MONTREAL -- The McGill Redmen open their 141st season of hockey on Wednesday (Sept.14) when they play host to Ottawa in an exhibition game at McConnell Arena. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. The Redmen are coming off a 21-6-1 second-place finish in the OUA East Division.

McGill season ticket packages are available online for only $130, which results in a $70 savings off the single-game price. The package includes 14 OUA regular season games, three exhibition contests and a Redmen Hockey T-shirt. Season ticket holders also have the option of purchasing a parking pass for a specially-reduced rate of $98.

Head coach Kelly Nobes returns for his seventh season behind the McGill bench with a 175-79-3 record in 257 games overall. His squad, which has lost five players from last year's roster, features a lineup with seven freshmen, 10 sophomores, four juniors and seven seniors. Nineteen players are products of the QMJHL and four others have skated in the OHL.

High-scoring centre Mathieu Pompei and defenceman Dominic Talbot-Tassi lead a veteran squad. Pompei tallied 19 goals and 18 assists in 28 league games, while Talbot-Tassi posted a stellar 11-27-38 record from the blueline.

Other leading point producers include sophomore Daniel Milne (14-14-28), team captain Patrick Delisle-Houde (7-11-18) and sophomore Christophe Lalonde, who joined the squad midway through last season after a tryout with the Detroit Red Wings and posted a 5-5-10 record in 10 games.

Senior goaltender Jacob Gervais-Chouinard has returned on the heels of posting 17-4 record with a 2.35 goals-against average, a .922 save percentage and a pair of shutouts. He will be challenged by 6-foot-6, 223-pound sophomore Joe Fleschler and freshman Louis-Philip Guindon out of the QMJHL's Rimouski Oceanic.

Among the McGill losses is all-Canadian blueliner Samuel Labrecque, who finished third in the OUA scoring race with 44 points, including 16 goals in 28 games. Centre Liam Heelis (11-25-36) has exhausted his CIS eligibility but has returned to serve on the coaching staff as a graduate assistant. Other losses include forwards David Rose (9-23-32) and Jonathan Bonneau (7-3-10), along with rugged rearguard Vincent Barnard (1-5-6).

This year's schedule includes preseason games against perennial contenders UNB, UQTR and Carleton, as well as NCAA teams RPI and Quinnipiac. The OUA campaign opens Oct. 7 at RMC in Kingston, followed by the official Redmen home opener against UOIT on Oct. 8. The Friends of McGill Hockey Homecoming weekend is slated for Oct. 28-29. The Friday night home game against Ottawa will feature the return of Redmen alumnus Mike Babcock, who will be in town to coach the Toronto Maple Leafs against the Montreal Canadiens the following day. The Homecoming festivities will conclude on Saturday (Oct. 29) with a birthday bash in honour of former McGill head coach Ken Tyler (1979-1988), who will be flying in from Poland for the event.

2016-17 McGill Schedule
2016-17 McGill Redmen Hockey Roster
2015-16 Final OUA Stats Leaders
2015-16 Final CIS Standings
McGill Season Ticket & Single-Game Packages


SOURCE:
 
Earl Zukerman
Sports Info Officer
McGill University Athletics & Recreation
514-398-7012
earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca