FREDERICTON, Nouveau-Brunswick – Led by a devastating power-play unit, the Edmundston Blizzard crushed the Fredericton Red Wings, winning 7-2 on Sunday afternoon in the provincial capital.
The Blizzard scored five power-play goals, matching a team mark set on November 2, 2019 in Yarmouth.
With three points each, Carl-Anthony Massé (2g, 1a; 2nd star) and Philippe Collette (3a; 3rd star) led the Blizzard attack (25-9-1-0 = 51pts), who are now just one point off the Eastlink North Division lead occupied by the West-Kent Steamers (25-9-2-0 = 52pts). Edmundston has a game in hand and can move into first place on Wednesday (7:30 p.m.) when they host the Campbellton Tigers.
Ryan Loveless (10th, 1g, 1a; 1st star), Dominic LeBlanc (18th, 1g, 1a), Anastasios Lazaris (1st), Justin Hébert (11th) and Jérémy Fortin (20th) scored the other Blizzard goals. Félix Bédard added two assists.
Carter McCluskey (1g, 1a) and Landon Paul found the back of the net for the Red Wings (15-15-2-2 = 34pts).
Less busy, Nicholas Sheehan won his 20th game of the season blocking 26 shots in front of the Blizzard cage. His opponent Yacine Chemrouk was bombarded with 50 pucks. Had it not been for his brilliance in the first period and the Blizzard’s numerous missed chances, Edmundston could have scored more than 10 goals in this game.
The game was interrupted for more than 20 minutes at 16:38 of the second period when forward Ryan Loveless collided heavily against the boards after being hooked by a Red Wings defenseman. The 18-year-old from Paradise, Newfoundland, was taken to the Dr. Everett Chalmers Regional Hospital in Fredericton. According to the latest news, he is suffering from upper-body pain and the injury would be less serious than feared. As a precautionary measure, he will undergo tests before returning to Edmundston. Loveless was undoubtedly having one of his best games of the season, literally flying across the ice. He deservedly earned the game’s first star.
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Photo
Ryan Loveless earned the game’s first star. However, he had to leave the game following a violent collision with the board late in the second period. Photo archives Percy Picard
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Contact: Hugues Chiasson, vice-president communications – The Edmundston Blizzard; (506) 740-0623 – cell phone