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By Earl Zukerman

MONTREAL – Sam Bloom tallied twice and Marko Kovacevic added a goal and two assists as McGill defeated the University of Ontario Institute of Technology 4-1 in men’s university hockey, Saturday.

The Winter Carnival game, an annual event, was played before 688 raucous fans at McConnell Arena.

McGill, which opened the season with five straight losses, has quietly earned 18 of a possible 24 points in their last 12 games. The Redmen (8-6-2) improved to 2-0 lifetime against UOIT (3-14-1), an expansion team, which joined the OUA last season.

Bloom, a senior from Toronto, opened and closed the scoring, connecting at 4:56 of the first period and 15:15 of the final stanza. Kovacevic, a senior from Serbia, set up Bloom on the first goal, then scored a power play marker to give McGill a 2-0 lead midway through the second period. He also added a helper on Bloom’s final goal.

Evan Vossen, a sophomore from Swift Current, Sask., netted the other McGill goal, giving the Redmen a 3-0 lead late in the middle stanza.

Forward Josh Vatri, a rookie from Barrie, Ont., who leads the Ridgebacks in scoring, spoiled freshman netminder Danny Mireault’s bid for his first career shutout, on the power play at 13:11 of the final period. Mireault, a native of Notre Dame des Prairies, Que., was credited with 26 saves and improved to 6-5-0, while UOIT freshman Jeff Dawson posted 39 saves in his second career start.

In a contest that featured 25 minor penalties and 21 power play situations, McGill went 2-for-11 with the man-advantage, while UOIT was 1-for-10. The Redmen outshot the Ridgebacks 43-27, including a 22-6 margin in the second period.

McGill will host Concordia on Wednesday (Jan. 14) before heading to southern Ontario for games at Brock and Guelph, Jan. 17-18. The Redmen will be looking to avenge a 2-1 loss to the Stingers in the season opener at McConnell Arena on Oct. 11.


SCORING SUMMARY

UOIT 1 at McGill 4

(Jan 10, 2009 - McConnell Arena)

FIRST PERIOD:
Scoring -
1. McGill, Sam Bloom (7) (M. Kovacevic, A. Picard-Hooper) 4:56

Penalties -
K. Wetering UOIT (hooking) 1:10,
D. Bagshaw UOIT (elbowing) 5:24,
V. Lambert MCG (hooking) 8:20,
K. Morin MCG (tripping) 9:08,
BENCH MCG (too many men) 11:35,
D. Bagshaw UOIT (roughing) 13:42,
B. Gazdic MCG (slashing) 15:16,
Y. Turcotte MCG (elbowing) 16:51,
B. Gazdic MCG (hooking) 18:17

SECOND PERIOD:
Scoring -
2. McGill, Marko Kovacevic (7) (A. Picard-Hooper, K. Morin) 11:37 (PP)
3. McGill, Evan Vossen (2) (S. Marcotte-Legare, M.A. Dorion) 18:30

Penalties -
E. Vossen MCG (tripping) 2:36,
C. Purves UOIT (tripping) 4:56,
T. Rizzi UOIT (roughing) 11:26,
J. Vatri UOIT (tripping) 11:26,
D. Turner UOIT (hooking) 14:48

THIRD PERIOD:
Scoring -
4. UOIT, Josh Vatri (9) (D. Bagshaw, N. Spaling) 13:11 (PP)
5. McGill, Sam Bloom (8) (M. Kovacevic, A. Picard-Hooper) 15:15 (PP)

Penalties -
J. Whelan UOIT (roughing double minor) 0:52,
Y. Turcotte MCG (roughing) 0:52,
G. Doucet MCG (hooking) 5:02,
T. Rizzi UOIT(roughing) 5:59,
M. Langelier-Parent MCG (roughing) 5:59,
A. Picard-Hooper MCG (holding) 11:16,
C. Purves UOIT (tripping) 13:22,
J. Vatri UOIT (tripping) 16:30,
A. Wright MCG (high sticking) 18:47,
J. Vatri UOIT (roughing) 19:13

SHOTS BY PERIOD:
UOIT: 8 6 13 -- 27
MCG: 10 22 11 -- 43

GOALS BY PERIOD:
UOIT: 0 0 1 -- 1
MCG: 1 2 1 -- 4

POWER PLAY CONVERSION
UOIT 1-10.
McGill 2-11.

PENALTIES (No./Mins.):
UOIT 13-26.
McGill 12-24.

GOALTENDERS:

UOIT
Jeff Dawson [L 0-2-0] 60:00, SV: 39, GA: 4


McGill
Danny Mireault [W 6-5-0], 60:00, SV: 26, GA: 1

Start : 7:03 PM

End : 9:29 PM

Attendance : 688

Referee: Gavin White

MOLSON CUP THREE STARS:
1. Marko Kovacevic, McGill
2. Yan Turcotte, McGill
3. Danny Mireault, McGill

McGILL LINEUP SCRATCHES:
---------------------------------
G Jake Jarvis
G Kevin Desfosses (dressed but DNP)
G Hubert Morin
D Stephen Valente
D Spencer Brennan
D Glenn Tindle
F Benoit Arsenault (eye)
F Francis Verrault-Paul (serving suspension)
F Tim Drager