Thursday, March 29, 2012

3/28 Recap: Leduc pots winner; Shipley picks pair

In the QMJHL, Jerome Gauthier-Leduc scored the game winning goal, his fourth of the series, as Rimouski swept Val-d'Or from the QMJHL playoffs with a 4-3 victory. The QMJHL leading regular season point-getter for defensemen, Leduc again leads the league in the postseason with eight points in four games from the blueline.

The series had a somewhat ugly finish, with fellow Sabres prospect Cedrick Henley (4GP 1-2-3 -1 15 PIM) involved in a skirmish at the final horn and then another shoving match near center match before exiting for the final time this season (below). The Oceanic advance to the second round to face a yet to be determined opponent.

(s/t to Jerome Berube for the video link)

In OHL action, Steven Shipley hit for a pair of goals including one shorthanded as Niagara lost their second in a row to Oshawa, 5-3. The two-goal effort puts the 6'3 center in a tie for the OHL lead with five playoff marks. The series is now locked at two games apiece with game #5 going Saturday in St. Catharines.

Dan Catenacci scored his first goal of the playoffs shorthanded and added an assist as Owen Sound earned an exciting 6-5 overtime win over Kitchener. The Attack get their first win of the series with plenty of work ahead to dig out from their 3-1 deficit. The Attack will again look to extend their season on Friday in Kitchener.



In WHL play, Mark Pysyk notched an assist on the game winner as Edmonton erupted for five third period goals en route to a 6-3 win over Kootenay. Nathan Lieuwen stopped 17 of 18 shots through two periods before allowing four goals in the final frame. He finished the game with 31 saves. The Oil Kings will go for the sweep on Thursday.

In a Wednesday morning tilt, T.J. Brennan scored his 15th goal of the year as Rochester lost to Albany, 2-1. Brennan, who hits the 15-mark for a second straight season, is currently the second leading goal scorer among AHL defenders. The leader, Eric Gelinas of the Devils, has 16 while playing 20 more games.

David Leggio made 32 saves to earn the game's #3 star.

The Rundown:
Brennan: G, -1, 4 SOG
McNabb: A, -1
Adam: 2 SOG
Biega: SOG
Crawford: SOG
Szydlowski: SOG
Lagace: even