Do not discount having a cold winter on the Prairies (even though it seems that the freeze thaw roller coaster is more common now). Here in Ottawa its been bouncing between -8 to +5 for the past month and it bloody well sucks! I absolutely hate the slush, tons of salt they spread around here, and the lack of outdoor skating rinks.
Much rather have the -10 highs and -20 overnight lows than the crap we put up with here at Ottawa.
And Toronto can just f*** off with their "we are winter hardy" talk. Toronto doesn't and never really have had winters, just slush and grey skies.