Notebook: Another pre-season adjustment

There's been another change to the Saint John Sea Dogs' pre-season schedule.

The team's "home game" originally scheduled for Friday, Aug. 23 at Fredericton's Aitken Centre has been moved to Saturday, Aug. 24, where the match will begin at 3 p.m.

The UNB Reds made the schedule change official on Wednesday.

Get ready REDS Nation, the @SJSeaDogs are coming to the Aitken Centre for pre-season action on Saturday, August 24.

⏰ 3:00 pm
🆚 @CBEHockey
🏟️ Aitken Centre

Don't miss the action—secure your tickets now!

🎟️ https://t.co/ZCoamnLfbY#goredsgo pic.twitter.com/sZicEhsnJ7

— UNB Reds (@UNBAthletics) July 24, 2024

It's the second adjustment to Saint John's pre-season schedule. The team's Sept. 14 game against the Charlottetown Islanders was originally set to take place at the Pownal Sports Centre but has since been moved to the Cavendish Farms Community Events Centre in Tyne Valley.

FEW WEEKS AWAY

It's hard to believe, but Saint John's training camp and pre-season is less than a month away.

The team begins pre-season play on Tuesday, Aug. 20 when they host the Charlottetown Islanders at St. Stephen's Garcelon Civic Centre. Saint John will play three exhibition games from Aug. 20 - 24 before breaking until Sept. 6.

Saint John will play six pre-season games in total.

The Sea Dogs begin regular season play on Sept. 20 at TD Station when they host the Moncton Wildcats.

Report: Dogs to acquire Dubé

Vincent Ethier/QMJHL

The Saint John Sea Dogs will soon acquire a 17-year-old forward according to a report.

Kevin Barrett of Postmedia reported Wednesday that the Sea Dogs will soon acquire Elliot Dubé from the Gatineau Olympiques. The QMJHL's next trading period begins Aug. 1.

It's not been reported what the Sea Dogs will be sending the Olympiques in return.

The youth movement continues for @SJSeaDogs. SJ expected to land 6'0" C Elliot Dube (2007), the #32 pick in '23 draft, from Gat. That would give them 5 picks from No. 22-No. 40 from '23 draft. Last yr, with Notre Dame of QueU18AAA - he had 28 pts (41GP). 7 more in 6 p'off games.

— Kevin Barrett (@KevinBarrettNB) July 24, 2024

Listed at 6'0" and 165 lbs, Dubé was a second-round pick of Gatineau in the 2023 QMJHL Entry Draft but never played a game with the club. He spent last season with Notre Dame College in the Quebec under-18 circuit where he posted 11 goals and 17 assists in 41 games. He added a goal and six assists in six playoff games.

"Dubé is a forward who has a lot of maturity in his game," wrote Frédéric Lévesque of QMJHL Central Scouting ahead of the 2023 draft. "He has good size and uses it to his advantage, both in puck protection and while forechecking. He is a hard worker with an above average hockey IQ.

"The forward has seen his responsibilities increase lately as his coach trusts him as much on the power play as he does on the penalty kill. Offensively, it will be interesting to follow his progression between the end of the regular season and the playoffs."

Dubé was an alternate captain with Notre Dame last year, his second season with the club.

Dubé joins the likes of forward Egan Beveridge and Olivier Groulx along with defensemen Benjamin Amyot and Olivier Duhamel as 2007-born players on Saint John's roster.

Sea Dogs add eight to camp roster

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With the start of training camp less than a month away, the Saint John Sea Dogs announced eight adds to the team's camp roster.

Among the group are two players – forward Will Allen and goaltender Jack Flanagan – who will attend Saint John's camp on loan from the Charlottetown Islanders.

Allen, 19, has split the last two seasons with the Islanders and the Maritime Hockey League's Miramichi Timberwolves. He posted five goals and three assists in 29 games with Charlottetown last year to go along with 22 goals and 18 assists in 24 contests with Miramichi. 

Flanagan, a 19-year-old Saint John native, posted a 13-6 regular season record with the Timberwolves last year to go along with a 3.08 goals against average and a .900 save percentage. He then went an impressive 11-0-2 with a .917 SV% and 2.86 GAA in the playoffs, helping Miramichi win the MHL title. He's appeared in five career QMJHL games.

The six other players are all free agent invites.

• 18-year-old forward Domenic Battaglia spent last season with the York Simcoe Express under-18 squad where he posted 15 points in 16 regular season games and another 10 points in 10 playoff matches. He also appeared in four games with the OJHL's Stouffville Spirit. 
• 18-year-old forward Brayden Campbell is a Saint John native who appeared in 34 games with the Saint John Vito's (where he posted 32 points) last season and nine games with the MHL's Grand Falls Rapids. He also appeared in some games with North Shore Academy last year, the US prep school he spent the 2022-23 season at.
• 17-year-old forward Matthew Ferdinand recorded 32 points in 34 games with the Fredericton Caps last season and also appeared in four games with the MHL's Fredericton Red Wings. A New Maryland native, Ferdinand was an eighth-round pick of the Cape Breton Eagles in 2023.
• 16-year-old American forward Karolis Janulis spent last season with the Islanders Hockey Club program in Massachusetts. The Sea Dogs' news release notes that he is the brother of Matas Janulis (who also played with the Islanders), a 13th-round pick of Saint John in this year's QMJHL Entry Draft. 
• 18-year-old forward Jonah Leard recorded 14 goals and 13 assists in 49 games with the Rapids last season. A fifth-round pick of the Acadie-Bathurst Titan in 2022, Leard has appeared in five career QMJHL games. A Riverview native, Leard captained the Moncton Flyers in 2022-23.
• 19-year-old Owen Arnold – the lone defensive invite – had three assists in 27 games with the MHL's Edmundston Blizzard. Arnold spent the 2022-23 season with the Eagles where he posted four assists in 49 games. Listed at 6'5" and 201 lbs, the Quispamsis native is a graduate of the Saint John Vito's.

The Sea Dogs begin QMJHL pre-season play on Aug. 20 when they host the Islanders in St. Stephen. The team's training camp will presumably begin a few days prior.

Reynolds commits to Reds

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

Another former Saint John Sea Dog has committed to the UNB Reds for the upcoming season.

Former Sea Dogs captain and Fredericton native Peter Reynolds was announced as UNB's latest recruit on Monday. The 21-year-old spent three-and-a-half seasons with Saint John and helped the club win the 2022 Memorial Cup.

From the Reds news release:

“I am extremely excited to be returning to Fredericton and putting the Reds jersey on,” said Reynolds. “Growing up in Fredericton, I got into hockey watching Coach Hennigar and the Reds, so for myself, ever since I was 4 years old, I wanted to play here for UNB.”

The 5’10” centre has signed a U SPORTS Letter of Intent and will join the Reds ahead of the 2024-2025 AUS season.

“We are extremely excited to add Peter to our team for the upcoming season,” said Reds head coach Rob Hennigar. “I’ve known Pete since he was coming through our programs as a kid and it’s great to get him a part of the UNB family.”

Although he had a disappointing end to the 2023-24 season as a member of the Halifax Mooseheads, Reynolds was one of the top players available in this year's U Sports recruiting class. 

Reynolds leaves the QMJHL having recorded 177 points in 192 games. Some of his best hockey was played under former UNB head coach Gardiner MacDougall during the 2022 Memorial Cup.

Reynolds joins former Sea Dogs Kale McCallum, Nick Blagden and Drew Elliott on the Reds, the reigning U Sports national champions.

UNB opens the Atlantic University Sport regular season on Oct. 4 at the Aitken Centre against the Dalhousie Tigers.

A few alumni updates

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

There has been some Saint John Sea Dogs alumni movement over the past few days. Here's a quick look at what happened.

• Patrick Leaver has committed to play at StFX University this fall. The 20-year-old goaltender joined the Sea Dogs last season after spending two years in the OHL. Leaver posted a 14-25-4 record with the Dogs to go along with a 4.23 goals against average and a .883 save percentage. The X-Men have featured a number of Sea Dogs alumni over the years, most recently Bailey Webster.

  Kicking off the 2024-25 recruiting class, Coach Peddle and X-Men Hockey are excited to welcome goaltender Patrick Leaver to the blue & white! #goxgo pic.twitter.com/0N4DiuN1mx

  — X-Men Hockey (@XMenhockey) July 20, 2024

• Drew Elliott is set to the join the UNB Reds. The 21-year-old forward spent five years in the QMJHL and concluded his junior career by playing 32 games with Saint John in the second half. “UNB was the most attractive of my options,” said Elliott in a Reds release. “I’ve heard so many great things about the Reds. I believe this is the opportunity for me to grow personally and as a hockey player.” UNB featured former Sea Dogs – and fellow New Brunswickers – Kale McCallum and Nick Blagden last season.
• Forward Brody Fournier, Saint John's third overager from this past season, is set to join the Dalhousie Tigers, according to Elite Prospects' information.
• Joe Veleno has re-signed with the Detroit Red Wings, inking a two-year contract with an average annual value of $2.275 million. The 24-year-old has spent his entire pro career with the Red Wings organization. He posted 12 goals and 16 assists in 80 games last year.
• Former Sea Dogs goaltender Zachary Emond is officially returning to the ECHL's Trois-Rivieres Lions this coming season.

  Zachary Émond sera de retour pour une deuxième saison! 🤩
  
  Celui qui a accompli deux blanchissages consécutifs en saison régulière l'an dernier apportera une précieuse contribution en défendant la cage des félins!🔥
  
  Bon retour, Zach!🦁#Lions3R #ForgésEnsemble pic.twitter.com/aFXGGO9t0k

  — Lions de Trois-Rivières (@Lions3r) July 21, 2024

Dogs picks invited to Team Canada camps

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

Three Saint John Sea Dogs prospects have been invited to Hockey Canada's under-17 development camp.

Forwards Dylan Rozzi and William Yared along with defenseman Cameron Chartrand all received invites to the summer camp, which will take place in Oakville from July 18-24. Players will be evaluated ahead of the 2024 U17 World Challenge, scheduled for Nov. 1-9 in Sarnia.

There will be two Team Canada's at the World Challenge with Team Canada Red being led by Sea Dogs head coach Travis Crickard.

Yared (fifth overall), Rozzi (sixth) and Chartrand (19th) were all first round picks of Saint John in June's QMJHL Entry Draft. Rozzi and Chartrand were both selected in the USHL draft this year and both seem to be leaning towards that route.

#SJSeaDogs prospects William Yared, Dylan Rozzi, and Cameron Chartrand have been invited to @HockeyCanada's National Under-17 Development Camp!#GoDogsGo pic.twitter.com/aHbvDYCIY6

— Saint John Sea Dogs (@SJSeaDogs) July 16, 2024

80 players were invited to the under-17 camp – 39 from the OHL, 23 from the WHL and 18 from the QMJHL. Fredericton native Tynan Lawrence – a first round pick of the Chicoutimi Sagueneens who is expected to play in the USHL this coming season – was among the invites.

Quispamsis native Liam Kilfoil of the Halifax Mooseheads was among the 41 players invited to Canada's under-18 camp. 

Bradly Nadeau of Saint-François-de-Madawaska and Dylan MacKinnon of Riverview were the lone Atlantic Canadians invited to Canada's world junior camp, which will take place in Windsor at the end of the month. Nadeau is expected to turn pro this season while MacKinnon will play with the Moncton Wildcats.

Crickard heading to U17 World Challenge

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

Saint John Sea Dogs head coach Travis Crickard will once again step behind the Team Canada bench this fall.

On Friday, Crickard was named the head coach of Team Canada Red for this year's U17 World Challenge, which will be held Nov. 1-9 in Sarnia.

From the Hockey Canada news release:

Crickard recently finished his second season as head coach of the QMJHL’s Saint John Sea Dogs following one season as an assistant. He won a gold medal as an assistant coach with Canada’s National Men’s Under-18 Team at the 2024 IIHF U18 World Championship and as video coach at the same tournament in 2021. Crickard was an assistant coach for Canada’s men’s hockey team at the 2024 Winter Youth Olympic Games, finishing fourth, and was video coach (2016) and assistant coach (2017) with Canada Black at the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, winning a silver medal in 2016.

Crickard's assistant coaches will be Matt Anholt of the WHL's Lethbridge Hurricanes and Wes Wolfe of the OHL's Erie Otters.

Crickard will miss, at minimum, six Sea Dogs games while taking part in the event, including a three-in-three Quebec road trip.

Hockey Canada also announced the coaching staff for the 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup on Friday, which will take place in Edmonton next month. Former Sea Dogs head coach Gordie Dwyer will be an assistant coach.

Sea Dogs taking part in NHL Development Camps

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

It's NHL Development Camp season and three current Saint John Sea Dogs will be taking part.

Forwards Eriks Mateiko (Washington Capitals) and Tyler Peddle (Columbus Blue Jackets) along with defenseman Matteo Mann (Philadelphia Flyers) are all taking part in camps this week.

It's a fairly light year for Sea Dogs players past and present taking part in development camps. Here's a look at the full list in no particular order.

Columbus – Tyler Peddle

New York Rangers – Kale McCallum

Philadelphia – Matteo Mann

Washington – Eriks Mateiko

Montreal – Charles Savoie

Vancouver – Jonathan Lemieux

There are a few other notable names attending summer camps this year. Sea Dogs draft picks Guillaume Richard (Columbus Blue Jackets), Justin Hryckowian (Dallas Stars) and Ben MacDonald (Seattle Kraken) are all heading to camps.

Brothers Bradly Nadeau and Josh Nadeau of Saint-François de Madawaska are taking part in Carolina Hurricanes development camp. They'll join Justin Poirier – the brother of former Sea Dogs defenseman Jeremie Poirier – at 'Canes camp. 

Josh Nadeau, a free agent, is also listed on the Montreal Canadiens' camp roster.

Two of the QMJHL's top free agent goaltenders – Drummondville's Riley Mercer and Rouyn-Noranda's William Rousseau – are both attending Minnesota Wild camp. Mathis Rousseau of the Halifax Mooseheads was invited to Nashville Predators camp.

It's worth noting as well that Jordan Dumais is on the Blue Jackets camp roster. The Mooseheads forward, who will likely play pro this year, missed the second half of the season with an injury and suspension.

More alumni on the move

More former Saint John Sea Dogs are on the move – including a few key members from the team's 2017 President Cup championship team. Here's a quick look at the latest moves.

• Former Sea Dogs captain Spencer Smallman has signed a one-year, two-way contract worth $775,000 NHL/$350,000 AHL with the Washington Capitals. The 27-year-old has yet to appear in an NHL game. Smallman has spent the past two seasons with the AHL's Colorado Eagles but will now move east to join the back-to-back Calder Cup champion Hershey Bears.
• The Ottawa Senators have traded Mathieu Joseph to the St. Louis Blues. The two-time Stanley Cup winner has spent parts of the past three seasons in Ottawa where he was reunited with Thomas Chabot. He'll get to play with his brother, former Charlottetown Islanders defenseman Pierre-Olivier Joseph, who has signed with the Blues.

  This is pretty awesome. 💙
  
  Mathieu and Pierre-Olivier Joseph are now both members of the @StLouisBlues! pic.twitter.com/gGCsNRPcIj

  — NHL (@NHL) July 3, 2024

• Cedric Pare has signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs "worth $775,000." The 25-year-old played with Smallman and the Eagles last season where he posted 35 goals in 61 games. Pare has consistently put up respectable numbers while bouncing around with different teams at the pro level.
• Maxim Cajkovic has signed a one-year contract with HC Verva Litvínov in Czechia for next season. The 23-year-old Slovak split time last season in the AHL and ECHL with both the Minnesota Wild and Pittsburgh Penguins organizations.

Sea Dogs select Schenk in Import Draft

The Saint John Sea Dogs selected Swiss forward Florian Schenk with the seventh overall pick in Wednesday's CHL Import Draft.

The Sea Dogs did not use their second round selection with Schenk and Latvian forward Eriks Mateiko poised to be Saint John's import duo to start the 2024-25 season. The team announced Tuesday that Czech forward Pavel Simek has been released.

The 17-year-old played with the SC Bern program last year, posting six goals and six assists in nine games at the under-17 level and eight goals and 17 assists in 42 games at the under-20 level. He's also played internationally with Switzerland at the under-16 and -17 levels.

“We’re excited to add Florian to our group. He fits the age of our core and he’s a player we can build with,” said Sea Dogs general manager Anthony Stella in a news release. “His combination of size, skill and compete fits the Sea Dogs mold and we’re looking forward to seeing him on the ice in Saint John in August.”

Surprisingly, this is just the second time the Sea Dogs have drafted a Swiss player in the Import Draft with goaltender Robert Mayer being the other way back in 2007. Saint John has had other Swiss players on their team before – like Noah Patenaude and Vincent Despont – but they were not taken in the Import Draft (nor were they officially classified as import players).

Simek, meanwhile, was picked in the second round on Wednesday by the Memorial Cup host Rimouski Oceanic.

CHL Import Draft happening Wednesday

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

The Saint John Sea Dogs are expected to pick just once in Wednesday's 2024 CHL Import Draft.

The team announced Tuesday that Latvian forward Eriks Mateiko will return for a third season with the club this fall while Czech forward Pavel Simek has been released. Both players were selected in the 2022 CHL Import Draft.

The roster announcements are noteworthy for a couple reasons. It would appear that Mateiko, who will be one of the QMJHL's top imports next season, will start the season with the club but will no doubt continue to draw trade interest. A draft pick of the Washington Capitals last weekend, he could be the team's captain come September.

Simek, meanwhile, posted a respectable 18 goals and 20 assists in 68 games with the Sea Dogs last season, his second year with the team.

“We wanted to respect Pavel’s request as he’d like to pursue other opportunities,” said Sea Dogs general manager Anthony Stella in a news release. “We want to thank him for the last two seasons and wish him the best of luck.”

Saint John is scheduled to pick seventh overall in Wednesday's draft, which begins at noon Atlantic and can be followed on the CHL website. The Val-d'Or Foreurs will select first overall followed by the WHL's Kamloops Blazers and OHL's Windsor Spitfires.

The CHL Import Draft is more about who you know in the hockey world than where you are selecting – but picking high does help ensure you aren't thrown any curveballs.  The Sea Dogs will likely have a high pick again next year.

“We’re excited about this draft and how high we’ll be picking," added Stella. "We’ll be poised to improve our team this week.”

New homes for former Sea Dogs

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A few former Saint John Sea Dogs are on the move as the NHL's free agency period opened on Monday.

Forward Boko Imama has signed a one-year, two way contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins. According to the Pens, the deal "holds an average annual value of $775,000 at the NHL level."

Imama spent last season with the Ottawa Senators organization where he appeared in six NHL games and 53 games with AHL Belleville. He'll likely see a similar split of games with the Pens next season.

This will be Imama's fourth NHL organization since turning pro, which has included stops in Los Angeles/Ontario/Manchester, Arizona/Tucson and Ottawa/Belleville.

The 27-year-old spent two-and-a-half seasons with the Sea Dogs, helping the team win the President Cup in 2017.

Defenseman Vincent Sevigny, meanwhile, has signed a one-year, one-way contract with the Laval Rocket, the AHL affiliate of the Montreal Canadiens.

The former Sea Dogs captain – who wasn't drafted into the NHL – has spent the past two seasons playing alongside William Dufour with the AHL's Bridgeport Islanders. The 23-year-old had a goal and four assists in 33 games with Bridgeport last season.

Sevigny captained the Sea Dogs to the Memorial Cup in 2022.