Redmen rally to down Pats, one win away from berth at Nationals

TROIS-RIVIERES - Sophomore Francis Verreault-Paul of Mashteuiatsh, Que., scored the game-winner late in the second period as fifth-ranked McGill rallied to upset No.3-UQTR 3-2 in the opener of the OUA East final at Le Colisée in Trois-Rivières Wednesday.

The Redmen lead the best-of-three series 1-0 and could eliminate their long-time rivals with a victory at McConnell Arena on Friday (7 p.m.), which would earn McGill a berth at the CIS championships for the fourth time in five years.

It was McGill's seventh consecutive post-season victory over the Patriotes, a team that once was virtually invincible for the Redmen, who are now 12-24 lifetime in 36 playoff confrontations.

McGill took advantage of an unusually undisciplined UQTR squad, scoring all three goals on the power play as the Pats were assessed for 28 penalty minutes compared to only eight by the Redmen, who led the league in penalties.

UQTR defenceman Nicolas Desilets was ejected at the 1:40 mark of the opening period after receiving a kneeing major while body-checking Verreault-Paul. The Redmen sniper who won the OUA scoring crown remained prone on the ice for more than five minutes and missed the remainder of the period as he was assessed by the team physician, who had made the 90-minute road trip.

The ensuing power-play did not start well for McGill as they gave up a shorthanded marker by Pats defenceman Pierre-Luc Lessard.

"We didn't panic after that shorthanded goal," said Redmen head coach Jim Webster. "The guys had confidence in our system, stuck to the basics and took care of business. It was a complete team effort."

The Redmen rebounded 63 seconds later on blueliner Ben Gazdic's goal at 3:50 of the opening period. Centre Simon Marcotte-Légaré, a junior from Longueuil, Que., gave McGill a 2-1 lead at the midway mark of the first period.

Verreault-Paul returned in time for the second stanza, making it 3-1 at 17:20. It was his league-leading seventh playoff goal in six games. More importantly, he now has eight winning goals, including two in the playoffs. The single-season school record is nine by Tim Iannone in 1987-88.

The Pats replied with a power-play goal by Alexandre Blais early in the third but McGill held on for the victory, outshooting UQTR 46-30. Redmen sophomore netminder Hubert Morin of St. Georges de Beauce was solid between the pipes and improved to 5-1 in post-season play. Jean-Christophe Blanchard made 43 saves in a losing cause for the Patriotes.

SOURCE:

Earl Zukerman

Communications Officer

McGill Athletics & Recreation

514-398-7012

SCORING SUMMARY
McGill 3 at UQTR 2

(OUA East Final, Game 1; Mar 3, 2010 a Le Colisee)


1st Period-
1, UQTR, Pierre-Luc Lessard 1 (Levesque), 2:47 (sh).
2, McGill, Ben Gazdic 1 (Picard-Hooper, Rioux), 3:50 (pp).
3, McGill, Simon Marcotte-Legare 2 (Vossen, Rioux), 9:38 (pp).

Penalties-
Desilets UQTR (kneeing, game misconduct), 1:40;
Joncas UQTR (hooking), 8:57;
Lamontagne UQTR (tripping), 14:41;
Langelier-Parent Mcg (diving), 17:36.


2nd Period-
4, McGill, Francis Verreault-Paul 7 (Picard-Hooper, Dorion), 17:20 (pp).

Penalties-
Frechette UQTR (interference), 6:52;
Leblanc UQTR (tripping), 11:32;
Chicoine UQTR (hooking), 17:04;
Valente Mcg (cross checking), 18:55.


3rd Period-
5, UQTR, Alexandre Blais 4 (Demers, Leblanc), 1:04 (pp).

Penalties-
Langelier-Parent Mcg (cross checking), 0:57;
Blais UQTR (holding), 5:54;
Doucet Mcg (interference), 15:38.


GOALS BY PERIOD:
McGill 2 1 0 - 3
UQTR 1 0 1 - 2

Shots on Goal-
McGill 14-19-13-46.
UQTR 8-12-10-30.

Power Play Opportunities-
McGill 3 of 7;
UQTR 1 of 4.

Penalties (No./Mins.)-
McGill 4/8;
UQTR 8/27.

Goalies-
McGill,
Hubert Morin (W, 5-1, 30 shots-28 saves; 60:00).

UQTR,
Jean-Christophe Blanchard (L, 4-2-0, 46 shots-43 saves; 59:15);
Empty-net (0 goals; 0:45).

Attendance: 564

Start: 7:08 PM

End: 9:10 PM

Length: 2:02

Referee-Jonathan Trudel.

MOLSON CUP THREE STARS

1. MCG - 9 Alexandre Picard-Hooper
2. UQTR - 16 Pierre-Luc Lessard
3. MCG - 6 Sebastien Rioux