The Redmen began the season unburdened by the weight of expectations. Despite making Nationals in two out of the previous three seasons, Head Coach Martin Raymond's squad wasn't expected to seriously challenge for the OUA Far East division title, much less a national championship, because of the losses to graduation they had sustained from the previous season's team. Among those gone were three of Raymond's top four scorers, his best defenceman, and the goaltending tandem of Mathieu Poitras and Jean-Michel Filiatrault that had arguably been the best in the county for the previous three years. In their place were 14 rookies-not usually a recipe for success in the competitive OUA.
The low expectations were reinforced early on, as the inexperienced squad lost their first five games. But beginning with a 4-2 win over the RMC Paladins, the Redmen embarked on one of the most improbable turnarounds in the 133-year history of McGill hockey. The Red 'n' White won 18 of their next 23 regular season games to finish with the second-best record in the OUA Eastern Conference behind perennial powerhouse UQTR. The team then bowled through Ottawa, Toronto, and UQTR in the playoffs to qualify for Nationals. Although the Redmen lost a hard-fought Queen's Cup Championship game 2-1 to the Western Mustangs, and were drastically outplayed in their first game at Nationals, losing 4-1 to St. Mary's-effectively eliminating them from the gold medal game-the surprising success of Raymond's young squad makes them worthy of an A.
One of the biggest reasons for McGill's turnaround was the play of rookie goaltender Kevin Desfossés, who joined the team in December. Desfossés posted a solid .919 save percentage in seven regular season games, but saved his best work for the OUA playoffs, where he had a 6-2 record and a superb .939 save percentage. Three other rookies also featured prominently in McGill's surprise season: diminutive centre Alexandre Picard-Hooper, who led the team with 36 points; gritty winger Francis Verrault-Paul, who finished third in team scoring while racking up a team-leading 123 penalty minutes; and smooth-skating defenceman Marc-Andre Dorion, who led all Redmen defenders with 16 points.
Even after introducing 14 new faces to the roster this season, the Redmen will see significant turnover in personnel again next year. Co-captains Ken Morin-arguably the team's best defenceman-and Eric L'Italien will graduate this year. The Redmen also expect to lose two-thirds of their top line: Sam Bloom and Marko Kovacevic, both of whom led the team with 14 goals apiece. But if Raymond has proved anything this season, it's that he is a master recruiter. Don't be surprised to see the Redmen challenge for a third-straight Nationals berth next year.
Final record: 27-15-2 (18-8-2)
MVP: Alexandre Picard-Hooper
Player to Watch: Marc-Andre Dorion
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