PRE-GAME: Saint John Sea Dogs vs Halifax Mooseheads

GAME DAY

WHO: Saint John Sea Dogs vs Halifax Mooseheads
WHEN: Tonight, 7:00 pm
WHERE: Halifax Metro Centre

VISITING TEAM: Saint John Sea Dogs
Record: 10-3-0-1 (3rd in Maritimes Division)
Last Game: 5-1 loss at Bathurst last night
Leading Scorer: Jonathan Huberdeau (14GP-9G-8A-17Pts)
Note: The Saint John Sea Dogs enter tonight’s game with a 10-3-0-1 record which is good for third in Maritimes Division and fifth overall in the QMJHL. They have, however, played two fewer games then the division leading Moncton Wildcats and the second place Acadie-Bathurst Titan. Saint John was ranked 10th in the BMO CHL MasterCard Top 10 Rankings this week… the Sea Dogs are coming off a rough 5-1 loss in Bathurst last night. Despite outshooting the Titan by 13 shots, goaltender Olivier Roy put in an all-star performance by stopping 36 of 37 shots. Zach Phillips scored the lone goal for Saint John while Jacob DeSerres and the Sea Dogs defense struggled at times… if the Sea Dogs’ goaltending rotation continues to hold true, Frederic Piche will get the call between the pipes tonight. The 19-year old has a record of 5-1-0-1, a 2.40 goals against average, and a 0.913 save percentage… one of the storylines of the season so far has been the Sea Dogs’ dominance at home and their struggles on the road. Saint John is 2-3-0-1 away from Harbour Station this year and have been outscored 21-18 in the process… 6-3-0-1 in their last 10 games and are coming off a loss. Before last night’s game, Saint John had won five straight… this is the second game of a six-game road swing for the Dogs. They head to northern Quebec later this week… Jonathan Huberdeau still leads the Sea Dogs in points with 17 despite going pointless last night. He is also tied with Tomas Jurco for the team lead in goals with nine… Michael Kirkpatrick leads the team in assists with 12… Sea Dogs head coach Gerard Gallant juggled his lines late in the game yesterday. The line of Huberdeau, Jurco, and Zach Phillips saw each player have a +1 rating… Saint John has the third best road penalty kill with a rating of 0.895%... the Dogs are 2-0-0-0 against the Mooseheads this year.

HOME TEAM: Halifax Mooseheads
Record: 5-10-0-1 (5th in Maritimes Division)
Last Game: 7-2 loss vs Cape Breton last night
Leading Scorer: Martin Frk (16GP-6G-9A-15Pts)
Notes: The Halifax Mooseheads come into this evenings match with a record of 5-10-0-1 and currently sit fifth in the six team Maritimes Division and 15th in the 18 team QMJHL… the Mooseheads are 3-6-0-1 in their last 10 games and are coming off a loss… Halifax fell 7-2 at home last night to the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles. Marton Frk and Garrett Clarke each scored for Halifax in the loss. Cape Breton scored four times in the first period in a game that included six fights between the provincial rivals. Goaltender Mathieu Corbeil was pulled after allowing three goals on three shots in the opening frame… the Herd played on pink ice last night for Pink in the Rink. They fell to 0-3 all-time with the coloured ice… rookie import Martin Frk has played as advertised. He leads the team in points with 15 and assists with nine… Carl Gelinas leads the Mooseheads in goals with seven… impressive rookie defenseman Simon Desmarais has been turning heads with his strong play. He has a team best +7 rating to go along with his two goals and one assist… it isn’t clear who will start in goal tonight. Corbeil, a Columbus Blue Jackets prospect, is the teams number one netminder. He has a record of 4-5-0-1, a goals against average of 3.68, and a save percentage of 0.868%. Backup Anthony Terenzio, an American, has a record of 1-3-0-0, a GAA of 3.91, and a SV% of 0.860… according to EliteProspects.com, Terenzio is one of only six American born players in the league this season… the Mooseheads are the second youngest team in the league with an average age of 17.41 years.

HELLO BOBBY SMITH
If you haven’t heard by now, Mooseheads majority owner and former NHLer Bobby Smith is now the teams head coach. The move was made earlier this week. Former head coach Cam Russell remains with the organization. Smith won his coaching debut on Tuesday with a win over the Acadie-Bathurst Titan. He suffered his first loss last night.

It was a bit of a surprising move given that Russell and the Mooseheads appeared to be on the slow upswing after two straight last place finishes.



FLASHBACK
The first meeting between these two teams this season came on September 18 at Harbour Station when Saint John downed Halifax 5-2. In the game, a scoreless first period led to Saint John exploding for four goals in the second period in a seven minute span. Halifax tried to climb back in the third but could not beat the powerful Sea Dogs offense. In the match, Gabriel Bourret, Ryan Tesink, Zach Phillips, Michael Kirkpatrick, and Jonathan Huberdeau all scored goals for the winners. Travis Randell and Brent Andrews scored for the Moose.

Then on October 1, the Sea Dogs defeated the Herd 4-3 in a shootout at the Metro Centre. Stephen MacAulay, Steven Anthony, and Jonathan Huberdeau all scored for Saint John while Halifax replied with markers from Carl Gelinas (2) and Martin Frk. Huberdeau won the game for Saint John in the shootout.

LAST SEASON
From the Sea Dogs’ website:

Saint John won seven of their eight matchups with Halifax last year, outscoring the Mooseheads 38-16 in the process. Several Sea Dogs players put up solid numbers versus the Herd in 2009-10, including dynamic winger Zack Phillips (8GP-1G-8A-9P), star centre Michael Kirkpatrick (8GP-2G-6A-8P), and ultra-dependable blue-liner Pierre Durepos (+10 rating in 8GP). Local minor hockey product Aidan Kelly, meanwhile, scored his first career Q-league goal against the Mooseheads last season - on February 17 at the Halifax Metro Centre (during a 6-2 win for Saint John).

ARENA INFO
Venue: Halifax Metro Centre
Seating Capacity: 10,500
Year Built: 1978
QMJHL Arena Guide

MEDIA GUIDE
Radio (Sea Dogs): News 88.9 FM
Live Web Feed: Telus
Television: None
Live Blog: Station Nation
Post-Game Coverage: Station Nation, Chronicle Herald, Metro Halifax, Telegraph-Journal

TWITTER
Follow Station Nation on Twitter at www.twitter.com/station_nation for in-game updates, scores, stats, and live coverage during tonight’s game.

AFTER THE BUZZER
Saint John kicks off the mega Quebec swing Wednesday night at 8:30 pm against the Val-d’Or Foreurs.