MONTREAL – McGill scored four power-play goals, including a pair by rookie Maxime Pellerin of Victoriaville, Que., as the fourth-place Redbirds stunned top-seeded Concordia 6-1 to open an OUA East men's hockey semifinal series before a full house of about 500 at the Ed Meagher Arena, Wednesday.
 
The result was the seventh consecutive victory for the Redbirds, ranked No.7 in Canada, while No.8 Concordia lost for the sixth time in the last 11 games. It was the third post-season contest for McGill (18-9-1 in the regular season) and the first for the Stingers, who had a first-round playoff bye after finishing atop the division with a 21-3-4 record.
 
McGill is now in position to sweep the best-of-three series in Game 2 on Friday night (7 p.m.) at the Place Bell Community Rink in Laval, Que. Should the Stingers rebound to stave off elimination, the rubber match is set for Saturday evening at the Ed Meagher Arena.
 
It was the Redbirds' first win over Concordia this season as the Stingers had taken all three regular season match-ups. McGill now owns a lifetime record of 118-117-14 overall in head-to-head meetings since the first rendezvous in 1974, including a 23-16 edge in post-season play.
 
Special teams played a major role as an undisciplined Stingers squad was assessed seven of the 11 minor penalties called in the contest and McGill made them pay the price. The Redbirds tied a team record for most power-play goals in a playoff game, going 4-for-6, to equal the standard set on Feb. 21, 2014, when McGill had a 4-for-11 performance over Concordia in a quarter-final.
 
The Redbirds killed off two of three shorthanded scenarios.
 
"We clearly carried some momentum from our first series against UQTR into the first period tonight," said David Urquhart, a former McGill team captain now in his fourth year as bench boss of the Redbirds. "It was important to get a good start and we had a big save from Shank right on the first shift and that kind of set the tone. In the playoffs, you've got to be opportunistic and we got the power play chances and converted them. You've got to make the most of those chances and in today's game, that was the difference. We were focused and maintained our composure in the game and that's something that we need to continue moving forward."
 
Concordia had a 25-24 edge in the official shots on net. McGill goaltender Alexis Shank, a senior from Laval, Que., was credited with 24 saves, many of a spectacular nature. He lost his bid for a shutout at 19:25 of the middle stanza when Mathieu Bizier struck for a PP marker on a juicy rebound.
 
Despite Concordia having the upper-hand in shots, it was McGill who dominated the scoreboard, leading 3-0 after the opening period, 4-1 after two and outscoring the home team 2-0 in the final stanza.
 
Pellerin, a 22-year-old management freshman who played major junior hockey in Victoriaville and attended the Montreal Canadiens rookie camp last August, scored in the first and third periods to put McGill ahead 3-0 and 5-1, respectively. The six-foot, 183-pound right winger is tied for the OUA playoff lead with four goals in three games and now ranks second on the team with 16 markers in 35 contests overall.
 
"He's continuing to get better every game and at this time of the year, we are looking for guys to elevate their game and he's done that," Urquhart said. "His play has been a big positive for the team."
 
Pellerin was one of five Redbirds to score against the Stingers, along with Alexis Morin, William Rouleau, Xavier Fortin and Mathieu Gagnon.
 
"It has been a calling card of our team that everyone contributes in different ways and it showed tonight with different guys contributing on the scoreboard," Urquhart noted. "And when they don't score, they are finding other ways, like blocking shots. The guys are coming together, playing for each other and that's what you've got to do at this time of the year. It's (mentally) hard to block a shot on the penalty-kill when you are up by a few goals but you do it because if they score against us that can change the momentum very quickly. The guys made some huge blocks today and that is a sign of being very selfless."
 
In fact, the Redbirds were credited with 14 blocked shots in the game, including multiple key blocks by defencemen Thomas Belzile and Maxime Blanchard.
 
Concordia's starting netminder Nikolas Hurtubise made a season low 10 saves and was chased after conceding five goals. He was replaced at 4:49 of the final period by understudy Jordan Naylor, who kicked out eight of nine shots.
 
FACES IN THE CROWD: Among the throng McGill supporters on hand to cheer on the Redbirds were three familiar alumni from decades ago, namely forward John Harris (1984-1987), defenceman Mike Nelson (1978-1984) and goaltender Mike Farmer (1976-1979), whose flight from his vacation spot in Florida landed just 45 minutes before puck-drop and he went directly to the game after dropping off his luggage.
 
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SOURCE
Earl Zukerman
Sports Information Officer
Athletics & Recreation
McGill University
CELL: 514-983-7012
E-MAIL:earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca