The Erie Otters need your help. They are in a playoff fight against the best team in the Western Conference in the regular season, the Windsor Spitfires. The Spitfires have a wealth of great players who are practically NHL ready, including Taylor Hall, who will go either 1 or 2 in this year’s NHL Draft. At the time of this writing, the Otters are down 0-2 in a seven-game series that could end on Thursday night. That’s where you come in. On Thursday the 25 at 7:00 P.M. the Otters host the Spitfires at Tullio Arena, and you should be there to root them on.

The first home game for the Otters on Sunday was a very successful game, but the home team just couldn’t pull out a win despite very solid play. The goals for Windsor came on a scrum in front and two breakaways, one from a bad defensive play and another that saw the Otters get caught in a bad line change. Had any of those goals not gone in, especially the third on a breakaway by Taylor Hall late in the third, the result could have been completely different. Regardless, winners make their own luck and Windsor deserved the “W.”

At the time of this writing, Game 3 had yet to be played, so the Otters could either be looking to save themselves from elimination or trying to tie the series up at two games apiece. However the scenario, Tullio Arena will be the place to be on Thursday to see OHL playoff hockey. Tickets are $13 and $15, which, considering future NHL players will be on display, is not a large sum to pay. In addition, Hall lived up to his expectations by scoring twice in Game 2. In contrast, last year, touted draft pick John Tavares on the London Knights did little more than dance around the circles and cherrypick the entire game.

Speaking of Tullio Arena, the NCAA Women’s Frozen Four will be hosted there next year. As all of you know, the Mercyhurst women’s hockey team is a force to be reckoned with. The Lakers ran into a vomit-inducing Cinderella team in Cornell this year, but it might be more fate than anything else. It seems almost too coincidental that Mercyhurst has never won a National Championship but has come extremely close the past few years, Meghan Agosta will be back for her senior campaign, recent Patty Kazmier winner Vicki Bendus (congrats again Vicki!) and Jesse Scanzano will be seniors, the entire team will be a pack of hardened, bonded veterans, and the event will be in Erie. Think about that one for a minute.