The Windsor Spitfires go for the kill tonight in the Ontario Hockey League Championship Final.
The defending Ontario League & Memorial Cup Champion Spitfires lead the Barrie Colts 3 games to none in the Robertson Cup Final going to Game 4 tonight at Windsor.
Barrie hit the series as the # 1 ranked team in the Canadian Hockey League,… so what happened to the Colts ?
Nothing much really; the Colts have a tremendous lineup, but there are a number of factors that added up in Windsor’s favour.
First, Windsor plays in the West and the OHL Champion for 7 of the last 8 years has come from the West and it looks as if the Spitfires will make it 8 for 9 for the West tonight, or shortly.
Second, the road to the final made Windsor far more battle ready than Barrie.
Windsor traveled long distance to beat Erie, knocked of an experienced Plymouth team and then narrowly survived against Kitchener.
Barrie, by comparison, breezed by Sudbury, Brampton and St Mike’s, losing just once on the road to the Final.
Furthermore, on the road, Barrie faced little in the form of a hostile environment, as the Sudbury Arena was barren, and the GTA venues had more Colts fans than either Brampton & St Mike’s could muster for their clubs.
There are other factors too; the Spitfires penalty kill, overall goaltending and never discount the value of having 11 Memorial Cup rings in your lineup.
It might not end tonight, but soon, Windsor will once again represent the OHL at the Memorial Cup.
I’m Fred Wallace