RECAP: Gee-Gees complete Cinderella run to win National Championship on home ice

The Ottawa Gee-Gees made history Sunday, defeating the Concordia Stingers 3-2 to win their first-ever David Johnston University Cup in front of a home crowd at The Arena at TD Place.

Vincent Labelle, Bradley Chenier, and Luka Verreault each scored for Ottawa, which built a 3-0 lead through two periods before withstanding a late push from the Stingers.

Ottawa capitalized on early momentum, with Labelle opening the scoring at 9:56 of the first period. Chenier doubled the lead just four minutes later, and Verreault added another early in the second. 

The victory secured Ottawa's first-ever national championship in men's hockey, capping off a remarkable run for the Gee-Gees, who came in as the tournament's No. 8 seed.

"It's indescribable, this is what we dreamed of," said head coach Patrick Grandmaître. "We went every route we could with inspiration the last three weeks since our loss to Queen's. We stole 'Dream On' from our championship team at StFX, then the big one was associate coach Justin Stevens bringing the Rich Strike theme. That was huge for us, the comeback story, the one you could never believe, and it's a horse as well. The boys really bought into those stories and made it happen."

Goaltender Franky Lapenna, who was named the tournament MVP, was stellar for the Gee-Gees, making 31 saves, including 17 in the third period as Concordia pressed for an equalizer.

"This is the best day of my life, we're national champions," said Lapenna. "Our school gives us so much support, my parents, family, friends, the support from everyone here was crazy. Our crowd was awesome… I'm really lucky to be a part of this."

TOURNAMENT ALL-STAR TEAM
G: Franky Lapenna, Ottawa

D: Simon Lavigne, Concordia

D: Joseph Ianniello, Toronto Metropolitan

F: Marc-Antoine Séguin, Ottawa

F: Dawson Holt, Saskatchewan

F: Mathieu Bizier, Concordia

TOURNAMENT MVP: Ottawa #90 Franky Lapenna