Eagles Edged By Océanic In Sydney
NOTES FROM THE GAME
– Two empty net goals helped a Cape Breton Eagle rally fall short as the Eagles were defeated 5-2 by the Rimouski Océanic on Friday in Sydney. Mathieu Cataford led the Rimouski attack with a goal and two assists.
– Fresh off having played an NHL exhibition game last night, Cam Squires made his season debut for the Eagles, scoring both Cape Breton goals. His second goal was on the power play, the first Eagles power play goal of the season.
– Cataford opened the scoring, marking the first time this season the Eagles allowed the first goal of the game. It was also the first time Rimouski opened the scoring this season, the last team in the league to do so.
– Samuel St-Hilaire stopped 29 of 31 shots in the Rimouski win, while Jakob Milota stopped 14 of 17 shots in addition to the two empty net goals.
The Eagles started hot, outshooting Rimouski 15-8 but it was the visitors who took the lead after the opening period. Cataford opened the scoring finishing a passing play, and with 43 seconds to play in the opening stanza Olivier Théberge scored on a rebound on a sharp angle to make it 2-0.
Both teams would score in the opening five minutes of the middle frame- just 64 seconds apart. First it was Loic Francoeur beating Milota with a high backend, before Squires put the Eagles on the board with a redirect of a Luke Patterson shot.
It remained a 3-1 game heading into the third period, a fast flowing 20 minutes that saw eight minutes played without a whistle. The Eagles seemed to have the momentum when a Squires one timer found the back of the net on the man advantage. The Eagles pressed and pulled the goaltender in the final three minutes in an attempt to equalize.
It was not to be as Quinn Kennedy wired the puck nearly the length of the ice for an empty net marker. Less than a minute later after gaining control of the Rimouski zone, the net was empty again and this time it was Jacob Mathieu capitalizing to make it a 5-2 final.
The Eagles will finish their home game stand on Sunday afternoon as the Quebec Remparts- featuring this year’s #1 QMJHL draft pick Maddox Dagenais and St. Louis Blues prospect Antoine Dorion- make their only visit of the season to Centre 200. It’s the final home game on the Eagles four game home stand.
Puck drop is at 3 PM, and it’s the final game on the Eagles four game home stand. Tickets can be purchased at https://shorturl.at/zAr5D They are also available for purchase in person at the Centre 200 box office and by the phone during box office hours at 902-564-2200
THREE STARS OF THE GAME
1. Cam Squires (Cape Breton) 2 goals, 4 shots, 4 hits
2. Mathieu Cataford (Rimouski) 1 goal, 2 assists
3. Tomas Lavoie (Cape Breton) 1 assist, 3 shots, 4 hits
Scratches For Cape Breton: Cam Squires (injury), Angelo Fullerton (injury), Brayden Schmitt (injury), Noah Larochelle (injury), Carson Griffin, Alexis Toussaint
Scratches For Rimouski: Anthony Gaudet (injury), Lyam Jacques (injury), Maël St-Denis (injury), Connor Sturgeon
Final Shots On Goal: 31-19 in favour of Cape Breton
Cape Breton Power Play: 1/3
RimouskI Power Play: 0/2