Nov 13 Montreal Juniors Gain a Well Earned 2 Points, Bérubé Shines Vs the PEI Rockets in a 1-0 Victory

It was a case of "something old, something new" at the Verdun Auditorium on this night as The Montreal Juniors hosted the Prince Edward Island Rockets in the latests QJMHL matchup. Representing the new, the Juniors announced earlier this week that a new addition was made to their line-up. Toni Ritter, an 18 year old forward from Germany had finally cleared all red tape and was eligible to be placed on the team roster. Ritter, a 6'3", 198 pounder made his début in the "Q" tonight. If the name "The Rocket" rings a bell, then you will have caught the "old" reference to the earlier quoted phrase, as the PEI team was once a Montreal franchise. While the goals weren't aplenty, the action surely was and the Juniors were able to show that they could battle back from adversity after a 4-0 loss at home a few days before at the hands of the Lacadie-Bathurst Titans.

In a not so surprising move, coach Pascal Vincent had rookie walk-on goalie Jean-François Bérubé start tonight's game. Bérubé came on to replace star goalie Jake Allen in period one of the Juniors' last game when the Titans blasted 3 quick goals past him to start the contest. With an inter division game tomorrow in Gatineau and a game the very next day against a strong Moncton team, the time was right to give Bérubé a start. It could also serve as a message to the rest of the team that they would have to try to win without necessarily relying on their golie to win it for them.

Montreal got off to a good start as they had the lion's share of scoring opportunities with 18 shots on net with most of them being legitimate chances but the Rockets' Bobby Nadeau was up to the task. Angelo Esposito could have lifted the Juniors ahead on a break-away attempt midway through the first but missed just wide. PEI had 14 shots of their own, easily handled by Bérubé but handled nonetheless.

The second period provided more of the same and although neither team scored, it was a very entertaining game until that point with both teams exchanging power-play opportunities with no goals but lots of chances that kept the 3097 fans extremely entertained. Montreal maintained their dominance over the Rockets, limiting them to only 5 shots in the period while keeping the pressure on Nadeau with another 11 shots on net.

The third period would give Montreal the opportunity  they were looking for all night. Moments after Esposito over-skated the puck on another break due to a wet ice surface, TJ Brennan was literally wall-papered into the boards by Chris Doyle. The Rockets' leading scorer would get a 5 minute major and a game suspension for hitting from behind. The Juniors wasted no time on the ensuing power-play with Pat O'Keefe letting a laser fly from the blue line before one minute had elapsed for his 2nd of the season. "After that last game and all the chances we have had, it sure felt good to see one go in and Jean-François (Bérubé) played really well and kept us in it all night" exclaimed a very happy Pat O'Keefe. The Juniors were unable to add an insurance goal for the remainder of the man-advantage and could have ended up regretting it as they were promptly called for a bench minor of too many men on the ice and roughing to Alex Wall, but the Juniors and Jean-François Bérubé shut the Rockets down. Bérubé, who gladly skated out for the 1st star announcement, played down the shut-out win, "The guys really worked hard and the defencemen realy cleared the way for me, letting me see the puck".

The Montreal Juniors played an inspired game tonight, succeeding in many areas: puck possession, battles to the puck and along the boards as well as scoring opportunities. They also showed they were able to play with a lead. Although they were ahead by a slim margin of 1-0, they never let up and actually instigated as many scoring chances as their opponents, taking advantage of the Rockets'  late attempts at a comeback and converting them into odd man rushes. Even as Luke Adam went off for tripping with a minute left in the game, the team showed poise and composure. And as the last lineof defense, Jean-François Bérubé was solid and kept his team alive. "I'm not surprised" said coach Vincent. "He is great during practice and always working hard. His only problem is that he's behind a guy named Jake Allen"  If Bérubé continues to shine when given the opportunity, others might come knocking. "I've received a few calls from NHL teams asking about Jean-François." commented Vincent on his number 2 goaltender and hero of the night. 

A job well done, a game well played. A team effort.Now, the next step is consistency and they will get that opportunity in Gatineau tomorrow vs the Olympiques and back home on Sunday against the Moncton Wildacats.

Tags: Angelo Esposito \ Jean-Francois Berube \ LHJMQ \ Montreal juniors \ Pascal Vincent \ PEI Rocket \ QJMHL