The wait continues

Photo: Saint John Sea Dogs

Thursday marked the three-month anniversary of the Saint John Sea Dogs' last regular season game.

The Sea Dogs have been unable to play since Nov. 18 due to COVID-19 restrictions. There was hope that games could resume following the extended holiday break but that has not happened for the QMJHL's three New Brunswick clubs.

There's still no clear indication of when the Sea Dogs may resume playing games. The team has been able to practice at least, and on Thursday held its first full team practice with everyone out of quarantine.

First full roster practice today. New names, new faces👋 pic.twitter.com/s40lW2lgg8

— Saint John Sea Dogs (@SJSeaDogs) February 18, 2021

There will be a number of new names on Saint John's roster when they resume game action. They include: forwards Ryan Francis, Vladislav Kotkov, Carter McCluskey, and Zachary Alchorn; defenseman Brandon Casey; and goaltender Zachary Emond.

The Sea Dogs have played 15 games and are 5-6-3-1, placing them third in the Maritimes Division. If the playoffs started today, first-place Charlottetown and second-place Bathurst would receive byes into the second round. The Sea Dogs would play sixth-place Halifax in the first round while fourth-place Moncton and fifth-place Cape Breton would meet in the other series.

The three New Brunswick clubs are really starting to lose ground in terms of games played. Moncton has played a league low 13 at this point while Halifax has played 25. Rimouski and Rouyn-Noranda have each played a league high 27.

The WHL plans to have its teams play 24-game seasons. The OHL has yet to confirm plans on its return, but the expectation is that they will follow the WHL's lead and play around 24 contests.