LONDON, Ont. – The Guelph Storm can advance straight to Sunday’s final with a win over the Val-d’Or Foreurs on Monday.
Both teams enter the game with identical 1-0 records and by virtue of the Edmonton Oil Kings’ win over the London Knights on Sunday, the Storm are in the driver’s seat to obtain the coveted bye to the final.
Programming Alert: Watch the Val-d’Or Foreurs face the Guelph Storm in the MasterCard Memorial Cup Monday on Sportsnet East, Ontario, West & Pacific at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT.
The Storm defeated the Western Hockey League champion Oil Kings handily on Saturday. The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League champion Foreurs present them with a different challenge given their star power.
A Val-d’Or win would give the Foreurs the inside track for the finals berth, though their ticket wouldn’t be punched until the outcome of the following round robin games are determined.
"There’s too many scenarios still on the table," Foreurs head coach Mario Durocher said. "What we have to do is concentrate on Guelph. It’s always a Game 7 (scenario)."
CAN THE STORM SHUT DOWN MANTHA?
Mantha took his goal-a-game circus to the MasterCard Memorial Cup with Friday’s only goal in his team’s 1-0 win over London. The Detroit Red Wings’ prospect is in contention for the Canadian Hockey League’s player of the year after his remarkable season and there’s little evidence so far that there’s a kryptonite for an opposing team to use against him.
The Knights tried getting him off his game through physical intimidation, a tactic his teammates have continually seen go unsuccessful in neutralizing their best weapon.
"Tony’s used to it," winger Louick Marcotte said. "They’re always on his back since playoffs started. He’s an amazing player … I don’t know what he thinks (of the physical intimidation) but it doesn’t look like it works."
The Storm are using a different game plan.
"We’re just going to have to play against him and skate with him and try to limit his time and space," Storm head coach Scott Walker said. "The puck is more important, we think, than having to go after him."
WILL THE STORM’S DEPTH RUN OVER THE FOREURS?
The Oil Kings were unable to stop the wave after wave of offensive attack deployed by the Storm on Saturday. To this point, no team in the CHL has been able to match the Storm line for line. They have stars, but their depth is what makes them so dangerous. As difficult a task as it is keeping their top line in check, the Storm receive healthy contributions from their third and fourth lines, in addition to their defence.
"We have four solid lines that can play against any line in this tournament," defenceman Zac Leslie said. "The first three lines are pretty good and then we got that fourth line that just crashes and bangs and just does the dirty work."
Durocher believes the Storm resemble their semifinals opponent from Halifax.
"They look a bit like Halifax, the way they play, so we’re going to use that strategy that we played against Halifax," he said.
The Foreurs may not be able to match the Storm’s depth but have some of their own.
"The fourth line scored the winning goal (in Game 7 against Halifax) so this means everybody is important on the team," defenceman Olivier Galipeau said.
WILL THE FOREURS BOUNCE BACK?
In spite of winning their first game, the Foreurs were far from perfect on Friday. If not for a 51 save shutout from goaltender Antoine Bibeau, the Foreurs wouldn’t have walked away with a win against the Knights.
Worse than the quantity of the shots Bibeau faced was the quality. Val-d’Or did not play well in the neutral zone, missing assignments that led to breakaways and a seam in their slot that appeared open all day. Their missteps didn’t cost them against the Knights, but forging forward without correcting those mistakes is playing with fire.
"We have to better defend the slot," Durocher said. "If they have 50 shots from the outside, we’ll take them all the time and with no rebounds. We can’t let them into the slot like we did (versus London), especially against Guelph. They have good offensive players that can be dangerous."
WHICH TEAM WILL CONTROL THE PACE?
Both teams are blessed with exceptional team speed. Although they can both play physically, each predicted a speedy game predicated on the transition.
This is also where Guelph’s depth comes into play. The three TV timeouts per period will allow the Foreurs to match lines a little more, particularly since they have the last change, but maintaining the Storm’s pace could be problematic since they can roll any line. This was a big reason the Storm were able to wear down their opponents in the playoffs.
