We're a few hours from game time for the Memorial Cup clincher, and you know the folks in Brandon are getting rowdy over at the Westman Place.
The Brandon Wheat Kings' offense matches up well against Windsor, and the top end of their defense is pretty good, too.
Where the real x-factor lies in this game is the goaltending. Philipp Grubauer has been pretty strong thus far in going 3-0, while Jacob De Serres has been the proverbial box of chocolates: (Forrest Gump voice) You never know what you're going to get.
This is probably going to come down to who is better in net. If De Serres can make some early saves and gain some confidence, his team has a chance. If not, it could be boom-boom, out go the lights.
Windsor is as skilled and balanced a team that you'll find. And I think that if they were playing the Wheaties in a series, they'd win it going away. But, this is one game, and Brandon had a great season in the WHL, finishing just second behind Calgary with 50 wins.
Since we're talking 60 minutes, this one could go either way. My prediction before the tourney was Windsor, and I'm not about to flip-flop now. But, Brayden Schenn and Matt Calvert got going in the last game. If they keep the offensive pressure on, and can get some help from Scott Glennie, Toni Rajala, Jay Fehr and even Mark Stone, this one will be good.
Windsor's been off since Tuesday...will they be rusty? Brandon's confidence is flying high after their emotion OT win against their big rival the other night.
It ain't David vs. Goliath, but Windsor is favored. It all comes down to 60 minutes, though, and we've all seen that anything can happen in a hockey game, no matter how the teams look on paper.
Buckle up tight, sportsfans...everything that these kids in Canadian major junior hockey comes down to one game tonight. For all the marbles.
Let the good times roll.
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