(Francis Verreault-Paul ignited Redmen rally from a 3-0 deficit with a pair of power-play markers in the second-period. Photo by Andrew Dobrowolskyj)

MONTREAL -- Justin Ducharme, a freshman forward from Quebec City scored in a post-overtime shootout as No.2-ranked McGill rallied from a three-goal deficit for an unlikely 4-3 victory over the No.10-Nipissing University Lakers in men's hockey at McConnell Arena, Saturday.

Ducharme, who had only scored once in eight previous games, was the only player to hit paydirt in the six-player shootout. He appeared to jam the puck through the legs of goaltender Daniel Spence and it trickled just across the goal line.

It marked the ninth straight win for McGill over Nipissing, since they joined the league three years ago. The Lakers (7-2-2), who now trail the first-place Redmen (8-0-2) by one point in the OUA East standings, took advantage of a plethora of McGill penalties to jump into a 3-0 lead early in the second period, then watched in horror as McGill mounted a furious comeback.

Francis Verreault-Paul of Mashteuiatsh, Que., tallied a pair of second period power-play goals, at 9:36 and 18:03, to resuccitate the Redmen, who went 2-for-5 with the man-advantage. Nipissing was 2-for-8 on their power-play chances.

McGill forced overtime late in the final frame after pulling goaltender Hubert Morin with 1:24 remaining in regulation and it paid off when two-time all-Canadian defenceman Marc-Andre Dorion of St. Hubert, Que., connected on a slapshot from just inside the blueline with 48 seconds left on the clock. The education senior also assisted on both of the first two goals.

Nipissing took advantage of a rare sluggish opening period by the Redmen, outshooting McGill 13-4 and taking a 1-0 lead when Brogan Bailey of Lunenburg, N.S., scored at 7:29.

McGill came out with some gusto in the second period after a few choice words from head coach Kelly Nobes but put themselves in a bind when they ran afoul of the law during a scuffle at the 1:24 mark of the middle stanza. The Redmen found themselves killing off a five-minute match penalty assessed to third-year centre Christophe Longpre-Poirier, who will draw an automatic three-game suspension for that infraction, unless a possible appeal is successful.

Less than 30 seconds later, sophomore Benoit Levesque received a double minor for high-sticking. Up two men, it didn't take long for Nipissing to cash in their chips.

Dan Watt of Winnipeg, Man., made it 2-0 on the power-play with his sixth of the season at 2:16. Still shorthanded, McGill again drew the wrath of referee Alexandre Cote, who nailed defencemen Hugo Laporte and Keven Dupont for seperate infractions at 5:01 and 5:21, respectively.

When Kevin Rebelo of Hamilton, Ont., connected on the power play at 6:25 to make it 3-0 for the Lakers, it appeared that a rout was imminent. But McGill took over from that point on and the rest, as they say, is history.

"Our start was not acceptable," said Nobes. "In the first period we didn't look good; in the second the referee made them look good and in the third period we finally got our feet moving, gained a lot of momentum and came on real strong. There was a good sense on the bench that we were going to come back."

Nipissing had a 25-15 edge in shots over the first two periods but by game's end, McGill outshot the Lakers 39-35. Morin made 32 saves, plus three more in the shootout, to preserve the victory and improve his record to 4-1.

"Once we got through all those penalties early in the second period, our confidence level was good and we felt that if we could get the next goal, it would put them on their heels and we could start attacking them," said McGill team captain Evan Vossen, a fifth-year senior from Swift Current, Sask. "After we made it 3-2 heading into the the third period, the guys all knew that if we could get the next one, it was our game to win."

Next on tap for the Redmen is a return engagement in Trois-Rivieres on Wednesday. McGill dropped a 4-3 decision in overtime to UQTR in their first rendez-vous on Oct. 21 at McConnell Arena. Then its the much-anicipated home-and-home matchup with Queen's. The long-time rivals will meet in Kingson on Nov. 11, followed by the return game at McConnell Arena, Nov. 19, when a near sellout crowd is expected.

REDMEN RAP:  Alexandre Picard-Hooper, the CIS player of the year last season, missed his second-straight game with an upper-body injury suffered at Ottawa last week... McGill now owns a lifetime record of 883-884-127 in 1,894 games overall against Canadian university opponents since they began playing intercollegiate teams back in 1892.

SOURCE:

Earl Zukerman

McGill Athletics & Communications Officer

514-398-7012

SCORING SUMMARY

Nipissing 3 at McGill 4 (OTS)

(Saturday, November 5, 2011 - McConnell Arena)

GOALS BY PERIOD:
Nipissing 1-2-0-0 -- 3
McGill 0-2-1-0 -- 4

1st Period-
1, Nipissing, Brogan Bailey 4 (Beard), 7:29.

Penalties-
Morse Mcg (roughing), 8:41;
Paton Nip (holding), 12:24;
Laporte Mcg (tripping), 17:46.

2nd Period-
2, Nipissing, Dan Watt 6 (Beard, Leaist), 2:16 (PP).
3, Nipissing, Kevin Rebelo 4 (Leaist, Marcoux), 6:25 (PP).
4, McGill, Francis Verreault-Paul 2 (Dorion, Vossen), 9:36 (PP).
5, McGill, Francis Verreault-Paul 3 (Dorion), 18:03 (PP).

Penalties-
Restoule Nip (roughing, 10-minute misconduct), 1:24;
C.Longpre-Poirier Mcg (match penalty, game misconduct), 1:24;
Wright Mcg (roughing, 10-minute misconduct), 1:24;
Levesque Mcg (double minor for high sticking), 1:57;
Laporte Mcg (roughing), 5:01;
Dupont Mcg (high sticking), 5:21;
Gray Nip (hooking), 7:47;
Clarkson Nip (10-minute misconduct), 13:00;
O'Donnell Nip (high sticking), 16:52.

3rd Period-
6, McGill, Marc-Andre Dorion 4 (Vossen, Laporte), 19:12.

Penalties-
Marcoux Nip (tripping), 3:42;
Bourgeois Mcg (hooking), 10:13;
Gray Nip (tripping), 13:12.

OVERTIME (5 mins):
(No Scoring).

Penalties-
(none)


SHOOTOUT:

Nipissing 0 (Dan Watt NG, Scott Restoule NG, Kevin Rebelo NG),

McGill 1 (Francis Verreault-Paul NG, Justin Ducharme G, Marc-Andre Dorion NG).


Shots on Goal-
Nipissing 13-12-8-2-0 -- 35.
McGill 4-10-18-6-1 -- 39.

Power Play Opportunities-
Nipissing 2 / 8;
McGill 2 / 6.

Penalties-
Nipissing 8 / 32;
McGill 11 / 41.


Goalies-
Nipissing,
Daniel Spence (L, 7-4, 39 shots-36 saves; 65:00).

McGill,
Hubert Morin (W, 4-1-0, 35 shots-32 saves; 63:36).
Empty-net (0 shots, 0 goals, 1:24)

Att-412

Referee-Alexandre Cote.

Start: 7:04

Finish: 9:38

Duration: 2:34

MOLSON CUP THREE STARS:
1. McGill: Marc-Andre Dorion
2. McGill Francis Verreault-Paul
3. Nipissing: Brodie Beard