T&T PICKS SAINT JOHN SECOND

Moncton Wildcats beat reporter Neil Hodge released his pre-season rankings today. Hodge, who recently had Saint John picked to finish fourth in the Atlantic division in The Hockey News, picks the Dogs to finish second in the Atlantic behind the Wildcats. Here's what he had to say:

Saint John Sea Dogs
Last season: Ninth in the league at 34-30-2-2 for 72 points. The Sea Dogs lost to the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles in the opening playoff round.

Key subtractions: g Robert Mayer, d David Stich, f Ryan Sparling (20-31-51, 55 games) and f Payton Liske (19-26-45, 64 games)

Key returnees: d Yann Sauve, d Simon Despres, d Kevin Gagne, f Michael Kirkpatrick (34-30-64, 67 games), f Olivier Ouellet (21-27-48, 63 games), f Steven Anthony (19-20-48, 67 games), f Nicholas Pard and f Alexandre Leduc

Key additions: g Marc-Antoine Gelinas (Gatineau) and f Zack Phillips (Lewiston) were acquired in trades. f Stanislav Galiev and f Tomas Jurco are from the 2009 CHL import draft. d Pierre Durepos, f Jonathan Huberdeau and f Scott Oke are from the 2009 draft.

New Brunswickers: d Kevin Gagne (Edmundston), d Pierre Durepos (Shediac), d Nathan Beaulieu (Quispamsis), f Mike Thomas (New Maryland), f Aidan Kelly (Saint John) and f Zack Phillips (Fredericton).

Outlook: It's not known whether high-scoring forwards Mike Hoffman and Nicholas Petersen will be with Saint John. Both 20-year-olds are in NHL camps and could turn pro.

"Even if we don't get those two guys, I think we're going to be a very good offensive team," said head coach Gerard Gallant. "I also like our blueline. People tell me goaltending might be an issue for us, but I don't see that."

Four-year trend: Average of 60.5 points per season. (72 in 2008-09, 89 in 2007-08, 43 in 2006-07, and 38 in 2005-06)

Regular season lifetime: 110-168-0

Playoffs lifetime: 8-10

Information via: http://timestranscript.canadaeast.com/sports/