'We're making some noise': Scrappy Mooseheads a win away from major playoff upset

The defending-champion Drummondville Voltigeurs were expected to easily beat a youthful Halifax Mooseheads team that barely made the QMJHL playoffs.

But the Mooseheads, up 3-2 in their first-round series, may have benefited from their playoff inexperience. That's what team captain Brady Schultz thinks.

"You could say we're naive because we're a little young, but sometimes I think that works in our favour," said Schultz, a 20-year-old defenceman who is in his final year of eligibility.

The Mooseheads are in a rebuilding year, having traded away most of their top talent for future draft picks and younger players.

Not much was expected of them, but the Mooseheads won the first two games in Quebec. A 4-2 win Friday in Halifax gives them the series lead heading into Game 6 Monday back in Drummondville.

The win marked the first time a 16th-seed won three games in a QMJHL playoff series. That also means no team that started where the Mooseheads did has ever advanced.

Schultz said the message he's been delivering to younger teammates is that Drummondville is a great team and the Mooseheads won't outshoot them. They have to block shots, play a physical style and capitalize on the limited chances they get.

"They're just going out there and giving it their all, not a care in the world about what happens, just buying in," said Schultz.

Perhaps the biggest reason for the Mooseheads success has been the play of goalie Jacob Steinman, a 20-year-old also in his final season of eligibility. He's faced between 31 and 54 shots every game, while the Mooseheads have countered with between 17 and 27.

For a young team like the Mooseheads to win, Steinman said it takes "guts and grit." And while an older team like Drummondville is bigger and faster, the Mooseheads have to rely on other things to win.

"Having the guts and the will to block shots and do all that doesn't come with age, it just comes with how willing are you to do it for the team and put the team first," he said.

Despite the regular-season record, Schultz said the Mooseheads have always believed in themselves.

"After the first two games in Drummondville, I think everybody started kind of paying attention to us," he said.

"It's something we knew all year long. We have a very special group. Everybody's bought in. There's no egos, no anything. I love it and … we're making some noise."

Game 7, if necessary, would be Tuesday in Drummondville.