Thursday, March 24, 2022

Game Day 51: at Charlottetown

CHARLOTTETOWN - Another big showdown between the Saint John Sea Dogs and Charlottetown Islanders is here.

The Sea Dogs visit Charlottetown tonight as the No. 9 and No. 4 teams in the latest CHL Top 10 rankings go head-to-head. Game time at Eastlink Centre is 7 p.m.

Saint John carries a 10-game winning streak into this contest - a streak that includes two wins over Charlottetown. The latest was last Friday at TD Station when the Sea Dogs came back to win 4-3 in overtime.

Charlottetown, meanwhile, is on a 4-0-2-0 run even as the team continues to deal with injury issues.

It's still not impossible for Saint John to catch Charlottetown in the standings - but it is still unlikely. Entering play tonight, the Islanders have an eight-point lead on the Sea Dogs and have a game in-hand.

TV/Radio/Webcast: None/93 CFBC/CHL TV

Capacity/Proof of Vaccination/Masks: 75%/None/Required

Records: The Sea Dogs are 31-15-1-3 for 66 points (second Maritimes/third Eastern/sixth QMJHL) while the Islanders are 34-9-6-0 for 74 points (first Maritimes/first Eastern/first QMJHL).

Last games: The Sea Dogs are coming off a 6-2 win in Moncton on Tuesday night. Ryan Francis scored a pair of goals while singles came from Vincent Sevigny, Nathan Drapeau, Nicholas Blagden and Brady Burns. Nikolas Hurtubise made 23 saves in the win. The Islanders are coming off a 4-2 win in Cape Breton on Tuesday. Lukas Cormier, Drew Elliott, Noah Laaouan and Jakub Brabenec scored for Charlottetown. Oliver Satny made 22 stops in the win.

2021-22 head-to-head: The Sea Dogs are 3-4-0-0 against the Islanders this season while Charlottetown is 4-2-1-0 against Saint John.

Last meeting: March 18 at TD Station where the Sea Dogs defeated the Islanders 4-3 in overtime. Jeremie Poirier, Philippe Daoust, Brady Burns and Vincent Sevigny scored for Saint John. Patrick Guay, Keiran Gallant and Brett Budgell scored for Charlottetown. Nikolas Hurtubise made 28 saves in the win. Francesco Lapenna made 35 stops in the loss.

Ex-Sea Dogs on the Islanders: Forward Dawson Stairs.

Islander to watch: Brett Budgell has seven goals and three assists in seven games against Saint John this season. 

Random stat: William Dufour still leads the league in goals with 42 but he hasn't scored in three straight games. It's his longest scoring drought of the season (although he does have five assists during this stretch). He's due.

Notes: William Dufour leads Saint John in points with 87 and goals with 42... Josh Lawrence has a team high 50 assists... Patrick Guay leads Charlottetown in points with 73 and goals with 39... Xavier Simoneau has a team high 44 assists... Saint John is 15-7-1-1 on the road... Charlottetown is 16-6-2-0 at home... Jakub Brabenec leads the QMJHL in rookie scoring with 46 points... Lukas Cormier is second in QMJHL defensemen scoring with 61 points. He's also tied for the league lead in defensemen goals with 24... the Islanders have the league's best penalty kill with a rating of 85.6%... the Islanders are allowing a league low 2.56 goals against per game... Brett Budgell has points in 14 straight games... Dufour has points in 11 straight games... the Sea Dogs have won five straight road games... the Islanders were without Simoneau, Zachary Roy and Ben Boyd on Tuesday due to injuries. Roy is considered a game time decision.

Out of town:
Acadie-Bathurst at Halifax - 7:00 PM ADT
Cape Breton at Moncton - 7:00 PM ADT
Sherbrooke at Baie-Comeau - 7:00 PM EDT
Rouyn-Noranda at Blainville-Boisbriand - 7:00 PM EDT
Rimouski at Victoriaville - 7:00 PM EDT

Next game: The Sea Dogs host the Moncton Wildcats on Friday at 7 p.m. at TD Station.

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