Habs Darche to drop puck at Redmen-Ottawa game on Friday
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(PHOTO COURTESY CLUB DE HOCKEY CANADIEN)
MONTREAL - Montreal Canadiens forward Mathieu Darche has been invited by his alma mater to perform the ceremonial faceoff at Friday's university hockey game between the Ottawa Gee-Gees and the McGill Redmen at McConnell Arena (3883 University Street). The game is slated to start at 7 p.m. and will be webcast on the Streaming Sports Network ().
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The Redmen lead the OUA East Conference with a 22-2-2 record and need one more win over their final two games to establish a single-season school record for victories. Ottawa is 11-12-3 and need a win if they hope to avoid meeting McGill in the league's best-of-three quarter-finals, which begin next Wednesday.
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Darche, a 34-year-old native of St. Laurent, Que., played four seasons at McGill, before graduating with a commerce degree in 2000. He is the 10th player from McGill to skate in the National Hockey League and one of 159 Canadian university players who have made the lofty leap to that level.
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The 6-foot-1, 215-pound left-winger currently has nine goals and 21 points in 49 games with the Habs. He has a 22-33-55 record in 179 career NHL games, including stints with Columbus, Nashville, San Jose and Tampa Bay. He is the third McGill grad to play for the Canadiens, joining left winger Jack McGill (1934-37) and defenceman Nels Crutchfield (1934-35).
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With the Redmen, Darche scored 170 career points, including 78 goals, in 133 games overall and won the CIS scoring title in his senior year. He earned all-Canadian honours, merited Academic All-Canadian status, served as captain, won the Bobby Bell trophy three times as Team MVP and captured the Forbes trophy as McGill male athlete of the year.
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He also played one season of varsity football alongside with his brother Jean-Philippe Darche, who went on to play nine years in the National Football League.
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Darche, who was McGill's leading scorer twice, has been the top goal-scorer with five different American Hockey League teams. In nine AHL seasons, he posted a 212-231-443 record with 290 PIMs in 552 regular-season contests with Syracuse, Milwaukee, Hershey, Worcester, Norfolk, Portland and Hamilton.Ìý In 2003-04, he helped Milwaukee win the Calder Cup league championship.
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FORMER McGILL PLAYERS IN THE NHL
Bert Lindsay (goaltender; played 1917-19 with Montreal Wanderers and Toronto Arenas)
Sam Rothschild (left wing; played 1924-28 with Montreal Maroons, NY Americans & Pittsburgh Pirates)
Lester Patrick (defenceman; played 1926-28 with New York Rangers; also coached from 1926-39)
*Russ Blinco (forward; played 1933-39 with Montreal Maroons and Chicago Blackhawks)
Nels Crutchfield (defenceman; played 1934-35 with Montreal Canadiens)
Jack McGill (left wing; played 1934-37 with Montreal Canadiens)
Johnny Peirson (forward; played 1946-58 with Boston Bruins)
*Jack Gelineau (goaltender; played 1948-54 with Boston & Chicago)
Reggie Sinclair (right wing; played 1950-53 with New York & Detroit)
Mathieu Darche (left wing; played 2009-to present with Montreal and 2000-08 with Columbus, Nashville, San Jose, Tampa Bay)
*NHL Rookie of the Year
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SOURCE:
Earl Zukerman
Communications Officer
McGill Athletics & Recreation
514-398-7012
earl.zukerman [at] mcgill.ca
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