Final Results
Jan 19, 07 - 19:00

Redmen 4 - Concordia 2

Game Report by Earl Zukerman

MONTREAL – Four different players scored as No.5-ranked McGill doubled visiting Concordia 4-2 in men’s university hockey before an announced crowd of 823 at McConnell Arena, Friday.

The Redmen, who improved to 11-5-3 (including an overtime loss) defeated the Stingers for the eighth consecutive outing and clinched a playoff berth for the 21st time in 24 years with nine games remaining in the season.

McGill, which outshot Concordia by a 47-16 margin, including a lopsided 19-3 edge in the opening stanza, led only 1-0 after one period and 2-1 after two.

Stingers netminder Patrick Lepage thwarted numerous scoring chances and made 43 saves in a losing cause.

Mathieu Poitras, his McGill counterpart from Gatineau, Que., kicked aside 14 of 16 shots and improved his record to 7-4-2.

Serbian sophomore Marko Kovacevic’s goal, which gave McGill a 3-1 lead at 8:54 of the final period, proved to be the game-winner.

But the Stingers came to life, after notching a shorthanded goal – down two men – from centre Marc-Andre Rizk with 8:31 remaining in the contest.

The Redmen failed to capitalize on the two-man advantage and ended up 0-for-8 on the power play.

McGill team captain Benoit Martin, who has a knack for clutch goals over his five seasons, put the game on ice with his team-leading 11th goal and only 1:35 remaining in the contest. He also added a helping hand on the game-winning tally.

The Redmen had taken a 2-0 lead on markers by Lucas Madill, a senior from Kirkland, Que., in the first period and Teddy Kyres in the second but Concordia survived the onslaught and drew to within a goal after Brad Gager connected late in the middle period.

Kyres, a rugged, third-year winger from Westmount, Que., who missed the previous five games with a leg injury, now has established career highs in goals (5) and points (11) in 15 games…

McGill, which leads third-place Ottawa (5-13-3) by nine points can clinch second place in the OUA Far East with a home-ice win over the Gee-Gees on Saturday.

GAME NOTES: After 19 league contests this season, McGill owns an 11-5-3 record with 74 goals for and only 42 against… Compared with the same number of games last year, the Redmen owned a 15-1-3 record with 74GF and 22GA…

Also returning to the lineup was rearguard Steven Pearce of Fredericton, N.B., who had missed three games with a leg injury… Three players remain on “injury reserve” including D Erik Stilling (upper body), D Ken Morin (undisclosed, day-to-day), F Charles Gauthier (upper body)……

McGill was only assessed 10 of the 40 penalty minutes called in the game… In three meetings versus Concordia this season, McGill has outscored the Stingers 19-7, outshot them by a 127-69 margin and had 78 penalty minutes compared to 164 PIMs by Concordia… McGill is 7-for-30 on the PP, while the Stingers replied on 2-of-23 PP chances… The two rivals are scheduled to meet one more time, in the 20th annual Ronald Corey Cup game for local collegiate supremacy, at the Ed Meagher Arena, Feb. on Feb. 9… Concordia leads the all-time series between these teams 86-65-13 since 1975 but the Redmen are fast closing the gap and have a 15-3-2 advantage in the last 20 confrontations…

The Redmen will be holding a hockey equipment sale at the McConnell Arena lobby (3883 University Street) on Thursday, Jan. 25 from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. The sale will feature almost new equipment, including vintage game jerseys, skates, gloves and sticks. Helmets, shin pads and elbow pads will be available for as low as $10. Shoulder pads and hockey pants start at $15. Prices will vary depending on age and quality. Proceeds will be go towards the team’s fundraising fund.

SCORING SUMMARY

McGill 4, Concordia 2

FIRST PERIOD:
1. McGill - Lucas Madill (Y. Turcotte, G. Demers) - 01:24

Penalties:
Concordia - M. Halitzki (Hook), 02:46
Concordia - T. Doherty (Hold), 07:31
McGill - Y. Turcotte (Trip), 10:47

SECOND PERIOD:
2. McGill - Teddy Kyres (B. Arsenault, D. Urquhart) - 03:41
3. Concordia - Brad Gager (D. Toupikov, T. Blanchard) - 16:37

Penalties:
Concordia - D. Toupikov (Rough), 00:56
McGill - S. Shewchuk (Interference), 05:50
Concordia - R. Tremblay (Elbow), 11:10
Concordia - M-A Rizk (Cross-check), 18:15
McGill - Teddy Kyers (Rough), 18:15

THIRD PERIOD:
4. McGill - Marko Kovacevic (B. Martin, M. Leclerc) - 08:54
5. Concordia - Marc-Andre Rizk (J. Goodsell, T. Hawkins) - 11:29 (SH)
6. McGill - Benoit Martin (S. Pearce, D. Urquhart) - 18:25

Penalties:
Concordia - S-P Sauve (Slash), 00:20
Concordia - D. Toupikov (High Stick), 10:25
Concordia - D. Toupikov (Misconduct-verbal abuse), 10:25
Concordia - T. Blanchard (Spear-double minor), 10:25
McGill - L. Madill (Rough), 10:25
Concordia - S-P Sauve (Hook), 10:56
McGill - B. Gazdic (Rough), 19:12

GOALTENDERS:
Concordia:
Patrick Lepage (L, 2-10-2; 4GA, 43 saves, 59:31)
Empty Net (0GA, 00:29)

McGill:
Mathieu Poitras (W, 7-4-2, 2GA, 14 saves, 60:00)

SHOTS BY PERIOD
TEAM 1 2 3 -- Total
McGill 19 14 14 -- 47
Concordia 3 6 7 -- 16

GOALS BY PERIOD
TEAM 1 2 3 -- Total
McGill 1 1 2 -- 4
Concordia 0 1 1 -- 2

PENALTIES (No./Mins)
Concordia (11/30)
McGill (5/10)

POWERPLAYS (goals/chances)
Concordia (0/3) + 1SHG
McGill (0/8)

ATTENDANCE: 823

REFEREE: Jonathan Trudel

MOLSON CUP THREE STARS
(selected by Randy Phillups of The Gazette):

1. Benoit Martin, McGill
2. Patrick Lepage, Concordia
3. David Urquhart, McGill

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Goalie Poitras backstops Redmen's victory Jan 20, 07 Ice Hockey (M)

By RANDY PHILLIPS, The Gazette

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PHOTO CREDIT: GORDON BECK, THE GAZETTE
Board meeting: Redmen's Benoit Martin sends Stingers' Tyler Doherty into the McGill bench.
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Goalie Poitras backstops Redmen's victory
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Goalie tandem. McGill win clinches spot in playoffs

By RANDY PHILLIPS
The Gazette
January 20, 2007

Mathieu Poitras made his 13th start of the season in nets for McGill last night, seven more than the goaltender with the best goals-against average in Canadian university hockey - teammate Jean-Michel Filiatrault.

The No. 5-ranked Redmen are the envy of the CIS, with the best goalie tandem in the country.

"If I'm the coach, having two No. 1's is a nice problem to have," said Poitras, who notched his seventh win of the season in a 4-2 decision over the Concordia Stingers in an OUA Far East Division matchup before 821 at McConnell Arena.

"As a goalie, it can be a bit tough to be the one who sits out, but we know we're all going in the same direction as a team," Poitras said. "That's why it doesn't matter who is in nets." Filiatrault backstopped the Redmen's 7-2 win over the Stingers eight days earlier.

Poitras faced a better Concordia team last night, despite being outshot 47-16 by McGill.

Filiatrault, 22, of Laval, has played six of McGill's 18 games this season and has a 1.81 GAA that's the best in the country.

He's 4-1-1 with a pair of shutouts and a .924 save percentage.

Poitras went into last night's game fourth in the CIS with a 2.38 GAA, a .905 save percentage and three shutouts. He improved to 7-4-2 with the win that clinched a playoff spot for the Redmen with nine regular-season games remaining.

The 23-year-old from Gatineau is the senior of the two, in his third season after enjoying a record-setting 2005-2006 to earn conference MVP and all-Canadian honours, the first McGill goalie to be an all-Canadian.

Rookie of the year in 2004-05, Poitras last year set a national single-season shutout record with seven.

He led the country in GAA (1.40), save percentage (.947), and wins, sharing top spot with 14.

He was 14-1-2 in 17 regular-season starts and helped McGill set a CIS single-season team record with a 1.21 GAA.

Poitras came to McGill from Rouyn-Noranda of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and Filiatrault from the Rimouski Oceanic of QMJHL, which reached the Memorial Cup final in 2005.

"We're teammates here, but we're close as friends," Poitras said. "When we get together, the last thing we talk about is goaltending."

Redmen captain Benoit Martin led McGill with a goal and an assist, and defenceman David Urquhart had two assists. The Redmen, who led 1-0 after the first period and 2-1 through two, also got goals from Lucas Madill, Teddy Kyres and Marko Kovacevic with a hotly disputed goal at 8:54 of the third for a 3-2 lead.

The Stingers, outshot 33-9 through the first two periods, got goals from Brad Gager and Marc- Andre Rizk, whose shorthanded marker at 11:29 of the third came with the Stingers killing-off a 90-second 5-on-3.

rphillips@thegazette.canwest.com

© The Gazette (Montreal) 2007