99TH MEMORIAL CUP EXCITEDLY LIVES UP TO ADVANCE BILLING
Good things do come to those who wait.
Until Sunday, the 2017 Memorial Cup had been devoid of suspense and there had been little in the way of competitive hockey.
To the delight of those who have been following the 99th Cup closely, that changed in a big way in the final.
An all-Ontario Hockey League championship game had been the wish of many (at least, those not involved with the Saint John Sea Dogs and Seattle Thunderbirds), given the anticipation of what the OHL champion Erie Otters and Windsor Spitfires could deliver. Consider it done. The host Spitfires, ousted in the first round of the OHL playoffs by the London Knights, completed a perfect tournament with a 4-3 victory on Sunday night. Windsor went 4-0 after having the benefit of six weeks to rest and recover.
The game was enthralling from start to finish, with great chances and saves at both ends. The building, which had not been raucous even during earlier Spits games in the tournament, was more than that. Fans, all 6,519 of them, got their money’s worth (which was a lot) and responded in kind. Good timing on the first sellout of the year at the WFCU Centre.
The winning goal came at 5:07 of the third period when Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Jeremy Bracco, who was sharp all night, set up Aaron Luchuk, who then waited a split second before beating goaltender Troy Timpano.
POINT SHOTS
That’s three Cups in nine years for the Spits, who won in 2010 and 2009. For the organization as a whole, that’s dynasty-esque. But the other side: Doesn’t seem quite right that a team that did not win a playoff series won the Cup, does it? … Before the first goal of the game, by Bracco at 16:07 of the first, Spitfires defenceman Mikhail Sergachev hit the post and Timpano made a point-blank save on Graham Knott … There was controversy with the goal by Erie overager Warren Foegele that gave the Otters a 2-1 lead at 5:35 of the second. Foegele clearly redirected a Dylan Strome pass behind Windsor goaltender Michael DiPietro his left skate, but after a review, the goal stood. Perhaps kicking motions aren’t as cut and dried as we might think … Strome came to play in his last junior game, adding a goal and hustling to make some smart defensive plays. Based on what we’ve seen here, only an injury suffered in training camp likely would keep Strome out of the Arizona Coyotes’ lineup on opening night next season … Also among the solid impressions this week: Bracco, Taylor Raddysh and DiPietro (ranked fourth among goalies in North America for the NHL draft, but he undoubtedly increased his stock) … Figure that one of the Dallas Stars (picking third), the Colorado Avalanche (fourth) or Vancouver Canucks (fifth) is going to get an excellent prospect in Spits forward Gabe Vilardi. Once Nolan Patrick and Nico Hischier are off the board, Vilardi has further proven in this tournament he should be a top-five pick. The 6-foot-2, 193-pound Kingston native has noticeable throughout, whether it was with his determination or skill.
FROM THE HASH MARKS
Note to the Leafs: Bracco will carry a winning attitude into camp in the fall. “He is a champion,” Spitfires coach Rocky Thompson said of Bracco winning gold with the United States at the world junior this past winter. “He has been in those tough situations. He had that shootout where Team USA was down, I believe it was against the Russians, and if he does not score, they don’t move on. There is no greater pressure than having all those cameras and all that on top of you watching, and he has succeeded and helped his team win and they went on to defeat Canada. That was a big reason why we sought him out, because he is a winner and he handles those situations extremely well.” … Strome had been trading texts with pal Connor McDavid a little more often this past week. “He has been messaging me after the wins and he understands we have some business to take care of here,” Strome said earlier on Sunday. “We don’t bother each other too much during the season.It’s nice to get them from anyone .... It’s nice to see how many people care.”… The 100th Memorial Cup will be held in Regina from May 18-27, 2018. Let’s hope organizers there have taken serious note of the rows of empty seats that were part of this Cup for every game prior to the final. Tickets started at $128 for the championship game and were in the $75-$90 range earlier in the week. All of those prices were too high to ask anyone to watch any junior game. And don’t tick off the locals by charging for parking if you don’t charge already … Among those in the game who will be moving to the professional ranks next season are the Otters’ Strome, Alex DeBrincat, Anthony Cirelli and the Spitfires’ Bracco, Knott and Julius Nattinen. Saint John forward Julien Gauthier, a Carolina Hurricanes prospect who also will make the jump next season, took to Twitter on Sunday to send his best: “Past 4 years went way to fast, I met incredible people. Thanks to hockey Canada and the CHL for awesome memories. Junior career is over.”