![]() ![]() The Spitfires' first playoff game took place on February 23, 1972, in Chatham, Ontario, for a 3–2 win over the Maroons to take a one-game lead in the series. The Maroons, who finished third with 33 wins, 17 losses, and 6 ties, were favoured to win. Finishing sixth place out of eight teams, the Spitfires drew local rival Chatham Maroons in a best-of-seven league quarter-final. The Spitfires finished their first season with a record of 21 wins, 32 losses, and 3 ties. The home game and first victory in team history occurred on October 7, 1971, at the Windsor Arena against the Chatham Maroons, winning 4–2 on the back of future NHL goaltender Eddie Mio who made 49 saves. Fifteen-year-old goaltender Larry Verlinde played the entire first game in team history, making 37 saves in the loss. The Spitfires lost the game 11–3, with Laurie Gregan scoring the first two goals in team history in the first period. The Spitfires first game as a franchise was in Guelph, Ontario against the Guelph CMC's on October 1, 1971. The modern Windsor Spitfires started as a Tier II Junior A team that played in the Southern Ontario Junior A Hockey League from 1971 to 1975. The Bulldogs folded in 1964 after one season in the International Hockey League. Eventually five former Spitfires laced up with the Bulldogs and one, Bobby Brown, won an Allan Cup with the team (1963). The Spitfires folded in 1953 as hockey interests in Windsor chose to focus their attention on the OHA Senior A Hockey League, which resulted in the founding of the Windsor Bulldogs. Prior to 1945, local junior hockey was divided up into the six-team Windsor Junior Hockey League. During this period the Spitfires reached the league finals twice, and featured four future Hockey Hall of Fame players. The name Spitfires was chosen to honour the 417 Combat Support Squadron, a Royal Canadian Air Force squadron nicknamed "City of Windsor" established during World War II in England (today based at CFB Cold Lake in Alberta), and used the Supermarine Spitfire fighter aircraft. The original Spitfires in the Ontario Hockey Association played from 1945 to 1953. ![]() An unrelated Windsor Spitfires team, founded in 1946, moved to become the Hamilton Tiger Cubs in 1953, and later became the Erie Otters in 1996. Founded in 1971, the franchise was promoted to the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League for the 1975–76 season. The team is based in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The Windsor Spitfires are a Canadian junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). John Savage, Stephen Savage, Brian Schwab, Bob Boughner ![]()
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