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Remparts shut out Thunderbirds for record-setting Memorial Cup win

Mathieu Belanger / Getty Images Sport / Getty

The Quebec Remparts shut out the Seattle Thunderbirds 5-0 in Sunday's Memorial Cup final.

A QMJHL team has now won four straight Memorial Cups. It's the first time one of the CHL's three leagues has won that many in a row since the round-robin format was introduced in 1972.

The victory is the third in Remparts franchise history, with their previous triumphs coming in 1971 and 2006. General manager and head coach Patrick Roy also guided Quebec to its victory in 2006.

Buffalo Sabres prospect Vsevolod Komarov opened the scoring in the first period. James Malatesta - a Columbus Blue Jackets draft pick - extended Quebec's lead in the second frame.

The Remparts pulled away in the third on tallies from Kassim Gaudet, St. Louis Blues first-rounder Zachary Bolduc, and Charles Savoie.

William Rousseau made 31 saves in the shutout, the first in a Memorial Cup final since the Acadie-Bathurst Titan's triumph over the Regina Pats in 2018.

"I got drafted in Quebec City for the Remparts, told them I was gonna bring back one Cup. I got two Cups for them," Anaheim Ducks first-rounder Nathan Gaucher told TSN.

He added, "Winning the QMJHL was one of our big goals, winning the whole league is something special."

Malatesta was named Memorial Cup MVP with five goals in four games. He was also the QMJHL's playoff MVP, having scored 14 goals en route to the Memorial Cup.

He was joined on the tournament All-Star team by teammates Rousseau and Theo Rochette. Seattle's Kyle Crnkovic and Nolan Allan were also recognized, as was Kamloops Blazers defenseman Olen Zellweger. Allan is a Chicago Blackhawks prospect, and Zellweger was drafted by the Anaheim Ducks.

The 2024 Memorial Cup will be hosted by the Saginaw Spirit next May.

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