Feb 28 QMJHL - Montreal Juniors Blow Out Lewiston MAINEiacs 7-2

The American national anthem was sung for the last time at the Verdun Auditorium as the Lewiston MAINEiacs, who are playing their last season in the QMJHL, visited the Montreal Juniors in their last meet of the year. An explosive 2nd period with 3 goals within 2 minutes and the Juniors would never look back as, despite incurring many injuries during the game, the Juniors would dispatch the MAINEiacs by a score of 7-2 .

The first period was scoreless thanks to steady goaltending at both ends, however the more dangerous opportunities were handled by Montreal's Jake Allen who was tested early and often as the MAINEiacs were given 2 power-play opportunities. Lewiston, dead last in the league with the man advantage had many good opportunities, but Jake Allen was sharp on all of them. New York Islanders' draft pick Maxime Gratchev put on a skating and stick handling display for a major part of the power-play, but all to no avail. The Juniors, also given 2 PP opportunities themseves, were unable to score against Lewiston, who, coincidentally, were also the league's worst in short handed stats as well. Nick Layton, Montreal's leading scorer, had a golden opportunity as he was fed the puck in the slot and came in all alone on Adrien Lemay, fanned on the shot with a couple of minutes left in the period. Montreal's defenseman, Pat O'Keefe was very involved at both ends of the ice, not only getting a couple of good shots on net, but also skating back on a potential Lewiston break and knocking the MAINEiacs attacker to the boards, forcing him to cough up the puck.

Montreal would get 2 goals within 8 seconds and a third only 1:11 later. Darick Ste-Marie's was a Guillaume Asselin rebound that he stuffed past Lemay, Mathew Brenton scored his 12th before Ste-Marie's could be announced and Nick Layton potted his 26th of the season as he one timed a bounce off the back wall just past Lemay who couldn't get back in time for the save. Captain Matt Fillier, who fell in a heap after being boarded in the late stages of the first period got the assist, as, true to form, showed that he is a warrior and got back on the ice as soon as he could.

With 8:30 left in the second period, the Juniors would capitalize on a golden opportunity when Lewiston's Danick Paquette was given a 5 minute major and a game misconduct for an elbowing head shot on Frank Grzeszczak who had to be helped back to the Juniors' bench. Dmitri Kostromitin wired a blast from the top of the face-off circle for his fifth of the season. In the ensuing play, Lewiston would be given a penalty shot as Pierre-Olivier Morin was hauled down on a break, but Jake Allen stopped the attempt. Allen would, however, lose his shut-out bid on a puck that deflected twice before it went in as Alexander Beaton would put Lewiston on the board at 15:37 of the second period. The MAINEiacs would end the 2nd in the midst of a power-play and start the third with just under a minute left with the man advantage but the score would remain Montreal 4, Lewiston 1.

 Absent in the Juniors' line-up for the third period was Matt Fillier who was showered, dressed and in the stands to watch his teammates come out for the final frame. One would hope the captain's injury was not season ending. No sooner had the period started when Montreal would lose another player when Vincent Bourgeois would get into a knee on knee collision with a Lewiston player and would also leave the game. Montreal's bench, depleted as it now was, would show great perseverance and would also add to their lead with a power play goal as the Juniors' rookie scoring leader Guillaume Asselin would wrist a laser top shelf beating Lemay cleanly. Montreal would have a 5 on 3 opportunity for 41 seconds and would score just as time ran out on the first penalty when Dmitri Kostromitin would get his second of the game. Lewiston would add a second goal, Étienne Brodeur's 10th, but Guillaume Asselin answered in kind only moments later with his second of the night on a nifty give and go between him, Chris Thorne and Dmitri Kostromitin. The game would end with a convincing 7-2 win for the Juniors but with some potential players that may have fallen due to injury.

Montreal now will play a home and away series against Chicoutimi, starting with a home game on Tuesday and away on Friday and with all the fallen soldiers accumulated tonight, one would think the Juniors would be looking for reinforcements

Tags: Dmitri Kostromitin \ Guillaume Asselin \ Jake Allen \ Lewiston MAINEiacs \ LHJMQ \ Matt Fillier \ Montreal juniors \ Nick Layton \ QMJHL