Playoff fever hits Cape Breton as Eagles play first semifinal game in 17 years

Thursday night marked the first time since May 1, 2007, that the Cape Breton Eagles played in the third round of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League playoffs.

The Eagles were set to face the league-leading Baie-Comeau Drakkar in a league semifinal series, with the first two games in Quebec.

In Cape Breton, at least five restaurants and bars organized watch parties, including the Steel City Sports Bar & Steakhouse just down the road from Centre 200 in Sydney – the team’s home arena.

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"Well, we have two 10-foot screens and a bunch of TVs and we're going to put it on them all,” said Steel City owner Barkley Haddad, who added the team’s playoff run has been good for business. "They're calling for reservations for the tables. It's walk-in. On game nights, we won't even take reservations because it's just sold out. It's just crazy how busy it's been."

At the Telus Cup being held on Membertou First Nation, there was plenty of buzz about the Eagles, too.

"Tonight, we're going to watch it at Boston Pizza,” said Wes Stanford, one of four Eagles fans who have spent the postseason dressing up as referees during home games and pumping up the crowd. "I don't think I've been this nervous or anxious for a game since I was a little kid, when I was a Leafs fan - which I still am."

"We are definitely the underdog in the Quebec media, but I think the 20 players - they relish this underdog role,” added another Eagles fan, Brent Desveaux, inside the rink in Membertou. “I have no doubt this team is going to be very competitive against Baie-Comeau, and I don't think we should be surprised if we go ahead and beat them."

Longtime Eagle fans may still be haunted by the last time the team made it this far.

In 2007, the team's championship hopes were dashed by the Val d’or Foreurs in the league semifinal – a team that included future NHL stars Brad Marchand of Hammonds Plains, N.S., and Kris Letang.

In Baie-Comeau, it seems the team is aware of the excitement back home and knows they have sellout crowds waiting for them when the series shifts to Sydney for Games Three and Four on April 29 and 30.

"When we were coming back from Chicoutimi (after winning round two), everyone was talking about how fast the tickets were selling,” said Eagles play-by-play announcer Pat McNeil. “There's definitely chatter about all the places you can watch the game, and the players I think feel that support."

If the team pulls off the upset and wins the series against the Drakkar, it would be the first time they’d reach the final in its 27-year history.

"It would be ticker-tape time then, get the fire trucks out,” Haddad said. “They're performing like a well-oiled machine."

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