EDMUNDSTON, N.B. – Led by an electrifying performance from William Labranche, the Edmundston Blizzard scored an easy 6-2 win over the Campbellton Tigers on Saturday at the Jean-Daigle Centre, bringing the 52-game schedule to a close for both teams.
The Blizzard joined the Grand Falls Rapids in second place in the Eastlink North Division. Both teams have 66 points. Grand Falls will play its last game in Grand Bouctouche on Sunday against the West Kent Steamers, who sit atop the division, one point ahead of Grand Falls and Edmundston. If the Rapids win in regulation or overtime/shootout, they will be crowned division champions. If they lose in regulation time, they will finish in third place and the Blizzard will end the season in second place. If the Rapids lose in overtime/shootout, they will finish second.
The Blizzard’s victory was never in doubt, especially since the Tigers were playing with a reduced roster. Only 14 of 18 possible skaters were in uniform. Edmundston took a 3-0 lead after 20 minutes of play and led 5-0 at the end of the second period.
William Labranche once again demonstrated his great playmaking skills by setting up four goals.
Charles-Éric Tremblay (18th and 19th), Lucas Fortin (5th), Michael Derbidge (10th), Néka Jean (7th), and François-Xavier Mercier (7th) found the back of the net. The Tigers fought back late in the game with goals from Adam Véronneau (27th) and Xavier Guillemette (5th).
The goalies were kept busy. Cédric Massé faced 42 shots in front of the Blizzard net, while his counterpart, Niko Boudreau, faced 49 shots.
Labranche (1st), Massé (2nd), and Derbidge (3rd) were named the stars of the game, which was played in front of 2,548 spectators.
Labranche finished the season with 68 points (32 G, 36 A) in 38 games. He has the best points-per-game average (1.79) in the league. His teammate Darien Thomson finished the season with 76 points (40 G, 36 A), good for third place in the MHL.
The Blizzard is waiting for the result of tomorrow’s Rapids-Steamers game before knowing its final ranking and who it will face in the opening round of the playoffs.
Here are the Eastlink North standings after Saturday’s games: West Kent (51 games, 30-14-4-3 = 67 pts), Grand Falls (51 games, 30-15-5-1 = 66 pts), Edmundston (52 games, 30-16-3-3 = 66 pts), Chaleur (52 games, 31-18-2-1 = 65 pts), Campbellton (52 games, 15-29-6-2 = 38 pts), Miramichi (52 games, 15-33-3-1 = 34 pts).
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Photo
William Labranche gave the Tigers’ defense a run for their money on Saturday with four assists. Photo Percy Picard.
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Source: Hugues Chiasson, communications – Edmundston Blizzard (506) 253-7741