Known more for his physical play than his offensive prowess, Musselman capped a three-goal effort, scoring on a breakaway 7:21 into overtime to lift the Whitby Dunlops to their third straight Robertson Cup championship and Allan Cup national championship appearance after a 6-5 victory in Game 4 over the Dundas Real McCoys.

A resident of Whitby, and graduate of the local minor hockey system, Musselman also scored goals in the first and second periods to help the Dunlops complete the sweep.

Neither could compare to the overtime winner, though.

"It felt like a huge weight off my shoulders," he said after the game. "I can't really explain it in words. It's just an unbelievable feeling."

The Dunnies nearly closed the series out in regulation, but Dundas's Mike Kennedy scored with 23 seconds remaining, beating Whitby's Chad Ford with a chip shot over the glove. Seconds earlier, with the Real McCoys pressuring, Whitby's Bob McQuat fired a shot three-quarters of the length of the ice, just missing the empty net which would have salted the game away.

Instead, the ensuing draw came to the right of Ford and eight seconds later the game was tied.

"You get in those situations and that sometimes happens," Dunlops coach Mike Posavad succinctly stated afterwards. "In the first game Bob did that and he potted the goal. I've always said the first thing is that the puck has got to get past your blueline and if it goes down it goes down. I don't recall a time where we've been scored on in that situation this season, but there is always a first for everything and lets hope there is another first at the end of it all."

As for Musselman, a first-year Dunlop, he is anxious to get his kick at the can in the Allan Cup.

"I'm looking forward to it. Last year when I was playing in the Central League, we had a good team, but we didn't end up making it (to a championship)," he recalls. "I think here we've got a great team and I am looking forward to seeing what the guys can do. I know we've got a lot of good veterans on our team that can contribute."

Those veterans certainly did the job in sweeping Dundas.

Captain Peter MacKellar scored once in Game 4 and ended up with 5-3-8 totals through the series, while Ron Baker posted a team-high 4-8-12 line, despite being held off the scoresheet Wednesday. On the back end, Shayne McCosh had nine assists, including five in the series opener, while McQuat also had nine points, including two goals.

Posavad says the character and experience of his veterans led to the club being able to rebound from Dundas's last minute rally.

"A lot of teams would just shut it down and let it really get to them," said the coach, before adding, "but we had more enthusiasm between the third period and overtime than we did going into the third. We were fine. That just shows that we've got a lot of class, experience and character in that room."

The Dunlops will now enjoy a couple of weeks off before the Allan Cup gets started in Brantford on April 14, where Whitby will face either Thunder Bay or Dundas, who will now play in a series to determine the final entry into the tournament.