Road to Memorial Cup daily: Steinman backstops Moncton to a Game 1 victory
CHL THREE STARS
Jacob Steinman was an absolute wall in the net for the Moncton Wildcats on Friday night. Facing their Maritime rivals in the opening game of the series, the 18-year-old goaltender turned away 39-of-40 shots in order to give the Wildcats a surprising Game 1 victory over the Halifax Mooseheads. Having turned away the first 35 shots he faced before giving up a late goal, Steinman’s grand total of 39 saves matched a career-high for the QMJHL rookie.
Sherbrooke’s Jacob Melanson (SEA) set a new career-high in the playoffs by tallying four points (2G, 2A) — including the game-winning and insurance goal for the Phoenix. Melanson seemed to pick off where he left off this regular season, which saw the 2021 Seattle Kraken fifth-round draft pick score 50 goals. He was only one of six goal-scorers in the QMJHL to top the 50-goal plateau this season.
After allowing two goals on the first 19 shots he faced, Arizona Coyotes prospect Anson Thornton (ARI) turned aside all 20 shots the Battalion threw his way, which helped his Barrie Colts rally from a two-goal deficit to win in overtime 3-2. In total, Thornton, who scored the Colts’ first-ever goalie goal in franchise history a little over a week ago, made 39 saves — a career-high for the 19-year-old in his OHL postseason career.
OHL
Eastern Conference
(1) Ottawa vs. (4) Peterborough — Ottawa leads series 1-0
Game 1: 67’s 4-2 Petes
- In their return to TD Place, Jack Beck (CAL) scored twice including the game-winner to give the 67’s a win at home
- Logan Morrison (SEA) scored his OHL-leading 8th goal of the post-season, while tacking on two assists — extending his playoff point streak to 25 games
- Luca Pinelli notched one assist to give him 13 points in the playoffs — good for 3rd in the OHL alongside teammate Morrison
- 67’s rookie blueliner Henry Mews scored his first career OHL playoffs goal
- Tucker Robertson (SEA) and J.R. Avon (PHI) both scored for the Petes, while Michael Simpson made 32 saves in the loss
(2) North Bay vs. (3) Barrie — Barrie leads series 1-0
Game 1: Colts 3-2 Battalion (OT)
- Capping off a run of three unanswered goals, Josh Kavanagh scored less than two minutes into overtime to give the Colts victory
- Brandt Clarke (LAK) scored his 6th goal and OHL-leading 18th point of the postseason
- Zach Wigle had the other Barrie goal, while Evan Vierling notched a pair of primary assists
- Ty Nelson (SEA) and Owen Van Steensel scored for the Battalion as North Bay outshot Barrie 41-30
- Anson Thornton (ARI) stood tall, making 39 saves in the win
THE COLTS STEAL A WIN IN NORTH BAY 🔥
Josh Kavanagh buries the overtime winner and the @OHLBarrieColts score three unanswered to open a 1-0 series lead! 🎥#OHLPlayoffs | #NBvsBAR pic.twitter.com/FVLbrMKTs8
— Ontario Hockey League (@OHLHockey) April 15, 2023
Western Conference
(2) London vs. (8) Kitchener — London leads series 2-0
Game 2: Knights 8-4 Rangers
- Eight different skaters recorded goals for the Knights, including Ruslan Gazizov who tallied a goal and three assists
- Francesco Arcuri (DAL) tallied a game-high two goals in defeat
- Brett Brochu made 25 saves in victory, while Kitchener’s Marco Costantini gave up five goals on 19 shots before being relieved by Marcus Vandenberg
- London finished 2-for-9 on the power play, while the Rangers went 2-for-3 on the night
- Kitchener was without their captain (LAK) Francesco Pinelli, who served the final game of a three-game suspension
Craner picks his spot 🎯 #GoKnightsGo | #NHLDraft pic.twitter.com/rmgfPpgdZm
— London Knights (@LondonKnights) April 15, 2023
(3) Sarnia vs. (4) Saginaw — Sarnia leads series 1-0
Game 1: Sting 3-0 Spirit
- Benjamin Gaudreau (SJ) stopped all 26 shots he faced to earn his second shutout of the playoffs — a new Sting franchise record for shutouts in a single postseason
- Easton Wainwright, Zach Filak and Sasha Pastujov (ANA) tallied the game’s only three goals, while Nolan Burke added two assists
- Tristan Lennox (NYI) turned away 21 of the 23 shots he faced
QMJHL
Eastern Conference
(1) Quebec vs. (5) Rimouski — Quebec leads series 1-0
Game 1: Remparts 6-3 Océanic
- Both Zachary Bolduc (ANA) and Nathan Gaucher (ANA) scored a pair of goals to help Quebec take the opening game of the series
- Bolduc (ANA) now leads all Quebec scorers with five goals this post-season
- Theo Rochette and Charle Truchon rounded out the scoring for the Remparts in this contest
- Alexander Gaudio, William Dumoulin and Julien Beland tallied goals for the visiting Océanic
(2) Halifax vs. (3) Moncton — Moncton leads series 1-0
Game 1: Wildcats 4-1 Mooseheads
- 18-year-old Jacob Steinman matched a career-high by making 39 saves in the Wildcats’ victory
- Steinman’s performance was particularly impressive when you consider that he held a 1-4, 5.36 GAA, .834 SV% against the Mooseheads this season
- Vincent Labelle, Natan Grenier, Yoan Loshing and Maxim Barbashev (NYR) scored for Moncton in this opening game
- Etienne Morin tallied a pair of assists to give him the QMJHL scoring lead with 15 points
- Brady Schultz recorded a late third-period goal for the Mooseheads, who outshot the visiting Wildcats 40-28
❌ Steinman frustrating the Moose and the crowd early on. ❌ pic.twitter.com/ldgQzL8PjU
— Moncton Wildcats (@monctonwildcats) April 14, 2023
Western Conference
(1) Sherbrooke vs. (6) Drummondville — Sherbrooke leads series 1-0
Game 1: Phoenix 7-3 Voltigeurs
- Jacob Melanson (SEA) scored a pair and added two assists in a winning effort for Sherbrooke — a new playoff career-high for the Kraken prospect
- Israel Mianscum recorded two and an assist, while his teammate Jakub Brabenec (VGK) chipped in with three assists for the Phoenix
- Milo Roelens, David Spacek (MIN) and Joshua Roy (MTL) were the other goal-scorers for Sherbrooke
- Luke Woodworth, Maveric Lamoureux (ARI) and Tyler Peddle tallied the three goals for the Voltigeurs
- Phoenix went 3-for-3 on the power play, while the Voltigeurs were 1-for-4
(2) Gatineau vs. (4) Rouyn-Noranda — Gatineau leads series 1-0
Game 1: Olympiques 5-0 Huskies
- Olympiques netminder Francesco Lapenna made 24 saves to post his CHL-leading third shutout of the postseason
- Marcel Marcel scored a pair of goals, while Alexis Gendron (PHI) recorded his QMJHL-leading 9th goal of the postseason and added an assist in the win
- Olivier Nadeau (BUF) and Cameron MacDonald (TBL) rounded out the scoring for Gatineau, and Samuel Savoie (CHI) posted two assists on the scoresheet
- Huskies goalie Thomas Couture made 35 saves in the loss
Au tour d'Alexis Gendron de marquer! Une passe à Riley Kidney!
Alexis Gendron (@NHLFlyers) scores on a pass from Riley Kidney (@CanadiensMTL)!
ROU | 0-4 | GAT#goOLgo♠️ pic.twitter.com/rc0FSwpadx
— Olympiques de Gatineau (@OlympiquesGAT) April 15, 2023
WHL
Eastern Conference
(1) Winnipeg vs. (4) Moose Jaw — Winnipeg leads series 1-0
Game 1: ICE 5-3 Warriors
- Matthew Savoie (BUF) scored his 7th of the post-season and notched two assists in the Game 1 victory for the ICE
- Savoie’s 13 points this post-season are the most of any active player still competing in the WHL playoffs
- Zach Benson, Owen Pederson, Connor McClennon and Graham Sward (NAS) also scored goals for Winnipeg, while Conor Geekie (ARI) recorded two assists
- Brayden Yager, Jagger Firkus (SEA) and Maximus Wanner (EDM) tallied the Warriors’ goals
- ICE goaltender Daniel Hauser made 26 saves while Moose Jaw’s Connor Ungar stopped 32 shots
(2) Red Deer vs. (3) Saskatoon — Red Deer leads series 1-0
Game 1: Rebels 3-1 Blades
- Jace Isley and Jhett Larson scored the game’s first two goals in order to help give the Rebels a lead they would never look back from
- Christoffer Sedoff (VGK) would add empty-netter an empty-netter late to secure the victory for Red Deer
- Saskatoon’s lone goal came from Jake Chiasson (EDM) with less than two minutes to go in the game
- Kyle Kelsey made 23 saves in victory, while Blades goaltender stopped 17 of the 19 shots he faced
- Both teams failed to convert on the power play, both going 0-for-3
Western Conference
(1) Seattle vs. (4) Prince George — Seattle leads series 1-0
Game 1: Thunderbirds 4-1 Cougars
- Dylan Guenther (ARI) led the way, scoring the game’s first two goals to help the Thunderbirds edge the Cougars
- Guenther’s 7 goals this post-season are the most of any active player still competing in the WHL playoffs
- Lucas Ciona (CAL) and Nico Myatovic potted the other goals for the T-Birds, while their teammate Brad Lambert (WPG) recorded three assists
- Koehn Ziemmer scored the lone goal for Cougars, who were outshot 44-24
- Prince George netminder Ty Young (VAN) made 40 saves in defeat
- Seattle’s Thomas Milic turned aside 23-of-24 shots
- Milic leads all WHL goalies this postseason with a 1.00 GAA and .958 SV% — he’s also only given up five goals in five games during these playoffs
It's been nine days since we've seen #SpicyDyl🌶 in #WHLPlayoffs action…
There's a reason why we know how long it's been…
It's because he does things like this…
Things that we really, really like.@SeattleTBirds | @ArizonaCoyotes | #FeedingtheFuture pic.twitter.com/3AN8x6K5V6
— The WHL (@TheWHL) April 15, 2023
(2) Kamloops vs. (3) Portland — Kamloops leads series 1-0
Game 1: Blazers 6-4 Winterhawks
- Jakub Demek (VGK) recorded a pair of goals, while Olen Zellweger (ANA) tallied a couple of assists in the Blazers’ narrow Game 1 victory
- Emmitt Finnie, Fraser Minten (TOR), Matthew Seminoff (DAL) and Logan Stankoven (DAL) had the other goals for Kamloops
- Winterhawks James Stefan scored his first career WHL hat-trick in the loss
- Stefan’s 7 goals this post-season are the most of any active player still competing in the WHL playoffs
- Marcus Nguyen had the other goal for Portland in this Game 1 defeat
We'll raise you one 14-game point streak to one 15-game point streak.
Emmitt Finnie stays hot for the @blazerhockey!#WHLPlayoffs | #FeedingtheFuture pic.twitter.com/78sobeJ93S
— The WHL (@TheWHL) April 15, 2023
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