National’s Postseason Run Comes to an End

When the clock ticked down and the horn sounded Saturday Night in Ancienne-Lorette, the home crowd had plenty to cheer about, despite their team’s elimination from the LNAH Playoffs. The Quebec National had spent the previous weeks gelling as a unit, shocking fans and players throughout the league and giving their home fans something positive to look forward to in the Fall. 

The expansion team that seemingly couldn’t buy a win in the first half of the year entered the playoffs with a noticeably different look from the team that took to the ice back in October. Their quietly improved second half of the season was the first sign of things to come. Their final weeks of the regular season, winning 4 of their final 5 games, was more of a warning. However, it wasn’t until their first round upset of #1Saint-Georges that everyone sat up and took notice. 

Just as their season-long improvement wasn't due to any single blockbuster trade or acquisition, their playoff success wasn’t done in Cinderella fashion. 

Gritty consistent play and unshakable nerves were on full display in round one. Their 4-2 series win never included a blowout loss or a win coming from a lucky bounce or fluke play. Even Tristan Cote-Cazenave’s 82 save, 2OT win was viewed less as playoff magic than it was an example of the warrior spirit that had been on display since December 27th, when he played the first 40 minutes of a game despite vomiting three times during play.

The series against Sorel-Tracy was more of the same. While they were swept 4 games to 0, only the final game was decided by more than one goal, and even that was due to an empty netter with time winding down. In the end, an evolving team lost to a superior team that now sits at number 1 thanks to the National’s work in the previous round. 

There are no moral victories this time of year, but the National can head into the off season with plenty of positivity. They gelled as a team, they showed the league that they belong and possibly most important, they grew a fan base that went from the smallest in the league, to one that nearly packed the house for each playoff game. 

Sorel-Tracy, meanwhile, will head to the finals against the winner of the Laval- Riviere du Loup series. It will be a finals that looks very different than most expected, thanks to the expansion team from the provincial capital.