Michael St. Croix (4th, 2011) made his presence known last night in Edmonton, as he notched a goal and three assists as Edmonton roared back into the series in Game Four of the WHL Eastern Conference Finals. The Oil Kings, after dropping Game Three in decisive fashion, steamrolled the Calgary Hitmen last night by a final score of 7-3. St. Croix had a line of 1-3-4 and a +3 rating.
Across the continent in Quebec, Sam Noreau’s Baie-Comeau Drakkar dropped Game Four and blew their 2-0 series lead against Blainville-Boisbriand. With BC’s 4-3 loss, the series is now tied at two games apiece. Noreau notched an assist and 2 PIMs in Game Four.
The Edmonton Oil Kings, the top team in the Eastern Conference of the WHL, lost Game Three of the EC Finals to the Calgary Hitmen, and now trail the series 2-1. Calgary scored five goals in the second period en route to the victory. Michael St. Croix (4th, 2011) was a -2 and had 2 PIMs in the contest.
The only other prospect still alive in the playoff hunt is Sam Noreau of the QMJHL’s Baie-Comeau Drakkar, who dropped Game Three of their QMJHL semi-finals series against Blainville-Boisbriand, but lead the series 2-1. Noreau (6th, 2011) had 2 PIMs in the game.
Following the Whale’s loss on Saturday, they needed some help to get into the Calder Cup playoffs. That help did not come, as the Hershey Bears won last night, eliminating the Whale’s playoff hopes. The Bears took the eighth and final spot in the Calder Cup playoffs, and the Whale finished ninth in the Eastern Conference.
The Connecticut Whale did themselves no favors over their last six games of the year, dropping all six games and getting just a single point as they pushed to make the playoffs. Following last night’s 5-1 loss to Portland, the Whale need help to make the playoffs. They need losses by both Hershey and Norfolk in order to back into the playoffs as the eighth seed.
Check after the jump for updates on Sam Noreau and his Baie-Comeau Drakkar in the QMJHL.
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Michael St. Croix (Edmonton Oil Kings, WHL) and Sam Noreau (Baie-Comeau Drakkar, QMJHL) were both victorious last night. St. Croix notched an assist in Edmonton’s 6-0 win over the Calgary Hitmen to even up the Eastern Conference Finals at one game a piece. Noreau’s Baie-Comeau squad took a 1-0 series lead after their 2-1 win over Blainville-Boisbriand. Noreau was held off the scoreboard in the contest.
Meanwhile, the Connecticut Whale continue to throw away their playoff hopes, as they lost their fifth in a row (0-4-1) last night, and now sit out of the playoff race. The Whale no longer control their own destiny and need losses from Hershey and Norfolk to make the playoffs.
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All awards info courtesy of Alex Nunn.
Oscar Lindberg was named the SEL Playoff MVP following Skelleftea’s 4-0 Game Four victory that gave them the sweep over Lulea HC in the SEL Finals. Our last ATF post was after Game Two, so to update on Lindberg’s performance in Games Three and Four: Lindberg contributed an assist in both games en route to two victories. In 13 playoff games (Skelleftea lost just one game throughout their run), Lindberg put together an impressive 4-8-12 scoring line.
In addition to winning the playoff MVP, Lindberg was also nominated for the Guldpucken Award (League MVP). Lindberg’s contract with Skelleftea expired at the end of the year, and he is now free to join the Rangers and/or Whale.
Check after the jump for an update on Michael St. Croix, who is competing for the WHL championship.
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Oscar Lindberg and his heavily favored Skelleftea AIK squad jumped out to a 2-0 series lead over Lulea in the SEL Finals this weekend. Skelleftea won the games by scores of 1-0 (in OT) and 4-2. Lindberg has been held off the score sheet in both contests, but finished yesterday’s 4-2 win with a +1 rating (0 PIMs in both contests).
Lindberg is one of three non-AHL prospects still competing in their league’s respective championships. Michael St. Croix and the Edmonton Oil Kings are in the Eastern Conference Finals in the WHL. Sam Noreau and the Baie-Comeau Drakkar are in the QMJHL Semi-Finals. If Edmonton and Baie-Comeau win their leagues, the Rangers would have four prospects playing in the Mastercard Memorial Cup, as the Saskatoon Blades (Shane McColgan and Josh Nicholls) are hosting the Memorial Cup this season.
The Whale had a rough weekend, dropping three games in a row and both weekend games. With these three losses, the Whale have dropped to the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of the ninth seeded Hershey Bears. However, the Bears have a game in hand on the Whale. Below are the scoring lines from the weekend games.
- AHL (OTL 4-3, L 4-3)
- Dylan McIlrath: 0 G, 1 A, 26 PIMs, +2
- Ryan Bourque: 0 G, 0 A, 0 PIM, -2
- J.T. Miller; 0 G, 2 A, 0 PIM, Even
- Marek Hrivik: 1 G, 0 A, 0 PIM, +1
- Chris Kreider: 0 G, 0 A, 2 PIM, -4
- Christian Thomas: 0 G, 2 A, 0 PIM, Even
Chris Kreider scored the lone goal for the Connecticut Whale in last night’s 3-1 loss to the Manchester Monarchs. The Whale were dominated by Manchester last night, and if not for a brilliant 42 save performance by Cam Talbot in net, the score would have been much more lopsided. Despite the loss, the Whale are still in good shape to make the Calder Cup playoffs, sitting in the seventh seed and three points up on the ninth seeded Hershey Bears. The Whale play again tonight against Adirondack as they try to solidify their playoff standing.
- AHL (L 3-1)
- Dylan McIlrath: 0 G, 0 A, 0 PIM, Even
- Kyle Jean: 0 G, 0 A, 2 PIM, Even
- Ryan Bourque: 0 G, 0 A, 0 PIM, -1
- J.T. Miller: 0 G, 0 A, 0 PIM, Even
- Marek Hrivik: 0 G, 0 A, 0 PIM, Even
- Chris Kreider: 1 G, 0 A, 4 PIM, Even
- Christian Thomas: 0 G, 0 A, 0 PIM, Even
Michael St. Croix and his Edmonton Oil Kings completed the sweep of the Medicine Hat Tigers last night by a score of 4-2. With the sweep, Edmonton advances to the Eastern Conference Finals of the WHL, where they will face the winner of the Calgary Hitmen/Red Deer Rebels series. In the victory, St. Croix was surprisingly held off the scoreboard, and finished with an even rating.
In the QMJHL, Sam Noreau’s Baie-Comeau Drakkar also completed their sweep of the Victoriaville Tigres with a 2-1 victory last night. Baie-Comeau will face the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada in the semi-finals. In the victory, Noreau was held off the scoreboard, finishing with an even rating.
