The Memorial Cup has officially arrived in Windsor.
The CHL's coveted trophy was delivered by the Canadian Coast Guard Thursday night at Dieppe Gardens and then paraded through the city's downtown core.
The Memorial Cup arrives by ship to Windsor (Photo by AM800's Zander Broeckel)
Former Windsor Spitfire Harry Young attended the celebration.
Young was team captain when the Spits won back-to-back cups in 2009 and 2010.
He says if you're a hockey fan, this is as good as it gets.
"It's pretty incredible. I didn't know if it was ever going to come to Windsor in my time. Being a hometown kid and being a part of two Memorial Cups and playing on my hometown team, it's great to see it here. It's great to be a part of this with all the fans out here. It's just a great experience."
(Photo by AM800's Zander Broeckel)
Young says there's nothing like the Memorial Cup.
"It brings back a lot of memories. It was a great time for the city. It was 2009, 2010, we had so many fans. We had people in Rimouski. We had people drive all the way out to Brandon. I had my parents, my family there. It's just an incredible experience and it's great that it's come here and now our fans are going to get a taste of it."
Fans celebrate the arrival of the Memorial Cup (Photos by AM800's Zander Broeckel)
Ten year old Karen Thibert was along the parade route and says she wants the Spits to bring home the hardware.
"Me and my dad are really big fans of the Windsor Spitfires. We really liked the parade I hope that they win the Memorial Cup. Good luck Spitfires!"
Ceremony welcoming the Memorial Cup to Windsor (Photo by AM800's Zander Broeckel)
Eight year old Caleb Marles attended the parade as well and says he's looking forward to watching some games.
"I think that the Spitfires are really great. I've been to three games and they got into lots of fights and I think they're pretty good at hockey. I hope they go to the Memorial Cup next year."
Memorial Cup being paraded down Riverside Drive (Photo by AM800's Zander Broeckel)
Long-time Spitfire fan Cheryl Eastlake says she's not counting her team out.
"They can play really well. They just have to work together. When they were playing game four against London they were playing a really awesome game, like they were playing a Memorial Cup game. That's what they have to play like. Go Spitfires go! Work hard!"
Memorial Cup arrival parade (Photo by AM800's Zander Broeckel)
Young adds seeing the Memorial Cup in person once again, brings back some amazing memories.
"It really does. I mean, we've got this alumni game coming up. All the guys are coming back to town. It's just a walk down memory lane and just seeing that trophy come off the boat like that, brings back a lot of memories. I'm just glad the city can put this on and they're doing such a great job doing it."
Local veterans transporting the Memorial Cup through downtown Windsor (Photo by AM800's Zander Broeckel)
After arriving by ship, the Memorial Cup made its final stop at Windsor City Hall for a photo session with fans.
Tournament action kicks off Friday night at 7pm with the Windsor Spitfires taking on the Saint John Sea Dogs.
The pre-game show gets underway on AM800 at 6:30pm.