For whatever reasons, the Sarnia Sting has not been very good early in recent games.
 

As a result, they have dropped six of their past seven games in the Ontario Hockey League.

However, they should be more than ready to play tonight when they host the top team in the Canadian Hockey League, the defending Memorial Cup champion Windsor Spitfires. Game time is 7:35 p.m. at the RBC Centre.
 

It’s the first of back-to-back home games for the Sting as they host the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds on Saturday night, also at 7:35 p.m. at the RBC Centre.
 

“Obviously we have to be a lot better than what we’ve shown over the last couple of weeks,” said Sting head coach Dave MacQueen, prior to practice on Thursday.
 

“The bottom line here is that Windsor is a very, very talented team. They have lots of depth and I don’t think there’s a team in the league right now that can match their depth. Add to that they probably have a bad taste in their mouths remembering we beat them back in their rink last month.”
 

Tonight is the second of six meetings between the two clubs. Sarnia won the opener 6-5 on Oct. 11 in Windsor.

As for being mental prepared to get off to a good start in tonight’s game, MacQueen said, “We definitely have to be ready. A team with the talent Windsor has can bury you in the first five minutes. Their power play is also very good so we have to play disciplined.”
 

He added, “at least we have to match their work ethic. We’ve had some good practices this week and the big thing is getting that work ethic back we had a month ago. It’s all part of the process in moving forward.”
 

Windsor sits first overall in the OHL with an impressive 19-3-0-3 record. What’s even more impressive is the face they are 13-0-0-2 in their last 15 games. Sarnia is 10-12-1-0, but just 3-7-0-0 in their last 10 games.
 

The Spitfires are led by Taylor Hall who leads the OHL in scoring with 21 goals and 24 assists for 45 points in 35 games. Hall will likely be either the first or second pick overall in the 2010 National Hockey League draft.
 

Adam Henrigue is second in team scoring with 19 goals and 18 assists and is a plus-24 in 23 games. Greg Nemisz is third with 19 goals and 35 points while defenceman Cam Fowler has three goals and 26 assists and is a plus-25. Fowler will be a top-five pick in the NHL draft next June.
 

Kale Kerbashian leads the Sting in scoring with seven goals and 22 points in 21 games. Ben O’Quinn is second with seven goals and 16 assists while two defencemen follow, Joe Rogalski with one goal and 14 points and captain Jordan Hill with three goals and 12 points.
 

The Sting received word earlier this week that first round draft pick Brett Ritchie has been selected to the 22-player roster for Team Ontario that will compete in the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge Dec. 29 to Jan. 4 in Timmins.
 

“It’s something kids strive for when they first come into our league. It’s the first step in the national junior program and all the players look forward to. It’s good for Brett to be able to play with his peers for this tournament.”
 

MacQueen added, “Brett has gone through what any younger player in our league goes through in his rookie season. There’s been highs and there’s been lows. It’s all part of getting accustomed to our league, the grind of travel, the practices, and things like that. People also don’t realize Brett usually plays against the top two lines on opposing teams game in and game out.”
 

Ritchie has three goals and five assists, two of those assists coming in the 4-3 loss at Kingston last Sunday.

“Brett is starting to use his big body to establish positioning in the offensive zone. Down the road Brett is going to be a dominant player, a very good, power forward and put up some decent numbers.”
 

The Sting will be without defenceman Brett Sullivan, who is serving a two-game suspension for being involved in a second fight on the same stoppage. Forward Craig Hottot remains out with a broken jaw.
 

MacQueen said that defenceman Anton Zupancic will be called up from the Sarnia Legionnaires junior B team for tonight’s game.
 

Adam Courchaine is expected to start in goal for the Sting tonight. He sports a 3.45 goals against average in 765 minutes with a .906 save percentage. Teammate Shayne Campbell has played 390 minutes and has a 4.61 g.a.a. with a .879 save percentage.
 

Troy Passsingham of the Spitfires has a 2.44 g.a.a. in 1,255 minutes. He has a .907 save percentage with three shutouts and a 17-2-0-0 record. Teammate Michael Nishi has a 2.85 g.a.a. in 211 minutes of work.

 

STING NOTES

-     Former Sting captain Ryan Wilson scored his first National Hockey League goal for the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday against Calgary. He also had an assist in the game. Wilson was never drafted by a NHL team, but signed as a free agent by Calgary two years. He was traded last season to Colorado and played with their American Hockey League affiliate Lake Erie. Wilson was captain of the Sting for two years and during that time led all OHL defencemen in scoring.