Eagles Open Road Trip With Overtime Win In Quebec
NOTES FROM THE GAME
– Tomas Lavoie’s shot in the right faceoff circle at 3:19 of overtime gave the Eagles a 2-1 victory over the Quebec Remparts in the opening game of the Eagles’ three game road trip in Quebec City. The win extended the Eagles win streak at four and snapped Quebec’s three game winning streak.
– Joey Henneberry opened the scoring for the Eagles with a power play past the halfway mark of regulation, as he & Lavoie both registered two point nights. Peter Valent’s goal for the Remparts in the third period forced the overtime session.
– Alexis Cournoyer picked up the win in goal, stopping 36 of 37 shots. Benjamin Lelièvre stopped 24 of 26 in the loss.
– Loic Mburanumwe was recalled earlier this week from the Yarmouth Mariners by the Eagles, took warmup but did not play in the game.
The first period was played at a fast pace, but with both teams being challenged to generate opportunities. The first stoppage didn’t come until the three minute mark, and at the five minute mark the shots were just 1-0 Quebec. The Eagles did have an opportunity when Valent was sent off for holding, but were unable to capitalize and the period finished with no score. The Remparts outshot the Eagles 11-4 in the opening 20 minutes.
Both teams had power play opportunities in the second period and it was the Eagles who would get their breakthrough. Remparts goaltender Lelièvre was crossed facing the wrong direction and Henneberry was there to convert the rebound after a Lavoie shot, giving the Eagles a 1-0 lead at the 11:10 mark, with the period finishing with the same score.
Quebec’s breakthrough came at the 12:12 mark of the third period. Nathan Quinn won the faceoff on the left wing, sent the puck back to Alexandre Taillefer, who fed the puck to an open Valent at the right point to blast a tying goal by Cournoyer. Neither team could find a breakthrough in the remainder of regulation.
The Eagles outshot the Remparts 4-2 in the extra session, the best scoring opportunity perhaps coming on an Andrew Brown breakaway. He was denied by Lelièvre, but the Remparts couldn’t hold off the Eagles attack. Henneberry started the play on the winning goal, coming into the Quebec zone and skating to the middle of the ice before passing to Lavoie on the open wing. Lavoie blasted the game winner by Lelièvre and the Eagles pushed a winning streak to four games.
The Eagles road trip continues on Saturday with the most important game of the season to date- the battle for fourth place in the Eastern Conference continues as the Eagles visit the Baie-Comeau Drakkar! Puck drop is at 5 PM AST. The game is available for purchase on https://shorturl.at/8Cz1n and you can also hear all the action on 1270 AM CJCB or online at www.cjcbradio.com
THREE STARS OF THE GAME
1. Étienne Desjardins (Quebec)
2. Alexis Cournoyer (Cape Breton) 36 saves on 37 shots
3. Alexandre Taillefer (Quebec) 1 assist
Scratches For Cape Breton: Will Murphy (injury) Nathan Plouffe (injury), Jacob Newcombe (suspension), Loic Mburanumwe
Scratches For Quebec: Benjamin Vigneault (injury), Justin Côté (injury), Xavier Lebel (injury), Jayden Rousseau (injury), Mavrick Rousseau-Hamel (injury), Nathan Wright
Final Shots On Goal: 37-26 in favour of Quebec
Cape Breton Power Play: 1/3
Quebec Power Play: 0/2
