Rimouski looks to force Game 7 against Moncton in QMJHL Final
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The Rimouski Oceanic are looking to force a Game 7 against the Moncton Wildcats in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League Championship Series on Monday afternoon.
Rimouski was able to keep their championship hopes alive on Saturday by defeating the Wildcats 3-1 at the Avenir Centre in Moncton in Game 5.
The series now shifts back to Rimouski as they try to become the sixth team in QMJHL history to complete the reverse sweep and come back from a 0-3 deficit.
Captain Jacob Mathieu was the hero offensively on Saturday with a pair of goals while goaltender Mathis Langevin took his game to another level, making 33 saves in the nail-biting victory.
Mathieu now has three goals and five points in the series and is second in QMJHL playoff scoring with 16 goals and 29 points, one shy of Moncton's Caleb Desnoyers.
"As the captain and overage player, [Mathieu] is someone who is going to set the competitive tone for the team," TSN Director of Scouting Craig Button said after the game. "The goals speak for themselves, but when you watch him play you see someone who's really setting the tone for the Oceanic."
Forward Mael Lavigne scored the eventual game winner for Rimouski in the second period after the two teams traded goals in the first frame.
Langevin was kept busy all evening after the team was outshot 34-23 in the match and had to be especially sharp in the third period with Moncton outshooting the Oceanic 10-4 while pushing for the tying marker.
The rookie netminder has been a force to be reckoned with in the playoffs, leading the league with a 1.47 goals-against average and .947 save percentage to go along with his 12-3 record.
"He looks right now that he's in that zone and locked in," said Button. "When you think about a goaltender that's playing at this level, Moncton has got to find a way to find something to disrupt him. If you don't disrupt him and let him get a clean look at the shot, he's going to make the save."
Forward Preston Lounsbury scored the lone goal for the Wildcats, who suffered their first defeat at home since Jan. 25, which was also at the hands of the Oceanic.
The Oceanic have an opportunity to become the first team to force a Game 7 since the Gatineau Olympiques accomplished the feat against the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles in the first round of the 2017 QMJHL playoffs. Cape Breton was able to survive the scare with a 5-4 overtime victory in Game 7
The Val-d'Or Foreurs were the last team to complete the comeback during the second round of the 2015 playoffs against the Baie-Comeau Drakkar.
"Are we going to get this done in seven? I don't know," Oceanic head coach Joël Perrault said after Game 5. "I wish I knew, but it wouldn't make as much fun if we knew. You're not out until the other team has won four [games]. We've been tested a lot in these players which is why I keep saying that this group is resilient. They have character and they're never going to give up.
"All we know is that we're playing Game 6 in front of our fans and we'll do what we can to get our fans to cheer and hopefully come back [to Moncton] for Game 7."
Despite losing back-to-back games for the first time since September, Wildcats head coach Gardiner MacDougall feels that there is no panic in his dressing room and that this is just another good experience for his club as they also prepare for the Memorial Cup.
"It's a big experience for these guys," said MacDougall after the game. "It's an older team, but a team that doesn't have a lot of experience of success so our team has really grown coming into this.
"This group has gotten grittier and have found different ways to have success. We have 15 wins [in the playoffs] with nine or 10 of them being by one goal. We get another crack at it, and we just have to find a way to be one goal better. To win a championship is not always easy so this is going to be a good growing point for our group."
If Rimouski wins Game 6, the series will shift back to Moncton for Game 7 on Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT on TSN3, TSN.ca, and the TSN App.
The Memorial Cup begins on Friday with host Rimouski taking on the Western Hockey League Champion Medicine Hat Tigers at 6:30 p.m. ET/3:30 p.m. which can be watched LIVE on TSN, the home of the Memorial Cup.