Barrie Colts’ Anthony Camara ejected for charging for second time in OHL final vs. London Knights

Anthony Camara might tempted fate once too often, which could mean the Barrie Colts lost lost more than their first chance to oust the London Knights on Friday.

The rough-hewn future Boston Bruin has already been suspended once for a over-the-line play during Barrie's playoff run; Camara also eluded suspension after a charging major/game misconduct earlier in the OHL final. During the third period of the Knights' Game 5 win in the OHL final, Colts left wing Anthony Camara, the collaborator on many Mark Scheifiele-authored bits of brilliance during the playoffs, received his second charging major/game misconduct of the series. After coming out of the penalty box, Camara flattered an apparently unsuspecting Seth Griffith, a fellow Boston Bruins prospect.

Sportsnet's John Shannon reported on-air that the OHL will rule Saturday morning on Camara's status for Game 6 back in Barrie. It doesn't seem that bad when taken on its own, especially since Griffith's head does not appear to be targeted. Granted, saying that might be muddying the waters. The possible impact on Griffith, the Knights' best 19-year-old scorer, and the depth of Camara's file at the OHL office will be viewed as factors.

From Ryan Pyette:

“He [Camara] hits like that always when we’re up three goals,” Hunter said. “It’s a cheap shot. He wasn’t even looking for it and he hit him. He knew what he was doing. He went after Max (Domi in London’s Game 2 win) and now, he went after Seth to try to hurt him and put him out of the series.”

Camara wasn’t suspended for the Domi hit.

Barrie coach Dale Hawerchuk doesn’t think his top-line forward should be disciplined for this one, either.

“He wasn’t trying to hit [Griffith] at all,” Hawerchuk said. “He was going for the puck [straight from getting out of the penalty box]. He tried to get out of the way actually and go around him. Griffith turned right into him. I think he got tossed pretty quick. I was surprised. Obviously, Griffith didn’t see him and there was a head-on collision.” (London Free Press)

Oddly enough, Camara has got a major/game misconduct in Game 5 of each of the Colts' past two series. In each case, it was around the same point of the game, just outside the five-minute mark of the third period. Each was also on national TV, with the Colts due to host Game 6 the following evening.

Colts running short

This latest instance, in the words of Sportsnet analyst Sam Cosentino, could be "a series-changing play" if the OHL shelves Camara. His fellow wing on Scheifele's line, Zach Hall, also appears to be playing hurt; the 20-year-old right wing only played on the power play in the third period on Friday when the Colts were facing a multi-goal deficit. On the blueline, the Colts have also lost young defenceman Michael Webster for the rest of the series.

Meantime, London, with new starting goalie Jake Patterson replacing Anthony Stolarz, played its most self-possessed game of the series, with Bo Horvat scoring a pair of goals.

Getting back to Camara, getting ejected for the same infraction twice in six days might not go over well, but that's not the basis for the decision. For a refresher, here is the collision between Camara and the Knights' Max Domi last Sunday.

Neate Sager is a writer for Yahoo! Canada Sports. Follow him on Twitter @neatebuzzthenet. Please address any questions, comments or concerns to btnblog@yahoo.ca (videos: Rogers Television, Sportsnet One).