MONTREAL -- Olivia Atkinson tallied the game-winner with just 78 seconds remaining and Melodie Daoust double-shifted her way to a pair of assists as sixth-ranked McGill rallied to defeat No.5 Montreal 2-1 in RSEQ women's hockey, Friday, at McConnell Arena.

The victory was McGill's ninth in a row overall and the Martlets' third in as many meetings between the bitter archrivals this season as the Martlets improved to 41-18 lifetime against UdeM. With only two confrontations remaining, it earned McGill the tie-breaker should the teams finish with equal points in the standings.

After a scoreless opening period, the Carabins led 1-0 on a goal by Rika Pilon-Robert at 15:01 of the second and dominated the shot clock 29-16 after two periods. But the Martlets stifled their guests in the final frame with an 11-4 shooting advantage and two unanswered goals.

"In the first period we just didn't connect very well," said McGill head coach Peter Smith of the sluggish start. "We didn't seem to have great connection between our forwards and our defence and couldn't seem to get the flow going. We didn't get pucks to the middle of the ice to create some offence.

"We talked about it at the end of the first and in the second we improved. We had more of a shot mentality and were better on our zone entries. Our forecheck was terrific in the third period and we were real smart both in the offensive and neutral zones."

Goaltender Tricia Deguire, a physical education freshman from Sherbrooke, Que., made 32 saves and earned her nation-leading ninth win in 11 career contests, having started every game this season. Deguire also leads the Quebec conference with a stingy 1.64 goals-against average and a sparkling .939 save percentage.

"Tricia's a difference-maker," praised Smith. "She was sharp and I like the way she handles the puck. She made a few mistakes but that's the only way you're going to get better. I bet that this time next year she's going to be one great puck-handler -- she's already pretty good. She played with lots of confidence, gave her team in front of her lots of confidence and that's what you want from a goaltender."

Daoust, a 5-foot-6 centre from Valleyfield, Que., played on two lines throughout the evening -- as McGill dressed 11 forwards -- and set up both Martlet goals. She has a nine-game point-scoring streak and now sits second in the league scoring race with 16 points, including 12 helpers, in nine outings.

"She's a warrior, she just plays so hard," said Smith of his Olympic gold medalist. "I mean, to have a captain like that, there's nothing else I can say. Every player on the bench watches her and just wants to live up to how high she sets the bar."

Marie-Philip Lavoie, a physical education junior from Pohenegamook, Que., tied the score at 1-1 with a power-play goal 23 seconds into the third, assisted by Daoust and Gabrielle Davidson of Pointe Claire, Que.

As visions of overtime loomed large, Atkinson, a psychology and economics sophomore from Oakville, Ont., tallied the game-winner at 18:42 of the third, assisted by Lavoie and Daoust. Atkinson, a 5-foot-7 forward, sits fourth in the RSEQ scoring race with a 6-6-12 record in 11 games. Four of her six markers have been game-winners.

"I wouldn't say that we had a tough start at the beginning of the season," said Daoust, whose squad was 2-2 after their first four outings but is now riding a seven-game win streak in league play since a surprising 4-2 loss at Carleton on Nov. 4. "I just think we were younger and it was a process to get where we are now. If we play the game-plan that our coach put up for us and we follow it right, I think we're unbeatable. What's great about our team is that everybody puts the work into it and everyone is willing to accept their role, which is amazing."

McGill capitalized on one of two power-play opportunities and killed both its penalties.

"The team's increased confidence comes firstly from their belief in themselves but it also comes from the way we practice," noted Smith. "The structure of our game is so much better now, so they stick with the plan and they have that to fall back on. They know that they have to play fast and they have to play with structure and that's what they're doing."

Montreal netminder Marie-Pier Chabot stopped 25 of 27 shots in a losing effort.

The Martlets (9-2-0) will visit Ottawa (6-3-1) on Sunday (Jan. 8), while Montreal (7-5-0) plays Carleton (2-8-1) that afternoon.

MARTLET MURMURS: The Martlets were without the services of Jade Downie-Landry who was overseas playing for Canada at the Nations Cup tournament in Füssen, Germany and Telfs, Austria, Jan. 4-7... The 21-year-old psychology freshman from St. Jean sur Richelieu, Que., joins former Western rearguard Katelyn Gosling of London, Ont., as the only two Canadian university produced players from U Sports on the national women's development team.
 
LINK TO COMPLETE BOXSCORE

SCORING SUMMARY
Montreal 1 at McGill 2
(Friday, January 6, 2017 - McConnell Arena @ McGill)

GOALS BY PERIOD
Montreal 0-1-0 -- 1
McGill 0-0-2 -- 2

1st Period-
(No Scoring).
 
Penalties-(none)

2nd Period-
1, Montreal, Rika Pilon-Robert 3 (Germain, Chiasson), 15:01.
 
Penalties-Walker Mcg (bodychecking), 3:20; Drouin Mtl (tripping), 7:48; Duvin Mtl (interference), 19:50.

3rd Period-
2, McGill, Marie-Philip Lavoie 7 (Daoust, Davidson), 0:23 (PP).
3, McGill, Olivia Atkinson 6 (Lavoie, Daoust), 18:42.
 
Penalties-Davidson Mcg (tripping), 14:36.

Shots on Goal-
Montreal 12-17-4 -- 33.
McGill 4-12-11 -- 27.

Power Play Opportunities-
Montreal 0 / 2;
McGill 1 / 2.

Goalies-
Montreal, Marie-Pier Chabot (L, 6-5-0, 27 shots-25 saves; 58:49).
McGill, Tricia Deguire (W, 9-2-0, 33 shots-32 saves; 60:00).

Attendance: 100
Start: 7:03 PM
End: 8:58 PM
Length: 1:55

Referees-Justine Pelletier.
Linesmen-Marie-Pierre Jalbert, Elizabeth Mantha.
 
THREE STARS:
1. MCG - 2 Olivia Atkinson
2. MCG - 17 Melodie Daoust
3. MCG - 33 Tricia Deguire