Gameday Preview: Greyhounds can eliminate Spitfires from playoff contention

The Soo Greyhounds open up their final road trip of the season on Thursday night when they travel to Windsor to take on the Spitfires.

The Spitfires remain in the playoff race in the Ontario Hockey League’s Western Conference though they are nearing the elimination point. The Spitfires trail the Saginaw Spirit by eight points heading into the final two weeks of the season. A Spitfires loss on Thursday night would eliminate the Spitfires from playoff contention.

For the Greyhounds, the team will get a boost thanks to the return of leading scorer Nick Cousins. Cousins returns to the lineup after serving a four-game suspension following a check from behind on Tommy Hughes of the London Knights on the Greyhounds last road trip. Cousins missed the Greyhounds three home games last week.

Cousins enters the game four points behind Sarnia Sting forward Charlie Sarault in the OHL scoring race. With Cousins out of action, Sarault and Plymouth’s Vincent Trocheck moved ahead of Cousins. Sarault has 22 goals and 102 points while Trocheck had 47 goals and 100 points. Since being dealt to Plymouth prior to the OHL trade deadline, Trocheck has posted an average of two-points-per-game (23 goals and 50 points in 24 games). Cousins has 26 goals and 98 points.

Thursday marks the sixth, and final, regular season meeting between the two clubs. The Spitfires have had the Greyhounds number this season, winning four of the five previous meetings, though the last meeting saw the Spitfires win in a shootout on Jan. 25.

The road trip continues on Friday night in Guelph before wrapping up on Sunday afternoon in Kitchener.

Three other games are on the OHL schedule, including:

• Niagara vs. Mississauga (7 p.m.)
• Peterborough vs. Kingston (7:05 p.m.)
• Barrie vs. Sudbury (7:30 p.m.)

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