Tuesday, December 3, 2024

Tuesday night news and notes

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs
The Saint John Sea Dogs have just five games remaining before the Christmas break.

The Sea Dogs will play five contests between Dec. 4 and Dec. 14. The team won't return to action until Dec. 28.

Saint John begins this final stretch on Wednesday night when they host the Acadie-Bathurst Titan at 7 p.m. The Titan sit six points ahead of Saint John in the standings and are 3-2 against the Sea Dogs this year.

On Friday the Sea Dogs will travel to Cape Breton for a single matchup with the Eagles. They'll return home to host the Eastern Conference leading Moncton Wildcats on Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m.

Saint John will close out the "first half" next weekend when they host the Eagles on Friday night and the Titan on Saturday afternoon. Note the 3 p.m. start time for the Dec. 14 contest.

A few other news, notes and thoughts...

  • That Dec. 14 game against the Titan will be Saint John's final home game until Jan. 8.
  • The Sea Dogs and Titan will meet eight times before the calendar flips to 2025 – including on New Year's Eve in Bathurst. The two will not meet after that.
  • On the flip side of that, the Sea Dogs and Halifax Mooseheads have met just twice this season. They'll meet six times in the second half.
  • Speaking of Halifax, the Mooseheads continue to be in a league of their own when it comes to game presentation. Can only hope this encourages other QMJHL teams to do the same.
  • Loved the throwback jerseys last Friday. The Sea Dogs really need a jersey redesign. It's time.
  • Sea Dogs goaltender Charles-Edward Gravel is tied with Drummondville's Riley Mercer and Baie-Comeau's Lucas Beckman for the QMJHL lead in shutouts with three.
  • The QMJHL trading period begins next Sunday, Dec. 15.
  • Former Sea Dogs defenseman Kale McCallum, currently a member of the UNB Reds, will play for Team Canada at this year's 2024 FISU Winter World University Games in Torino. The team will also face Canada's world junior team in a couple of exhibition games next week.
  • The Sea Dogs have a new videographer.
  • We should probably be talking more about Zachary Morin's goal celebration from last Friday.
  • 19-year-old American forward Patrick Murphy, a first-round pick of the Sea Dogs in the 2022 QMJHL American Draft, is reportedly leaving the BCHL and signing with the Chicoutimi Sagueneens.
  • At this point it would be a surprise if the QMJHL does not have a team based in St. John's next season.
  • Team CHL won both games of the inaugural CHL USA Prospects Challenge last week in London and Oshawa. Former Sea Dogs head coach Gordie Dwyer was an assistant with Team CHL.
  • Gardiner MacDougall was honoured before Friday's UNB game.
  • The 2026 Memorial Cup will be hosted by the Kelowna Rockets, the CHL announced last week. The Rockets hosted the event in 2004 and would have hosted in 2020 if not for the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Many thought the Medicine Hat Tigers would be awarded the 2026 Memorial Cup hosting rights given that their roster includes Gavin McKenna. But there have been rumblings recently of McKenna playing college hockey next season, which would obviously be a huge blow to the CHL – but it's the new reality.
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