EDMUNDSTON, New Brunswick – From the opening faceoff to the final whistle, the Edmundston Blizzard players displayed such confidence that victory was never in doubt. The Blizzard defeated the Chaleur Lightning 6-3 in the opening game of the best-of-seven final series of the Metalfab MHL Cup Eastlink North Division.
The Blizzard enjoyed a great start against goaltender Jack Flanagan right from the first period, forcing him out of the game after he allowed a fourth goal to the home team.
William Labranche (5th, at 2:24), Émile Fournier (2nd, at 6:23), and Darien Thomson (1st, at 14:39) gave the Blizzard a 3-0 lead in front of a lively crowd of 2,216 gathered at the Jean-Daigle Centre. The Lightning got back into the game thanks to a goal by Carter Bromley (5th, at 18:10). But the Blizzard crushed their opponents’ spirits with a shot from a tight angle by Noah Larochelle (2nd, at 18:49), a goal that turned out to be the game-winner. From that point on, Flanagan was replaced by George Foti, who finished the game in the Lightning’s net.
In the second period, Chaleur cut the deficit to 4-2 thanks to Easton Adrian (1st, at 3:38). But the Blizzard quickly regained a three-goal lead through Darien Thomson, who scored his second goal of the game at 5:30. Edmundston took a 6-2 lead when Lucas Fortin scored his second goal of the playoffs at 14:42.
In the third period, the Lightning scored the only goal following a rush by Bromley (6th) at 12:15, who broke away after coming out of the penalty box.
Goaltender Cédric Massé once again lived up to his reputation. He stopped 20 of the 23 shots by Chaleur. The Blizzard fired 39 shots on the Lightning’s two goalies.
Darien Thomson (1st – 2 goals, 1 assist), Michael Derbidge (2nd – 3 assists), and Émile Fournier (3rd – 1 goal, 1 assist) were named the game’s stars.
The series moves to the K.C. Irving Centre in Bathurst for Game 2 on Thursday, April 2 (7 p.m.). The Blizzard will need to overcome its demons there, as they lost their four matchups of the regular season games at the Lightning’s home arena.
Here is the series schedule:
Tuesday, March 31: Chaleur 3 at Edmundston 6
Thursday, April 2 (7 p.m.) in Bathurst
Saturday, April 4 (7:30 p.m.) in Edmundston
Tuesday, April 7 (7 p.m.) in Bathurst
Thursday, April 9 (7:30 p.m.) in Edmundston (if necessary)
Saturday, April 11 (7:00 p.m.) in Bathurst (if necessary)
Wednesday, April 15 (7:30 p.m.) in Edmundston (if necessary)
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Photo
Darien Thomson had his best game of the playoffs, scoring his first two goals of the series and adding an assist. Photo by Percy Picard
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Contact: Hugues Chiasson, vice-president communications – The Edmundston Blizzard; (506) 740-0623 – cell phone