All the talk going into this year’s MasterCard Memorial Cup had been about the supposed weak-link host Rimouski Océanic.
And although the Océanic were the first team eliminated from the tournament, nothing could be further from the truth.
Rimouski had three weeks off between their last playoff game and their first Memorial Cup game after being swept by the eventual Québec Major Junior Hockey League champion Drummondville Voltigeurs in the semifinal.
Many thought their long layoff would hurt them to the point where they wouldn’t be able to recover in such a short tournament.
The Océanic lost their first game to the Western Hockey League champion Kelowna Rockets 4-1, making many prognosticators feel confident in their belief that Rimouski was a substandard host.
Rimouski had been given very little respect and perhaps they were able to develop a much-needed chip on their shoulder.
The lack of respect paid to the host team, who had won 28 of 30 games before being swept by Drummondville in the playoffs, was a great rallying point for the team. Rimouski knew the doubters were waiting to bury them, practically hoping to see them fall flat on their face to point out once more that they were the wrong team to host the tournament.
Logan MacMillan, one of the key trade deadline acquisitions from the Halifax Mooseheads, heard all the criticism.
"Leading up to it everyone was saying we weren’t worthy of hosting it," he said. "I think we showed people we deserved to be here."
As a signed prospect of the Anaheim Ducks, this year’s tournament was his last chance at junior hockey glory. MacMillan will begin his pro career in the Ducks’ organization next season, making Thursday’s tiebreaker loss his last game in junior hockey.
As frustrating as the loss was for MacMillan and his teammates, he said the fans can be proud of the way his team played in the tournament, particularly in their final round robin game against Drummondville and again on Thursday against Windsor.
"I think we’re happy with the way we played and obviously it’s a rough ending and not the one (the fans) want, but I think they’ll be alright," he said.
The Windsor Spitfires were long considered the favourite heading into this tournament. After falling behind 0-2, with their second loss coming to the host Océanic, Windsor has been playing catch up in the Memorial Cup.
These two teams provided fans with the two most entertaining games in the tournament by far, with Sunday’s round robin game proving Rimouski’s worth as host.
"The first two periods they had our number," Spitfires defenceman Ryan Ellis said.
"I think that’s a stretch, if anything," Ellis added in regards to the notion Rimouski was a poor choice as host. "They’re a great team and they deserve to be in this tournament and congrats to the season they had, but luckily we beat them out tonight."
Ellis couldn’t have been any more to the point.
His team was indeed lucky to have beaten the host. Windsor trailed 4-2 going into the third period and lacked the kind of passion and determination that made them champions of the Ontario Hockey League.
Rimouski goaltender Maxim Gougeon, who is undrafted and playing in his final junior game, will likely be fitted for goat-horns after allowing four goals in the third period. The fact is, the defence in front of him let him down and there was little the Océanic could do to slow the Spitfires down.
Spitfires forward Eric Wellwood scored the first goal of the game and has developed a penchant for scoring big goals of late. Wellwood, younger brother of Vancouver’s Kyle, scored the overtime game-winning goals over the London Knights in Games 3 and 5 of the OHL Western Conference final.
Wellwood said the Océanic’s moxie reminded him of the Knights.
"(Rimouski) kept coming," he said. "They have great offensive talent and I think they were greatly talked about as a not so good team but they really showed they were a good team."
While it would be simple to say they just weren’t quite good enough to cut it against the three league champions, such a statement would be taking the easy way out. The Océanic held a lead in both of their final two games and badly outplayed the Voltigeurs Wednesday.
Hockey is a game of inches.
Rimouski couldn’t find a way to beat Drummondville goaltender Marco Cousineau when it mattered and Cousineau flat out stole a win for his team. Drummondville then got the much needed day of rest Thursday while waiting for the Spitfires and Océanic’s slugfest to determine their opponent in Friday’s semifinal.
"We probably deserved to win (Wednesday), we carried the play but (Cousineau) played exceptionally well," MacMillan said. "If we got a bounce and scored another goal (Wednesday) we’d be waiting on Friday for who we’d be playing. Every team could say that and be better off but that’s just the way it goes."
And so goes the Océanic’s season. In a Memorial Cup where they were disrespected, downplayed and disregarded, the Océanic didn’t win the coveted trophy but earned the respect of the league.
Hats off to the host.
