Screaming Eagles stifle Wildcats
Cape Breton kills off seven penalties in 5-2 road win over Moncton
Sporting the league’s best power play, the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles showed off their penalty-killing prowess in a 5-2 win over the Moncton Wildcats on Sunday.
The Eagles, who score 30.7 per cent of the time with the man-advantage, kept up their average by going 1-for-3 on the power play, but it was their stinginess when a man short that led them to the win before a crowd of 3,508 at the Moncton Coliseum.
Cape Breton killed off all seven minor penalties in a contest that saw the host Wildcats fire 42 shots on goalie Kevin Mandolese, who was named the game’s third star. For their part, the Screaming Eagles managed 33 shots on Moncton goalie Mark Grametbauer.
Tyler Hylland opened the scoring just 68 minutes into the game before Egor Sokolov netted his 10th goal of the season halfway through the opening period.
Moncton’s 16-year-old wunderkind Jakob Pelletier scored in the second frame, but that was as close as the Wildcats would get.
The game’s pivotal moment came with just 48 seconds remaining in the second period when Screaming Eagles captain Phélix Martineau sprang out of the penalty box after serving two minutes for slashing, picked up the puck and scored what would prove to be the game-winning goal.
Mathias Laferriére and Peyton Hoyt added third period markers for Cape Breton, while Martineau, QMJHLleading scorer Drake Batherson (17 goals, 20 assists, 37 points) and 16-year-old rookie Brooklyn Kalmikov each added two assists. Anderson MacDonald scored the other Moncton goal.
The Sunday matinee was the second game in as many days for Cape Breton following Saturday afternoon’s 6-5 shootout loss to the Mooseheads in Halifax. Kalmikov scored a hat trick for the Eagles, while Hoyt and Adam McCormick each scored once.
Cape Breton (12-9-1-1) now has 26 points, good for 10th overall in the Québec Major Junior Hockey League and fifth in the Maritimes Division. However, the division is extremely tight with Moncton, Halifax and Bathurst each on 29 points. Charlottetown has 27 points, while the cellar-dwelling Saint John Sea Dogs have 15 points.
The Screaming Eagles are back in action Wednesday when they host the Sea Dogs. Puck drops at 7 p.m.
NOTES: Kyle McGrath made his season debut on Saturday after being out with a collarbone injury he sustained in pre-season play ... 15-yearold Ryan Francis, who has impressed offensively (eight goals, six assists) engaged in his first QMJHL fight on Sunday.