Patrick King

The Wildcats received an unexpected boost when the Flyers returned Nicola Riopel.

Nicola Riopel found redemption in fashionable style Wednesday night.

The Moncton Wildcats goaltender was perfect in posting a 34-save shutout and giving his team a 3-1 series lead over the Drummondville Voltigeurs. Riopel's shutout came one night after allowing a goal on a strange bounce that has seemingly characterized the last week of playoff hockey.

Drummondville's Charles Landry threw the puck towards the net from the corner and behind the goal-line which redirected off Riopel's right leg and in for the overtime winner in Game 3.

"I don't think it was a bad goal," Riopel said Thursday. "It was just a broken play and I didn't even see the shot coming because my D-man was right in front of the puck.

"It was just a lucky bounce."

Riopel is able to look on the bright side and chalk it up to an unfortunate bounce and bad visibility. It was just another strange goal in a week that has offered up plenty of surprises in both junior and professional playoff action.

The Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League lost the third game of their best-of-seven series with the Kitchener Rangers on Sunday when Gabriel Landeskog's center-ice dump-in eluded Troy Passingham.

Another strange goal ended another game that same night in the National Hockey League. San Jose Sharks defenceman Dan Boyle's attempted pass ricocheted off Ryan O'Reilly's stick and behind his goaltender, Evgeni Nabokov, in overtime.

Riopel could take solace in the fact his strange goal wasn't the only one making headlines this week.

"We can see even in the NHL that's part of the game," he said.

If Riopel's comments were a front for what he was really thinking, one wouldn't have known from his play. The fifth round pick of the Philadelphia Flyers was the difference-maker in Moncton's 4-0 win on Wednesday and now gives his team a chance to close out the series in Drummondville on Friday.

By bouncing back with a win on Wednesday, the Wildcats prevented the Voltigeurs from stealing back home-ice advantage in the series. Drummondville could have turned it into a best-of-three with Games 5 and 7 in their rink with a win.

"It was a seventh-game mentality - it was a must win game," Riopel explained. "Every game is a best-of-one."

The Wildcats are a confident bunch heading into their next best-of-one in Drummondville. After all, Moncton won each of the first two games of the series at the Centre Marcel Dionne and boasts a 5-1 road record in the playoffs.

In each of their first two rounds against Cape Breton and Rouyn-Noranda, the Wildcats failed to eliminate the opposition in their first try. Both times Moncton led 3-0, needing the fifth game to move on to the next round.

"Three is a long way to four," Riopel acknowledged. "Drummondville is one of the toughest rinks to play in. It's going to be sold out for sure. The crowd is a big influence there and they have 13 guys from last year that won the (President's) Cup so they're going to be really ready for us."

The Wildcats have reason for optimism. The team is easily one of the deepest in the Canadian Hockey League and one doesn't have to look farther than their playoff record to understand just how talented they are.

Of the 48 CHL teams in the playoffs, no team has had a more difficult road than Moncton. The Wildcats handily beat two teams with championship aspirations in Cape Breton and Rouyn-Noranda and are on the verge of delivering that same fate to the defending champions.

It all began when the Flyers sent Riopel back to junior for a fifth season. The Wildcats shifted their mentality when they unexpectedly received last year's Most Valuable Player back in the fold.

Moncton made some key acquisitions during the December trade period following Riopel's return on Dec. 17. Riopel enabled the Wildcats to load up for a run, but their success wouldn't have come without a concerted team effort.

"Every guy from the first line to the fourth line is dedicated to block shots and do everything they can to pay the price," he said. "That's a big difference for us right now."

The importance of goaltending can never be understated in the playoffs and Riopel instills confidence in the group in front of him. That confidence never wavered even after a soft goal in overtime.

"I didn't have to tell them anything," he said. "They knew I was going to come back hard and that's what I did.

"Sometimes the puck just doesn't bounce for you."

And sometimes it does. Riopel is making sure the puck continues bouncing in Moncton's favour.