History was made Friday night in Moncton as the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada stunned the top-seeded Moncton Wildcats with a dramatic 3-2 victory in quadruple overtime, taking Game 1 of their semifinal series in one of the longest playoff battles the league has ever seen.
The marathon ended 7:48 into the fourth overtime when Maël Lavigne buried the winner, capping a game that officially became the fifth-longest playoff game in QMJHL history.
Moncton looked in control early after Gabe Smith opened the scoring with his 10th goal of the playoffs, becoming the first player in the league to reach double digits this postseason. The Wildcats built a 2-0 lead before the Armada mounted their response.
Blainville-Boisbriand clawed back and tied the game midway through the third period when Xavier Villeneuve scored on the power play. It was the Armada’s third man-advantage goal of the playoffs at the time, before their overtime winner later became their fourth. After scoring only two total power-play goals through the opening two rounds, Blainville’s special teams delivered when it mattered most.
From there, it became a showcase for the goaltenders and elite skaters on both sides. Wildcats netminder Rudy Guimond turned aside 65 shots, setting a franchise playoff record for saves in a single game. Across the ice, the pace remarkably held thanks to the effortless skating of Tommy Bleyl, Teddy Mutryn and Villeneuve, who continued generating chances deep into the night.
In the end, the Armada stole home-ice advantage and a 1-0 series lead over the No. 1 seed with a win that will be remembered for years in Moncton and across the league.
Game 2 is set for Saturday at 6 p.m. ET right here on FloHockey.
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