Windsor Spitfires DVD highlights Dream Season
By Chris Kerr
Sports Editor
August 26, 2009
A documentary film about the Windsor Spitfires’ journey to victory at last year’s Memorial Cup tournament, is a must-have for Spits fans.
Windsor-based film company Suede Productions has just released the limited edition Dream Season DVD.
“Dream Season” takes an in-depth look at how the young Spitfires squad, hard-hit by the loss of their beloved captain Mickey Renaud, in the economically hard-hit city of Windsor, rallied together and achieved a dream season.
The first half of the film chronicles the Spitfires’ transition from a poorly-managed and neglectfully owned team playing in The Barn on Wyandotte St. to the dominant team they have become.
The Spits had to start from scratch with new ownership and an impressive draft year. It also helped that two out of the three new owners were former pros Bob Boughner and Warren Rychel.
The documentary tugs at the heartstrings by chronicling the sudden death of Renaud which led them to band together as a family, becoming arguably the closest team in hockey.
With a new home at the WFCU Centre, and an edgy new logo, the team had something to prove in honour of their fallen captain. After winning 57 out of their 68 games in the regular season, and capturing the OHL Championship in four overtime victories against the London Knights, the Spits were off what some people call the toughest tournament in all of sports.
The second half of the DVD recounts game by game their record-setting performance at last year’s Memorial Cup Championship.
One of the strengths of this documentary is the commentary provided by Windsor’s key players, coaches and media.
The documentary featured the likes of Windsor natives Eric Wellwood and captain Harry Young, as well as President/CEO/Head Coach Bob Boughner and Vice President/GM Warren Rychel.
Throughout their commentary is footage of the Spitfires in action, as well as footage featuring Boughner and Rychel scoring clutch goals and brawling in the NHL.
A surprise treat in the film is cameo appearances by Don Cherry and Ron Maclean of Hockey Night in Canada fame.
A crucial element missing from the documentary, however, is the Spitfires’ superstar Taylor Hall.
Hall, the overall leading scorer in the playoffs and Memorial Cup MVP, is certainly one of the biggest factors to the Spitfires’ success, and they even feature him on the cover of the DVD, but he is nowhere to be found in the documentary.
Overall, the DVD is a good pick-up for any die-hard Spitfires fans.
The commemorative “Dream Season” DVD may be one of the only cherished mementos from an otherwise unsavoury period of time in the city of Windsor’s recent history.
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