Drakkar Put Eagles on the Ropes with 8-2 Victory
April 30, 2024 - Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL)
Cape Breton Eagles News Release
The opening minutes of the game belonged to Poirier- the Drakkar forward beat Ruccia through the legs 77 seconds into the game, and then lifted the puck over the Eagles goaltender when he was left alone in front of the net. The Eagles had a big opportunity to push back when Donovan Arsenault was given a hooking minor 26 seconds after the second Poirier goal.
However, just nine seconds into the power play, things went further south as Isaac Dufort converted on a two on one feed from Felix Gagnon to make it 3-0. The temperature of the game began to rise, as not long after misconducts began to be assessed.
Angelo Fullerton was the first to go, getting a ten-minute misconduct for not clearing the scene of an altercation. The next altercation was a fight- resulting in automatic game misconducts for Squires & Bernier. Baie-Comeau's Angus Booth picked up a ten for not clearing the scene of the fight in the same sequence.
Without the Eagles leading goal scorer out of the game and his team down 3-0, MacDonald tried to spark the comeback, putting a shot through traffic by Gravel to get the Eagles on the board. But Poirier answered back, scoring a goal similar to his first, and the Drakkar left the period with a 4-1 lead, and a minor power play that carried over into the second frame.
The seconds had just ticked off Antoine Roy's checking to the head penalty when Justin Gill tapped in the puck at the side of the net to push the margin to 5-1. Poirier's fourth goal would spell the end of Ruccia's night before the seven-minute mark.
Lavoie, an eighth-round draft pick of the Eagles in 2023, was given a stiff task in his QMJHL debut as just minutes after he came into the game, MacDonald was ejected for boarding. Dufort capitalized on the five-minute power play, and late in the major, Brayden Schmitt was whistled creating a five on three. While the Eagles killed off the balance of the major, Donovan Arsenault scored on the Schmitt penalty to make the score 8-1.
There were no more goals but still more fireworks to come in the middle stanza, as Newcombe was taken down by Gravel on his way to the net, and then responded with a slash. Both players were given major penalties.
After a lengthy first 40 minutes that took nearly two hours to play, the teams settled down for a third period that contained three minor penalties and a combined twelve shots. Fullerton scored early in the final frame to finish the scoring for the night.
The Eagles will look to stave off elimination on Thursday night in Baie-Comeau for game 5! Puck drop is 8 PM AST. The game will be televised on Eastlink, is available for purchase on https://shorturl.at/foBV9 and you can also hear all the action on 1270 AM CJCB or online at www.cjcbradio.com.
THREE STARS OF THE GAME
1. Justin Poirier (Baie-Comeau) 4 goals, 1 assist, +3
2. Isaac Dufort (Baie-Comeau) 2 goals, 1 assist, +3
3. Justin Gill (Baie-Comeau) 1 goal, 2 assists, +3
Scratches For Cape Breton: Jude Campbell (injury), Noah Larochelle (injury), Jakob Milota (World Under 18s), Etienne Desjardins
Scratches For Baie-Comeau: Jabez Seymour, Kirill Evstigneev, Alexis Mathieu, Mattias Gilbert
Shots On Goal: 32-21 in favour of Baie-Comeau
Cape Breton Power Play: 0/5
Baie-Comeau Power Play: 2/4
NOTES FROM THE GAME
- A four goal performance, including a first period hat trick, from Justin Poirier helped pace the Baie-Comeau to an 8-2 victory over the Cape Breton Eagles in game four of their league semi-final series. With the win, the Drakkar take a 3-1 lead in the series.
- Cam MacDonald & Angelo Fullerton scored the goals for the Eagles in the loss.
- There were no shortage of penalties including five players picking up game misconducts & five-minute majors throughout the night. Cape Breton's Cam Squires, MacDonald, Jacob Newcombe and Baie-Comeau's Alexis Bernier & Charles-Édward Gravel were all ejected from the game.
- Gravel stopped 13 of 14 shots prior to his misconduct penalty, while Lucas Beckman stopped six of seven shots in relief. Nicolas Ruccia took the loss, allowing six goals on 16 shots. Brandon Lavoie made his QMJHL debut in relief, stopping 14 of 16 shots.
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Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League Stories from April 30, 2024
- Drakkar Put Eagles on the Ropes with 8-2 Victory - Cape Breton Eagles
- QMJHL announces finalists for Émile-Bouchard Trophy - QMJHL
- Jean-François Grégoire Wins the Maurice-Filion Trophy - QMJHL
- Eagles Look to Even Series against Drakkar Tonight at Centre 200 - Cape Breton Eagles
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