Scott Radley: Bulldogs fighting to take their series to Game 7

The hockey season is long enough that the end always seems to be far off in the distance.

Not anymore.

The Hamilton Bulldogs are down to their last chance. Win on Monday night at FirstOntario Centre (7 p.m. faceoff) or their year is over. Trailing the Barrie Colts 3-2 in their first-round playoff series, they have to take this one or they'll be packing up the bags until September. There is no more wiggle room.

No, it's not ideal. Yet there are reasons for optimism.

The black and gold looked strong in front of the home fans in Game 3 and Game 4. They won both against a team that finished 22 points ahead of them in the standings. And it wasn't just that they won, it was the way they won. Grinding, gritty, playoff hockey with plenty of desperation.

That's exactly the formula that'll be needed again. The fact that they've shown they can play that way has to provide some confidence it can be replicated.

Need something a bit more long-term to believe in? Over the past two springs, the Bulldogs are 9-1 at home in the playoffs. That lone loss came in overtime. FirstOntario Centre has been a good place for them for a while now.

Speaking of the past, a look at the league's playoff leaderboard turns up some familiar faces. Logan Morrison has assumed his customary spot atop the OHL playoff goal-scoring list with seven, Marco Costantini is again leading the league in goalie wins (he has four) and Ryan Winterton is first on the playoff powerplay goal list (three).

Of course, Morrison is doing it for Ottawa, Costantini for Kitchener and Winterton for London.

This year's squad - a much younger, rebuilding group - competes through pure effort rather than by bludgeoning its opponents with unmatchable skill. It's a tougher way to go but unlike the Windsor Spitfires, Owen Sound Attack and Sudbury Wolves who were swept out of the postseason, this group has put up a good fight and is still going. And it still has a shot.

Sure, a loss Monday ends the year. But a win sends the series back to Barrie for Game 7.

If that could happen, well, you know all the cliches.

Scott Radley is a Hamilton-based columnist at The Spectator. Reach him via email: sradley@thespec.com