Yarmouth Mariners open Fred Page Cup with a 7-4 win

The Yarmouth Mariners have won their first game of the Fred Page Cup eastern Canadian junior A championship tournament with a 7-4 win over the Quebec-league team Sherbrooke Cougars.

The MJAHL champion Mariners opened the scoring one minute and 38 seconds into the game. That goal went unanswered until the Cougars got onto the scoreboard at 13:56 in the first to tie the game. From there on the Mariners maintained the lead, although the Cougars closed the gap a few times, like in the third when they were able to rebound from a 5-2 deficit to bring the score to 5-3, and then 5-4.

But midway through the third the Mariners pulled away with two unanswered goals.

The Mariners’ Dallas Ungurian turned away 25 of 29 shots on net.

Sherbrooke’s Alexandre Dubois stopped 26 of 31 Mariner shots, and was then replaced in net by Vincent Lamontagne who stopped six the Mariners remaining eight shots.

The Mariners outshot the Cougars 14 to six in the first period, by the third period both teams had 11 shots on net.

The Mariners’ next game is Thursday at 4 p.m. against the defending Fred Page Cup champions, the Pembroke Lumber Kings, which the Mariners played and lost to during the pre-season.



Meanwhile, in Wednesday evening's game the Pembroke Lumber Kings defeated the host Pictou County Weeks Crushers 7-1.



The following is a summary of the Mariners scoring in Game 1 of the Fred Page Cup:



1st period:

Danny Anger (Justin Saulnier), 1:38

Justin Saulnier (Scott Sack, Alexandre Soucy) PP, 16:53



2nd period:

Jamie Klie (Soucy, Ryan Penney) PP, 1:20



3rd period:

Ryan Penney (Soucy) 4:09

Brendon MacDonald (Danny Anger, Klie) PP 4:46

Ryan Penney (Cody Lefrancois, Anger) 9:39

Matt Rhymer (Scott Sack) 14:08





SCORING SUMMARY (From New Glasgow Evening News, Transcontinental Media)



FIRST PERIOD

Danny Anger opened the scoring for Yarmouth just 1:38 in, when Cougars goalie Alexandre Dubois failed to control a rebound in front of his crease, giving Anger an easy goal. After Patrick Belzile tied things up at 13:56, Justin Saulnier put the Mariners back ahead minutes later with a power-play goal.



Shots are 14-6 in favour on the Maritime Junior A Hockey League champions after 20 minutes.



SECOND PERIOD



Jamie Klie makes it a two-goal bulge with a slap shot from the point with the man advantage. Yarmouth now has two power play goals. Patrick Belzile replied for Sherbrooke later in the period, his second of the contest.



Shots on goal 14-12 Yarmouth in the second, 28-18 Mariners after 40 minutes.



Solid crowd on hand for an afternoon game with two visiting teams.



THIRD PERIOD



Things get a little wild here. After Ryan Penney and Brendon MacDonald widened the gap to 5-2 with goals 37 seconds apart, Alexandre Gagnon and Carl Chamberland answer back to make it 5-4. Sherbrooke wouldn't get any closer, as Ryan Penney and Scott Sack added insurance goals.