GUELPH, ON - As far as the Guelph Gryphons men's hockey team is concerned, they're still the OUA champions until someone else proves otherwise.
 
The Windsor Lancers had their chance, and now it's the Ryerson Rams' turn to see if they've got what it takes to knock off the Gryphs.
  Dylan Gilbert celebrates a goal vs Ryerson on Oct. 22 Game 1 in their best-of-three OUA West Semi-final series is set for Thursday (Feb. 25) at 7:30 p.m. at the Gryphon Centre. Guelph head coach Shawn Camp said his team will be ready for the new challenge.
 
"They worked so hard to win the Queen's Cup last year, and they certainly don't want to give it up to anybody," he said on Monday, one day after the Gryphs capped a thrilling first-round series victory with a 3-2 overtime win over Windsor.
 
"Last night was a good example of the pride that they have in defending the Cup. We'll continue to work hard to try and keep it again this year."
 
Guelph has the higher seeding and home-ice advantage in this series, but it won't be easy. The No. 4-ranked Gryphs played No. 6 Ryerson twice during the regular season, and the Rams won both times. 
"It really doesn't matter," Camp said of those earlier games. "It's a different season, in the sense that every period and every shift is so critical. You can win games early and win games late, and everything's magnified in the playoffs. That's the fun part of it."
 
"Playoffs are a whole different story," agreed right-winger Dylan Gilbert, who leads the Gryphs with 12 goals this season.
 
"The last time we (played Ryerson), we weren't really prepared when the puck dropped, and it showed in the outcome of that game, a 5-0 loss. The postseason is a whole different story. All the guys are ready, especially after that game last night against Windsor. Everyone really came together there. Going forward, I think we're all going to be pretty focused on what we have to do."
 
What they have to do is not expect such a physical series in this round, but at the same time rely on some level of physicality in order to counter Ryerson's speed and skill. Luckily, Guelph is also a talented and fast club.
 
"Our team is built to skate," said centre Robert Lepine, Sunday's OT hero. "We're excellent down low in our rink when we cycle the puck, and a lot of teams can't handle it. By the second and third periods, they wear out like Windsor did. We start to dominate games, the longer they drag on in our rink. Home ice is huge for us. Rob Lepine celebrates OT winner in Game 3 vs Windsor  
"Our attitude is just that we're going to be relentless. . . we're going to try to jump on them right away and catch them off guard."
 
Along with limiting Ryerson's chances on offence, another challenge for the Gryphs will be in solving netminder Troy Passingham, who has played very well and was a big factor in the Rams' sweep of Waterloo in the first round.
 
With both teams coming into this series on a high, the Gryphs are well aware they can't be over-confident, especially with the division's top seed, York, having already been eliminated.
 
"We're going to have to be at our very best to beat them, for sure," Camp said.
 
And being at their best means more than merely basking in last season's accomplishments. The Gryphs know this too.
 
"That's the kind of mindset we have to have, going forward in this playoff run," Gilbert said. "Every shift, every period, has to be an all-out war with the other team. That's what Windsor gave us. . . and someone's going to have to come in and pry that Cup out of our hands."
 
Game 2 is set for Friday night in Toronto. Game 3, if necessary, is next Sunday back at the Gryphon Centre.

TICKETS FOR GAME 1 ARE AVAILABLE ONLINE