PRE-GAME: Saint John Sea Dogs vs Quebec Remparts

Game Day
Saint John Sea Dogs vs Quebec Remparts
Tonight, January 22, 2010 at 8:00 pm
Colisee Pepsi

Visiting Team: Saint John Sea Dogs
Record: 38-7-1-0 (1st in Atlantic Division)
Last Game: 6-0 Win vs Chicoutimi on Sunday
Leading Scorer: Michael Kirkpatrick: 45 GP – 18 G – 40 A – 58 Pts
NHL Draft Picks: Yann Sauve (Vancouver), Marco Cousineau (Anaheim), Simon Despres (Pittsburgh), Steven Anthony (Vancouver), Mike Hoffman (Ottawa), and Nicholas Petersen (Pittsburgh).
Notes: Out of the lineup for Saint John tonight is Nicholas Petersen. He received an automatic one game suspension after a fight last Sunday vs Dominic Jalbert of Chicoutimi. He sits second in team scoring… Gabriel Bourret returns to the Sea Dogs lineup after missing the last two games because of a team issued suspension… this is the first game of a three-in-three Quebec road swing – the last one of the season. Saint John travels to Montreal on Saturday and Gatineau on Sunday… the Sea Dogs are ranked number one in the Atlantic division, the QMJHL, and the entire CHL this week… Saint John is 8-2-0-0 in their last 10 games and have won four straight. In their last four games, they have outscored their opponents 21-4 and have recorded one shutout… Marco Cousineau is expected to start in goal tonight. He and Karel St. Laurent split the two games last weekend after having a full week off… Saint John hasn’t played since last Sunday when they shutout the Sagueneens 6-0… just completed a five game home stand where they went 4-1-0-0… they are tied with Drummondville for most goals scored in the QMJHL with 205 goals in 46 goals. They are second in fewest goals allowed with 121… the Sea Dogs’ power play has improved greatly over the past few games and sits 14th in the league with a rating of 76%... owners of the best road record in the QMJHL with a record of 18-3-1-0. They are 9-1-0-0 in their last 10 road games and have won three straight… the Dogs have never won a game in Quebec City.

Home Team: Quebec Remparts
Record: 28-13-3-3 (1st in Telus Eastern Division)
Last Game: 3-2 shootout win at Rouyn-Noranda on Sunday
Leading Scorer: Dmitri Kugryshev: 45 GP – 18 G – 38 A – 56 Pts
NHL Draft Picks: Mikhail Stefanovich (Toronto), Dmitri Kugryshev (Washington), Danick Paquette (Atlanta), and Ryan Bourque (New York Rangers)
Notes: The Remparts will be without one of their best defenseman in Mikael Tam tonight. Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past week, you’ll know that Tam was the victim of a vicious elbow delivered by Rouyn-Noranda Huskie Patrice Cormier… the Remparts made some major moves at the trade deadline. Quebec acquired Antoine Tardif, Nicholas Samoluk, Matthew Brown, Louis Domingue, Jerome Cote, Patrick Dore, and Olivier Hinse. Stars Kelsey Tessier, Simon Groulx, and goaltender Peter Delmas were all traded from the team… Matt Brown is the only player on the team’s roster that is from Atlantic Canada… Ryan Bourque won a Gold medal with team USA at the World Junior Hockey Championships earlier this month. He is ninth in rookie scoring with 13 goals and 17 assists… Quebec has struggled since the deadline and are 4-5-1-0 in their last 10 games but have won two straight… they sit fifth overall in the league… Quebec has the best power play in the league with a rating of 27.7%... 13-5-1-3 at home this season and are 6-3-1-0 in their last 10 home games. They have lost two straight… they are running an impressive home power play with a rating of 32.4%... Mikhail Stefanovich has a team high three points – one goal and two assists – in the only game played against Saint John this season... Quebec has outscored Saint John 49-33 in 10 games played between the two.

Saint John vs Quebec:
This Season (GP-W-L-OTL-SOL-PTS):
1-1-0-0-0-2
Home: 1-1-0-0-0-2
Road: 0-0-0-0-0-0
Goals For: 6
Goals Against: 4

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: 9
Goals Against: 16

All-Time-Not including this season (GP-W-L-OTL-SOL-PTS):
9-1-8-0-0-2
Home: 4-1-3-0-0-2
Road: 5-0-5-0-0-0
Goals For: 27
Goals Against: 45

EPIC FIGHT
One of the most memorable moments in Sea Dogs/Remparts history saw superstars of the time Chris DiDomenico and Angelo Esposito drop the gloves at Colisee Pepsi. Esposito just about killed DiDomenicoin in the tilt. A year later, they were line mates at the World Juniors.


CORMIER RULING COMING MONDAY
The QMJHL announced that disciplinary measures will be announced Monday regarding the incident involving Rouyn-Noranda Huskies forward Patrice Cormier and Quebec Remparts defenseman Mikael Tam. Cormier, a 19-year-old centre from Cap-Pele and the captain of this year's national junior team, was suspended indefinitely by the league after he delivered an elbow to Tam's head in Sunday's game in Rouyn-Noranda, where Quebec posted a 3-2 shootout win.

Station Nation Facts:

• "For the guys who've played there before, we all know that the Remparts have fans that support their team really well,'' Mike Thomas said to the Telegraph-Journal. "It's always hard to walk into their barn, but we just have to make sure we're ready to play. It might be a little bit intimidating at first, but you just get used to it and know that it's the same game on the ice, and you just have to bring the same mentality every night.''
• Mike Hoffman scored a hat trick on November 29 at Harbour Station as the Sea Dogs defeated Quebec 6-4. Marc-Antoine Gelinas made 21 saves in what was Saint John’s 17th straight win on their 22-game winning streak.
• Colisee Pepsi is a multi-purpose arena in Quebec City, Quebec. It was the home of the WHA and NHL Quebec Nordiques from 1972-1995, and is currently home of the QMJHL’s Remparts.
• The Remparts are averaging 11,466 fans per game this season. The largest crowd this season saw 14,003 fans pass through the gate on November 7 vs Gatineau.

Important Info:
Venue: Colisee Pepsi
Capacity: 15,176
Arena Guide Info: http://www.qmjhlarenaguide.com/remparts.htm

Saint John Media: Radio- News 88.9 FM (http://www.news889.com/)
Live Video Streaming: http://www.qmjhl.mytelus.com/
Post-Game Coverage: http://www.stationnation.blogspot.com/, Le Journal de Quebec, Le Soleil