QMJHL Charlottetown Islanders

Islanders Drop Final Game of the Weekend 3-2 in the Shootout

Published on November 25, 2018 under Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL)
Charlottetown Islanders News Release


It took some extra time to decide a winner this afternoon at the Eastlink Centre; unfortunately for the Charlottetown Islanders, they would be on the down side of a losing score.

Ivan Chekhovich would net the shootout winner, and the Baie-Comeau Drakkar would defeat Islanders 2-1 in the shootout.

The Islanders came out of the gate hot, putting pressure on Drakkar starter Kyle Jessiman immediately. The pressure paid off; after winning a forecheck battle down low, the puck came out to Hunter Drew at the point. He tee'd up a slapshot that blew past Jessiman to open the scoring just 1:27 in to the game. Daniel Hardie and Derek Gentile drew the assists on Drew's fifth goal on the year.

Charlottetown diligently stayed on top of the Drakkar, stifling their high-powered offence every chance they could. A team known for piling pucks in to the net were held scoreless for the first half of the game thanks to stout defensive work and stellar goaltending from Matthew Welsh.

The Drakkar would eventually tie the game up thanks to overage forward Jordan Martel. the Chicoutimi native would find a Chris Benoit pass down low and make a quick move to shift to his backhand and roof it on Matthew Welsh for his ninth goal of the year.

As the third period opened up, the physical play picked up. a number of big hits were thrown at both ends of the ice. The Drakkar would lose one of their top defensemen to the physical play midway through the third, and not in a good way; Vegas Golden Knights prospect Xavier Bouchard would cross-check Derek Gentile from behind midway through the third period, warranting a five-minute major and a game misconduct.

60 minutes would eventually come and go and the score remained tied, sending the Islanders to their third overtime game this week. The extra five minutes would yield no victor either, sending this game to a shootout.

It was in the shootout that Chekhovich would make no mistake for Baie-Comeau, winding in slowly on Welsh and slickly deking out the Islanders netminder to take the extra point for the Drakkar.

Both goalies were spectacular between the pipes tonight; Kyle Jessiman made 36 saves for Baie-Comeau in the victory, while Matthew Welsh stopped 41 pucks in the defeat.

Despite the defeat, Welsh says that this week was a big one, taking six points out of a possible eight over some stiff competition.

"This was probably our hardest weekend of the year, and to come out with six of the eight points is huge for us." said the netminder. "We had two tough OT losses, first in Halifax and again here, but those games could go either way."

"That just shows we're one of the top teams in the league, and I think it's about time that other teams in the league start believing it as well."

The Islanders are back in action at home Friday, November 30th, as the Acadie-Bathurst Titan come to town on Olde Dublin Pub Happy Hour. Join us for $3 19+ beverages an hour before and an hour after the game, along with live music and apps! Tickets are available at the Eastlink Centre box office, by phone at 902-619-6625, or online at https://boxoffice.eastlinkcentrepei.com. We'll see you then!

Check out the Charlottetown Islanders Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League Stories from November 25, 2018


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central