T-Birds to play on for a while
Regardless of whether they win the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League playoff championship, Soo Thunderbirds will still be playing once their best-of-seven series with the Kirkland Lake Gold Miners is over.
To be sure, both the Soo and Kirkland Lake will play on into May.
Kirkland Lake already has entry into the four-team, three-league, Dudley-Hewitt Cup Central Canada Championships as host entry. And since the NOJHL is hosting the DHC this year, it is allowed two teams into the Central Canada playdowns.
Ergo, both the Thunderbirds and Kirkland Lake will represent the NOJHL at the DHC along with the champions of the Ontario Jr. Hockey League and Superior International Jr. Hockey League.
After winning the NOJHL title last spring, the Thunderbirds also went on to win the DHC championship.
So, here we go again for the defending champion Thunderbirds.
With a record of 8-1, the Thunderbirds breezed through two rounds of the West Division playoffs, eliminating the Michigan Soo Eagles and Elliot Lake Wildcats.
It will of course remain to be seen if the Thunderbirds have be enough to defeat a Kirkland Lake team that took the measure of two very-good squads in the East Division playoffs — the Powassan Voodoos and Cochrane Crunch.
The T-Birds/Gold Miners series begins this week with games at the Essar Centre in Sault Ste. Marie on Friday and Saturday nights.
The Soo wins in a 7 Game Series!
Soo in 6
Soo in 5, too deep, skilled and fast.
Going against the grain. Kirkland Lake in 6.
Soo is very strong but K L has good Coaching what many says was the difference in the Crunch & Powa series . K L Might give them a ride for their money. Whatever happens the league will have their two best teams by far they are in a class by themselves representing them at the Dudley. Both teams have Major Junior caliber Coaches which I think is required to win it all.
Birds are just too strong i say the Birds take it in 5.
Birds in 5 or 6, teams that come to the Soo can not figure out the big ice.
Birds in 5. Kirkland relies on their top line way too much and they will be burnt out. Thunderbirds are 4 lines deep.
The way I see it if anyone was to beat the Soo it would be the Miners. This will
be the best finals that the league could of ask for not forgetting that the last
time they met in the finals (2 years ago) the miners came out winners.