SAGINAW, Mich. (AP) — The Moose Jaw Warriors defeated the Drummondville Voltigeurs 5-3 in a must-win battle for both winless teams in Memorial Cup action on Tuesday night.
Vojtech Port, Jagger Firkus, Denton Mateychuk, Aiden Ziprick and Brayden Yager scored for the Western Hockey League champions from Saskatchewan.
The Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League champion Voltigeurs, who stormed back to tie the game with goals from Justin Cote, Peter Repcik and Alexis Gendron, outshot the Warriors 52-28, including 26-6 in the third period.
Netminder Jackson Unger stopped 49 of 52 shots for Moose Jaw, while Riley Mercer stopped 23 of 27 shots in the Voltigeurs’ net.
With the win, the Warriors (1-2) secured a berth in Friday’s semifinal, while the Voltigeurs (0-3) were eliminated. The Volts’ setback halts the QMJHL’s hold on the Memorial Cup, having won it the past four times.
The Warriors play the loser of Wednesday night’s game between the host Saginaw Spirit and Ontario Hockey League champion London Knights, both with 2-0 records. The winner of that game earns a direct berth to Sunday’s championship game.
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