PRE-GAME: Saint John Sea Dogs vs Rimouski Oceanic

Game Day
Saint John Sea Dogs vs Rimouski Oceanic
Today, November 1, 2009 at 5:00 pm
Rimouski Colisee

Visiting Team: Saint John Sea Dogs
Record: 15-4-1-0 (1st in Atlantic Division)
Last Game: 3-2 Shootout Win @ Baie-Comeau on Friday
Leading Scorer: Steven Anthony: 18-10-8-18
Notes: Saint John is coming off their worst win of the season. Michael Kirkpatrick was the hero as he tied the game and won it in a shootout… the Sea Dogs are on a franchise record tying seven game winning streak. A win today will be a franchise record… leading scorer Steven Anthony has always had good games in Rimouski in the past… Saint John has the QMJHL’s best record at 9-2-1-0… this is the third and final game of a three game Quebec road swing… the Sea Dogs seven game winning streak is the longest in the QMJHL this season… the Sea Dogs are first overall in the QMJHL… ranked seventh in Canada this week… Saint John lost all three games against Rimouski last season (two in Rimouski and one in Saint John).

Home Team: Rimouski Oceanic
Record: 8-7-3-0 (2nd in Telus Eastern Division)
Last Game: 5-2 loss vs Drummondville on Friday
Leading Scorer: Felix Lefrancois: 18-10-14-24
Notes: Center Patrice Cormier has been the talk of trade rumors all season… Jordan Caron has only played four games this season after he suffered a concussion at the World Junior evaluation camp. He was almost split in two by Los Angeles Kings prospect Colton Teubert… the Oceanic have three NHL draft picks: Gleason Fournier (Detroit), Caron (Boston), and Cormier (New Jersey)… goaltender Matthew Dopud was drafted by Saint John in the fifth round of the 2006 QMJHL entry draft. He played nine games in 2006-07 as a back-up to Travis Fullerton. He had a 2-5 record with 4.81 GAA. Dopud was released and picked up by Rouyn-Noranda on September 2, 2008… Cormier and Danny Chiasson are New Brunswick natives.

Saint John vs Rimouski:
This Season (GP-W-L-OTL-SOL-PTS):
0-0-0-0-0-0
Home: 0-0-0-0-0-0
Road: 0-0-0-0-0-0
Goals For: 0
Goals Against: 0

Last Season (GP-W-L-OTL-SOL-PTS):
3-0-3-0-0-0
Home: 1-0-1-0-0-0
Road: 2-0-2-0-0-0
Goals For: 8
Goals Against: 15

All-Time-Not including this season (GP-W-L-OTL-SOL-PTS):
9-4-4-1-0-9
Home: 4-2-1-1-0-5
Road: 4-2-1-1-0-4
Goals For: 28
Goals Against: 38

Station Nation Facts:

• Rimouski hosted the Mastercard Memorial Cup last year. The Windsor Spitfires won the CHL’s holy grail over the Kelowna Rockets.
• In 1982-83, the Castors moved to St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, where they stayed until 1994-95. Thereafter, the franchise moved to Rimouski and adopted the name “Océanic”.
• Right off the bat, the team enjoyed a string of success. The 1997-98 edition of the club reached the President Cup final before succumbing to the Val-d’Or Foreurs in four games. Then, Vincent Lecavalier was chosen with the first overall pick in the NHL Entry Draft.
• Two years later, led by head coach Doris Labonté and star forward Brad Richards, the Océanic conquered the triple-crown: the Jean-Rougeau Trophy, the President Cup as well as the Memorial Cup.
• Three years later, the arrival of Sidney Crosby put the Océanic back on the winning track. In each of his two seasons (2003-04 & 2004-05), Crosby finished at the top of the scoring standings.
• The Océanic enjoyed a remarkable 2004-05 season, at one point going 35 straight games (28 regular season + 7 playoff games) without a loss – a CHL record. Nevertheless, they fell to the eventual Memorial Cup champion London Knights 4-0 in the final.
• The team’s notables over the years include: Nick Sanza, Rick Vaive, Ghislain Delage, Paul Boutilier, Georges Laraque, Vincent Lecavalier, Brad Richards and Sidney Crosby.

Important Info:
Venue: Colisee de Rimouski
Capacity: 4,415
Arena Guide Info: http://www.qmjhlarenaguide.com/oceanic.htm

Saint John Media: Radio- News 88.9 FM (www.news889.com)
Live Video Streaming: www.qmjhl.mytelus.com
Post-Game Coverage: www.stationnation.blogspot.com, Telegraph-Journal