and air mail the biscuit down the Lehigh Arena rink and into a vacated Wellington net for the OJHL’s first goalie goal in over a decade.

It was that kind of a weekend for Wellington.

BLITZED BY THE BABY HABS

On Sunday in a four point contest with the Toronto Jr Canadiens, Wellington couldn’t get on track and gave up five of the game’s first six goals through 50 minutes. Dimitri-Alexander Tzaferis had a power play goal for Wellington at the end of the first period and Zander Latreille had the game’s final tally at the 7:40 mark of the third.

Wellington starter Shane Shelest surrendered five goals on 40 shots.

The Dukes have an opportunity to break a three game slide on Friday when they welcome Pickering at 7:30 p.m. On Sunday, the Stoufville Spirit visit Lehigh Arena for a 2:30 p.m. puck drop.