QMJHL [Apr-06]: Swans Stock Soars

Top 'Q' Performers of Round 1: Swan's Stock Soars (posted 4.6.06)

by Mike Chisholm

With the quarter-final matchups set in the QMJHL Playoffs, here is a look at the HOT and COLD performers from round #1.

THE HOT

Bryce Swan (2006), RW, Halifax

Players can make or break themselves in the playoffs and Swan has been a textbook example of a draft-eligible prospect who's made a name for himself. The gritty forward showed off his puck movement abilities in the first round. Always fighting his way to the net, his hard work and drive to win have paid off as he picked up two goals and five helpers in the opening round victory over Lewiston, including a four-assist night in game six.

Ondrej Pavelec (Atl), G, Cape Breton

The Czech import has became a premier goaltender in the QMJHL with the Eagles. Pavelec turns in steady performances game after game, coming up with the big acrobatic saves when needed. In the first round against the St. John's Fog Devils, he allowed only eight goals against in the five games, while posting a league-leading .948 save percentage. With his only loss coming in overtime, Pavelec has made the Eagles the favorites, behind the Wildcats, to be the Eastern Division Champions.

Jeremy Duchesne (Phi), G, Halifax

The Mooseheads netminder singlehandedly kept his team in contention in the late going with big saves at key moments in game's five and six to help the Mooseheads on to victory. The Flyers prospect has shown his worth in the playoffs and will look to build on his success when he faces the powerhouse Moncton Wildcats in the quarter finals.

Mathieu Perreault (2006), C, Acadie-Bathurst

The pint-sized speedy winger put up impressive numbers in his QMJHL playoff debut. In six games in the opening round, Perreault picked up six goals and six assists to take the scoring lead on a squad of veterans in Bathurst.

Claude Giroux (2006), RW, Gatineau

The highly skilled Giroux has continued to dazzle and show off his supreme playmaking abilities, picking up 10 helpers and a goal in a hard-fought seven-game win against the Drummondville Voltigeurs. Giroux and Gatineau will now move onto face Chicoutimi in what should be another tough, high-scoring series for the Olympiques.

David Krejci (Bos), C, Gatineau

The QMJHL league leader in points after the first round of the playoffs. The Boston Bruins prospect racked up 7 goals and 12 assists in the seven-game series with Drummondville. Krejci will look to maintain the leader spot heading into the quarter finals where he will face the red-hot Chicoutimi Sagueneens, who easily sank the Baie Comeau Drakkar in the opening round.

Julien Ellis (Van), G, Shawinigan

As it is custom in the playoffs, goalies often steal the show. This was the story for Cataractes netminder Julien Ellis who pitched a pair of shutouts, allowed just eight goals against, and posted an eye-popping .948 save percentage in five games against what was considered to be a strong Rouyn-Noranda squad. His outstanding play will need to continue heading into the quarter finals against the Quebec Remparts if the Cataractes hope to knock off the Eastern Division favorites.

Moncton Wildcats - A team effort here. After a setback in game 1, losing 4-2 to Victoriaville, the Wildcats got the wakeup call and never looked back as they took the next four games to clinch the series, while outscoring the Tigres 34-12 in those four games. This sets up a quarter-final matchup against the Halifax Mooseheads. Leading the offensive charge for Moncton is veteran overager Philippe Dupuis who recorded an eye-opening 17 points (7 goals, 10 assists).

THE COLD

Jonathan Paiement (NYR), D, Lewiston

The rugged, highly-skilled Rangers' prospect and likely the best defender on the Lewiston blueline lost his cool in Game four in Halifax. With Halifax up 5-2 and only a second left in the game, Paiement surrendered to the taunts of the Mooseheads Frederik Cabana and jump the bench to fight. This drew a five-game suspension and ultimately the end of his QMJHL career as Halifax clinched the series in six games.

Quebec Remparts - Although the Remparts are through to the next round, this marquee team was less than stellar in the first round where they faced the Val D'or Foreurs. The Remparts struggled in their first four games of the series, dropping the first game 6-3 and needing overtime to win two of the next three before bursting out in Game 5 where they went onto a 12-0 victory to clinch the series. The league-favorite Remparts will need to put their struggles behind them and hope the Game 5 breakout effort will carry into the quarter-finals where they face a strong Shawinigan Cataractes squad.

Francois Bouchard (2006), RW/Alexandre Picard-Hooper (2006), C, Baie Comeau

The two offensively-gifted Drakkar stars, who combined for 202 points combined during the regular season, where shut down by the Sagueneens, managing just three goals and two assists between them. Their cold play was just the tip of the iceberg that froze a Drakker squad that went down in four straight to the Chicoutimi Sagueneens.

Philippe Roberge (2006), G, Val D'Or

Roberge was playing strong hockey keeping his team in games against the powerhouse Quebec Remparts. However, if there was a wrong time for things to turn upside down, it was in Game 5 where the Remparts easily lit him up for 9 of their 12 goals on the night and put an end to the Foreurs season.

MISC NOTES

The Voltigeurs took a hard hit to their playoff aspirations when Guillaume Latendresse (Mtl) suffered a concussion in Game 5 of the series against Gatineau. Latendresse missed the final two games of the series and will now have the summer to nurse himself back to health after his Drummondville team was eliminated.

Halifax will have it tough coming into the quarter finals facing the Moncton Wildcats who are expected to have Luc Bourdon (Van) back in the lineup upon returning from a knee injury suffered in late February. His physical presence will be a big boost to an already-solid Wildcats' defensive line which has played quite flawlessly without him.