Just two New York Rangers prospect were in action on Saturday with both prospects getting to see their teams come away with big wins. While one was a factor in the outcome of his team’s game, the other got to be a part of his school’s history.
QMJHL Playoffs
After a quiet game one, Raoul Boilard and his Baie-Comeau Drakkar defeated the Cape Breton Eagles 5-2 to grab a 2-0 series lead in the first round playoff series. Boilard had two primary assists as his Drakkar used a three goal second period to defeat the Eagles.
With the game tied at 1-1 in the second period and on the power play, Boilard fired a shot on goal that the Eagles goalie made the save on but it popped right out in front of the goal and Louis-Charles Plourde had an easy put back for the goal that put the Drakkar in front for good in this game at 2-1.
In the third period with his team up 3-2, Boilard set up the dagger goal when he won a faceoff right outside his team’s blueline and the puck wound up on the stick of Samuel Boisvert who broke away from everyone else to score to make it a 4-2 lead for the Drakkar. The Drakkar would add an empty net goal for the final score as the Drakkar send the series to Cape Breton up two games to none.
Boilard with his 0-2-2 came on two shots with a +1 and he was 10-8 on his faceoffs. The two assists improve Boilard’s season totals to 12-36-48 which ties him for second in prospect scoring with Gabe Perreault and gives him the lead in assists.
Game three will be on Tuesday April 1st as the Drakkar hope to grab a 3-0 series lead.
NCAA Regional Final
Ty Henricks and his Western Michigan Broncos were looking to send their team to the Frozen Four for the first time in school history. The Minutemen of UMass-Amherst made them work super hard for that right as the Broncos rallied thanks to two power play goals on a major penalty to defeat the Minutemen 2-1 and advance to the Frozen Four in St. Louis.
Henricks was not used that much in this game as UMass would score in the first period and would dominate play in that period. The Broncos struggled against the UMass defensive play as well as not being able to solve UMass goalie 6’6 Michael Hrabal.
Hrabal kept the Broncos off the scoreboard until late in the second period when UMass’s Aydar Suniev was given a major penalty and game misconduct for a “Hitting from Behind” penalty at 18:13. The Broncos would break through scoring at 18:35 to tie the game at 1-1 and the penalty carried over into the third period.
In the third period just as it looked as if UMass would survive the rest of the penalty, Western Michigan would score it’s second goal of the game at 2:47. Thirteen seconds after the UMass major penalty expired it would be Western Michigan’s turn to be called for a major penalty as Iiro Hakkarainen would get called for “elbowing”.
Western Michigan would kill off the penalty but Ty Henricks never left the bench in the third period. Western Michigan would hold on for the win and advance to the Frozen Four for the first time in program history.
That is the good new as the maybe not so go0d news is that they will face the winner of Sunday’s game between top-seeded Boston College and the team that the Broncos needed two overtimes to defeat in the finals of the NCHC Frozen Playoff the 2024 NCAA champions Denver University.
Speaking of which Sunday will feature a rematch of the 2024 NCAA Frozen Four Finals when Boston College and Denver will meet. Denver smothered Boston College in winning 2-0 and has won five of the last six meetings between the two schools.
The game will televised nationally on ESPN2 starting at 7 EDT/4 PM PDT. If you want to see a great college hockey game this one should be one.
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