In the end, McGill skated away as the winners of a familiar crosstown hockey rivalry, besting Concordia by a score of 6-2 to book a ticket to the national championships.

Concordia opened the scoring just 31 seconds in, but then got into penalty trouble that McGill jumped on, scoring two power play goals to help them take a 3-2 lead after the first period.

The Stingers, who haven't played in a national championship in 34 years, were unable to recover from the onslaught.

McGill's next stop is St. Catharines, Ont., to take on Brock University for the Queen's Cup Saturday. The nationals start next week.

Concordia's chances of heading to the national championship aren't necessarily dead — they will play York University in OUA Bronze medal game next Friday.

The winner of that game will be the wild card in the national championship.

🐝🏒 MH - McGill defeats Concordia 6-2 wrapping up the OUA East final series. The Redmen will play Brock for gold next week. Concordia hosts the York Lions on Friday at 7:30 pm for bronze. The winner will earn a berth at nationals. <a href="https://t.co/OxX5SD8SOX">pic.twitter.com/OxX5SD8SOX</a> —@The_Stingers

Close games

The Redmen dropped the first game of the east conference semifinal against Ottawa, but won the next two games to advance to the final. They did the same thing in a series against Concordia. (CBC) The teams met three times during the regular season and the games were all decided by a single goal. McGill took the season series two games to one.

The rivalry is a familiar one for Concordia head coach Marc-André Élement, who played on the team for five years and served as captain for two. He's officially been at the helm of the team for two seasons.

"We have a lot of character on our team. Guys are working hard. We had a lot of injuries, but the guys, they battle and our compete level is really high right now," he said ahead of the second game.

It was a near-capacity crowd for game two at Ed Meagher Arena Friday night. The Redmen pulled off an overtime win. (CBC)

Concordia stole the first game of the series last Wednesday night, pulling off a 3-1 win at McGill's home arena despite being badly outshot.

The Redmen fired 44 shots at Concordia goalie Marc​-Antoine Turcotte, with 16 of those coming in the first period.

The Stingers managed 19 shots on goal for the entire game.

Concordia got out to an early lead in game two Friday night in front of 750 fans at Ed Meagher Arena in NDG.

But the tables ultimately turned when McGill winger Jérome Verrier, all alone in front of the net, put one past Turcotte in overtime to tie the series at a game apiece, forcing the deciding game.

A Stingers resurgence

The Stingers program has gone through its share of struggles, but has been experiencing a resurgence in recent years.

Élement said as head coach, he has tried to change the culture surrounding the team, but also is working to do a better job at recruiting players.

He said that he's been receiving phone calls and emails from alumni who played on the team in 1984.

"They're just proud of us, and you know what, that's fun. Our program is going the right way and guys are really excited."

"It's fun for hockey in Montreal and university hockey."

Concordia's women triumph

Concordia's women's hockey team fared a bit better than their male counterparts, beating the top-ranked Université de Montreal Carabins 3-1 to clinch a spot at the Canadian championships.

The Stingers haven't won the conference title since 2005. The team reached the final last year, but lost to McGill.

2018 Concordia Stingers Women’s Hockey Team - RSEQ champions. <a href="https://t.co/NMvQdAwTJb">pic.twitter.com/NMvQdAwTJb</a> —@The_Stingers

Concordia, which finished second in the standings, forced a third game in the series after beating the Carabins Saturday.

Both teams will compete in the national championships, which take place in London, Ont., starting March 15. As conference champions, Concordia will be seeded higher.