KAMLOOPS, British Columbia — James Malatesta had a hat trick, Kassim Gaudet scored twice and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League champion Quebec Remparts routed the host Kamloops Blazers 8-3 in the Memorial Cup opener Friday night.
Nathan Gaucher, Theo Rochette and Zachary Bolduc also scored for the Remparts.
Caedan Bankier, Daylan Kuefler and Matthew Seminoff scored for the Blazers. They played for the first time since May 8 when they were eliminated by the Seattle Thunderbirds in the Western Hockey League’s Western Conference final.
On Saturday in the four-team major junior hockey championship tournament, the WHL champion Thunderbirds will play the Ontario Hockey League champion Peterborough Petes.