Memorial Cup off to lopsided start

Candice Ward/CHL

The 2023 Memorial Cup has gotten off to a lopsided start.

The first three games of the tournament have all been decided by three or more goals, highlighted by the Kamloops Blazers hammering the Peterborough Petes 10-2 on Sunday.

Here's a look at the results from the opening three games:

Game 1: Quebec 8, Kamloops 3

Game 2: Seattle 6, Peterborough 3

Game 3: Kamloops 10, Peterborough 2

It's a significant difference from last year's tournament in Saint John where only one game — the championship match — was decided by three goals or more.

Game 1: Hamilton 3, Saint John 5

Game 2: Shawinigan 4, Edmonton 3

Game 3: Saint John 3, Edmonton 4 (OT)

Game 4: Shawinigan 3, Hamilton 2

Game 5: Edmonton 2, Hamilton 4

Game 6: Saint John 5, Shawinigan 3

Semifinal: Hamilton 4, Shawinigan 3 (OT)

Final: Hamilton 3, Saint John 6

The lopsided start to year's event could easily turn around this week (and likely will now that I've spent the time writing this). We were blessed with a few incredible games last year, so hopefully we get at least a couple this year.

The Quebec Remparts, who are looking to bring the Memorial Cup to the QMJHL for a fourth straight tournament, have two intriguing games remaining in the preliminary round: Monday night against the Seattle Thunderbirds and Tuesday against the Peterborough Petes. Most have the Thunderbirds as the favourites to win the event while the Petes must win to stay alive.

Peterborough has struggled so far, getting outscored 16-5. The 10 goals they allowed on Sunday inched close to the tournament record of 12, which belongs to the Sea Dogs from the 2017 tournament (a 12-5 loss to the Erie Otters).

Plus de buts dans un match a la #CoupeMemorial :

12 - Erie vs Saint John en 2017
11 - Québec vs St.Catharines en 1974
11- Regina vs Cornwall en 1980
10- Toronto en 75
10- New Westminster en 76
10- Sherbrooke en 82
10- Portland en 83
*** 10- Kamloops en 2023

— Stephane Leroux (@StephRDSJunior) May 29, 2023

Seattle, meanwhile, ended a long and bizarre regulation time losing streak for Western Hockey League champions. The WHL has not won a Memorial Cup since the Edmonton Oil Kings in 2014.

The Seattle Thunderbirds open their #MemorialCup tournament with a 6-3 win over Peterborough. This is the first regulation win by any WHL champion team at the tournament since 2015.

— Terry Doyle (@Terry_Doyle) May 28, 2023

Lastly, the host Blazers have to be feeling good following their stomping of the Petes. The Blazers looked very much like a team that had been off for a few weeks in their tournament opener against the Remparts. The team's turnaround on Sunday was impressive and sets up a fun game Wednesday between Seattle and Kamloops, who met in the WHL's Western Conference final.

The Blazers will, however, be without defenseman Kyle Masters for the rest of the tournament after he took an ugly collision into the boards on a Brennan Othmann hit in the third period.

HC Clouston and the Blazers not hiding displeasure with the Othmann hit that ended Kyle Masters’ Memorial Cup tournament.
Clouston saying there was emotion in it and it seemed like an attack.
Zellweger spoke up, too. Story to come. pic.twitter.com/OWVth7YJDh

— Kamloops This Week (@KTWonBLAZERS) May 29, 2023