MONTREAL -- Goaltender Anthony Brodeur of Essex Fells, N.J., kicked aside 21 of 22 shots and the eighth-ranked Ottawa Gee-Gees went 2-for-3 on the power-play en route to a 3-1 road victory over No.7 McGill in a key men's hockey battle for third place at McConnell Arena, Friday.

McGill, which was outshot 40-22, went 0-for-4 with the man-advantage and hit three goal posts behind Brodeur, the son of hall-of-fame netminder Martin Brodeur.

The visiting Gee-Gees improved to 15-5-2, solidifying their hold on third-place in the OUA East. The result moved Ottawa seven points ahead of fourth-place McGill (12-7-1) and into the driver's seat for a top-three finish with only six games remaining in the 10-team division. McGill, however, holds two games in hand.

It was the final regular-season meeting between these teams, a four-game series that Ottawa took 3-1 to close the gap in the all-time head-to-head to 87-106-10 in 203 lifetime meetings against McGill.

The teams were tied 1-1 after the opening period and Ottawa led 2-1 after two. An empty-net marker by forward Kevin Domingue iced the contest with just 15 seconds remaining. Dominigue, who also had one assist, now ranks third among OUA goal scorers with 14.

Forward Jack Drover put the Gee-Gees ahead 1-0 on a power-play at 5:50 of the opening period but McGill evened the count some four minutes later when Jordan-Ty Fournier converted passes from defenceman Nikolas Brouillard and forward Jasmin Boutet.

Ottawa took the lead for good at 10;56 of the middle stanza when defenceman Medric Mercier connected with the game-winning tally on another power-play.

McGill goaltender Louis-Philip Guindon of St. Joseph du Lac, Que., made 37 saves in a losing cause as his record dipped to 10-5, while Brodeur improved to 4-2.

With eight games remaining for McGill, which has not yet clinched a playoff berth. The team could still finish anywhere from second place to 10th in the OUA East.

McGill (12-7-1) heads to Trois-Rivieres on Sunday for a 3 p.m. matinee against second-place UQTR (16-5-2). A McGill victory would assure playoff participation for the 16th consecutive year.

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OUA STANDINGS & STATS

OUA SCOREBOARD