The Windsor Spitfires are current OHL champions, defending Memorial Cup champions, and have beaten the WHL Calgary Hitmen by another lopsided score, 6-2. This follows their 9-3 win over Brandon's Wheat Kings. Could be the Spitfires are on their way to a repeat Memorial Cup.
That name, Spitfires, made me wonder. What is a Spitfire?
The main reference is to Britain's most advanced fighter airplane of World War II. The "Submarine Spitfire" in its various incarnations, was reputed to have reached a top speed of 690 mph (Mach 0.96) and was the last piston engine fighter made in Britain. RCAF pilots were part of the aerial resistance to Germany's air attacks in 1940, which initiated the Battle of Britain.
A Spitfire was the toughest, fastest thing in the sky over Britain, and was responsible in large part for preventing a German invasion in the early years of the war. The resistance mounted by the RAF was the first defeat suffered by the Luftwaffe, until America entered the war in 1941. The pride associated with the word Spitfire, in the British Commonwealth, is considerable.
Windsor is the only Canadian city located south of its across-the-border American counterpart. It lies on a peninsula bounded by Lake Erie to the south, Lake St. Clair to the north, and the Detroit River to the west. Across the river is Hockeytown, also known as Motor City. So there is considerable hockey pride in these Michigan/Ontario border towns.
The Memorial Cup had its origins in 1919, donated to the Ontario Hockey Association in honor of the valiant efforts of Canadian soldiers who gave up their lives in World War I, on the side of the Allied Powers. This is the 92nd annual tournament, since the Cup was created.
Detroit may be out of the NHL championships, but Hockeytown can still enjoy the Spitfires south of the border.
Hockey Rules.
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