QMJHL: Sea Dogs Drop 9-3 Decision to Wildcats in Game Two of Finals

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  1. truebluefan

    truebluefan Administrator Staff Member Administrator

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    Game Two of the 2010 President's Cup Finals was staged at the Moncton Coliseum on Sunday afternoon, with the Saint John Sea Dogs coming out on the losing end of a 9-3 final. The Moncton Wildcats now lead this best-of-seven championship series 2-0.

    Gabriel Bourque (2), Scott Brannon (2), Randy Cameron (2), Simon Jodoin, Kelsey Tessier, and Allain Saulnier all scored for Moncton in Sunday's home victory, with Mike Thomas, Chuckie Schembri, and Danick Gauthier responding for Saint John in a losing effort.

    Meanwhile, between the pipes, former QMJHL Most Valuable Player Nicola Riopel (24 saves) outdueled Saint John goalies Karel St-Laurent (14 saves) and Marco Cousineau (nine saves) in improving to 14-3 on the post-season.

    Cousineau came up with a sensational stop in the fifth minute of play, diving across his crease to deny Randy Cameron with a flailing stick save to prevent the overage centre from converting on the first power play of the match. Riopel came up with a massive save of his own a moment later, stoning superstar sniper Mike Hoffman on a semi-breakaway to keep the score deadlocked at zeroes.

    Moncton then tallied the first goal of the afternoon at the 7:30 mark of the first period, with Nashville Predators prospect Gabriel Bourque roofing a close-range backhander to the back of Saint John's net at the end of a lengthy scramble in Sea Dogs territory. Brandon Gormley and Kelsey Tessier both picked up assists on Bourque's even-strength marker, his fourth offensive strike of the series.

    An unassisted tally off the stick of Scott Brannon doubled the Wildcats' lead six minutes later, as the veteran winger slid his third goal of the playoffs past Cousineau low, stick side. The visitors produced some solid scoring chances late in the opening frame, but Riopel was able to keep the puck out of the net in sending Game Two into intermission number one with his team on top 2-0.

    The Wildcats took a 3-0 lead early in the second period when a crease-hovering Gabriel Bourque one-timed a Randy Cameron pass through Cousineau's pads to pick up his second goal of the day. Saint John responded quickly, with a net-charging Danick Gauthier banking in his fifth of the playoffs off of an opposing defender's shin pad at the 2:48 mark of the middle frame.

    Moncton's three-goal advantaged was restored courtesy of Scott Brannon, who jammed a loose puck across the Saint John goal line amidst a calamity of traffic during a Wildcats power play a few minutes later. Pittsburgh Penguins prospect Nick Petersen came close to pulling the Sea Dogs back to within two of the Wildcats on the very next shift, but the all-star winger was denied on a breakaway by Nicola Riopel.

    After Karel St-Laurent assumed goaltending duties for Saint John midway through regulation, Kelsey Tessier and Randy Cameron tallied back-to-back transition markers for the hosts to put Moncton on top by a score of 6-1 in the 33rd minute of play. Team Captain Mike Thomas pulled the Sea Dogs back to within four of the Wildcats in the final minute of the second period, ripping a high wrist shot past Riopel's glove hand to improve his career post-season goals total to six.

    Sunday's third period saw the home team's offence continuing to fire on all cylinders as Moncton scored three goals during the stanza to the Sea Dogs' one (from 19-year-old winger Chuckie Schembri) to take the decision by a 9-3 final.

    Game Three of this series will be played on Tuesday night at a Harbour Station. The puck drops at 7pm as Saint John looks to snap their first two-game losing streak of the playoffs in front of a sellout crowd of 6,488.
     

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