MEMORIAL CUP GAME DAY

GAME DAY
What: 2010 MasterCard Memorial Cup: Round-Robin
Who: Moncton Wildcats at Windsor Spitfires
When: 9:00 pm
Where: Keystone Centre, Brandon, Manitoba

MONCTON WILDCATS
Regular season record: 48-14-2-4 (102 points)
League regular season ranking: Third overall, second in Atlantic Division
Combined regular season and playoff road record: 30-10-2-2
Regular season goal differential: 276-164
Playoff goal differential: 95-48
Playoff record: 16-5
Memorial Cup appearances: One (2006)
Memorial Cup championships: None
League championships: Two (2006 and 2010)
Preview: Rogers Sportsnet

WINDSOR SPITFIRES
Regular season record: 50-12-1-5 (106 points)
League regular season ranking: Second overall, first in Western Conference
Combined regular season and playoff road record: 29-10-1-3
Regular season goal differential: 331-203
Playoff goal differential: 90-54
Playoff record: 16-3
Memorial Cup appearances: Two (1988 and 2009)
Memorial Cup championships: One (2009)
League championships: Two (2009 and 2010)
Preview: Rogers Sportsnet

The QMJHL Champion Moncton Wildcats will try to avoid elimination tonight against the undefeated Windsor Spitfires. The Wildcats lost a heartbreaker 5-4 to the Calgary Hitmen on Saturday before being clobbered 4-0 by the Brandon Wheat Kings on Sunday afternoon.

WILL HE PLAY OR WILL HE STAY
The biggest question mark today at the Memorial Cup surrounds Moncton Wildcats sniper Nicolas Deschamps – will he play or will he stay on the sidelines. With his team facing elimination, there has been speculation over the past 24 hours that the Anaheim Ducks prospect could suit up tonight.

Deschamps, who tied Sean Couturier for the league lead in points this season, has not played since game five of semi-finals after suffering an ankle injury in Drummondville.

“If it was just me, I would play (Tuesday),” said Deschamps to Yahoo! Sports. “But we have to sit and talk with all the staff and stuff. I don’t want to make a risky start and get injured again. If I feel good and there’s a chance I won’t hurt it again, I’ll try for sure.”

"I felt really good, better than yesterday, but a decision is going to be at game time," he said after practice today to Rogers Sportsnet. "I just practiced stop and start and my strides were better."

"He skated and we're meeting with the therapist at lunch," head coach Danny Flynn said. "He wants to examine him one more time and then we'll take it from there.

"We're going to talk about all the different scenarios."

TRYING NOT TO BLOW IT
The Windsor Spitfires know what it is like to be in the Wildcats’ shoes. A year ago, they entered their third game of the tournament at 0-2. But now, the Spits know they have to close a powerful team like Moncton out.

“We were in Moncton’s position last year,” said Spitfires’ forward Adam Henrique to MemorialCup.com. “We’ve got a chance to close out a good team and we have to take the opportunity and do that. If we don’t, anything can happen.

“We got the win last year and that really turned the tide for us and got us on a run,” Henrique said. “Next thing we knew we were in the finals against Kelowna. We’ve got a chance to send a team home and we have to take advantage of that. We’ve worked all year to get here and put us in this opportunity.”

DO OR DIE
On the flip side, the Wildcats now that it is possible to come back from a 0-2 hole.

“They did it last year and any team can do it,” Moncton forward Kelsey Tessier said. “I think our team can do it. We’ve got good leadership and a good squad behind us. We’ve just got to come out and play the Wildcats hockey that we played through the playoffs and bring it here at the Memorial Cup.”

It will be a strange feeling for Tessier and the ‘Cats who face a must win game for the first time all season.

Moncton will enter tonights game coming off their first off-day of the tournament. The team had a meeting last night to sort things out.

“A day off definitely helps,” Tessier said. “We just have to be mentally prepared for Windsor. They’re a great team. We’ve got to make sure that we come out string and play our game and our system – make sure that the puck is behind their defence most of the game.”

"For us the playoffs start on Tuesday instead Thursday (a potential tiebreaker that would be against the Brandon-Calgary loser), it's that simple," said Moncton coach Danny Flynn to Yahoo! Sports. "Our approach is were starting in playoffs. We're the first team to start, first in."

STAYING UPBEAT
Wildcats general manager Bill Schurman told CBC New Brunswick that his team is staying optimistic.

"It's a game we're just fortunate to play, we're fortunate to represent our province and our city and we're going to do everything we possibly can to do that," Schurman said.

"But you know it's certainly not the end of the world."

OTHER STUFF
Kirill Kabanov told the Globe and Mail that he has made some mistakes. The Wildcats also promised him that he would “play on the No. 1 or 2 line and more than 20 minutes a game.”

Turns out Wildcats rookie Cole MacMillan is the brother of former Halifax Moosehead and Rimouski Oceanic Logan MacMillan. (Times and Transcript)

Full preview of tonight’s game. (Yahoo! Sports)

What the media is talking about now and what they will be talking about for the next six hours: Bob Boughner credits Danny Flynn for his success. (Windsor Star)

MEDIA
Television: Rogers Sportsnet, RDS, and NHL Network (USA)
Webcast: Sportsnet.ca