Recap: Sea Dogs lose 4-2

FINAL: Moncton 4, Saint John 2

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

SAINT JOHN - The Saint John Sea Dogs simply couldn't generate enough offense in a 4-2 loss to the Moncton Wildcats on Sunday at TD Station.

The Sea Dogs went up 2-0 in the first period but the team was unable to maintain that lead against a very hot Wildcats squad. Moncton went on to score three times in the opening frame to take a 3-2 lead – and the visitors would hold that score for much of the game.

Saint John was only able to generate 12 shots in the final two periods combined with a handful of those coming with the Sea Dogs pressing in the final couple minutes. Shots overall were 39-23 in favour of Moncton.

On the flip side, the Sea Dogs were able to keep it close with the Wildcats once again – although it was almost the complete opposite of Thursday's game when the Dogs were rolling offensively (recording 49 shots on goal) but struggling on defense. 

Goaltender Justin Robinson had a strong game in net, making 35 saves in the loss. Angelo Fullerton and Alexander Donovan scored Saint John's goals.

Moncton had a pair of goals from Alex Mercier and singles from Gabe Smith and Preston Lounsbury. Lounsbury iced the game with an empty netter at 19:19 of the third.

The loss was Saint John's sixth straight – with three of those coming against Moncton. The Sea Dogs are now 10-15-1-0 on the season, keeping them 17th overall.

Game Day 27: vs Wildcats

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

SAINT JOHN - The Saint John Sea Dogs will try once again to snap their losing skid against the Moncton Wildcats.

The Sea Dogs fell 7-4 in Moncton on Thursday night, which extended their losing streak to five games. The two will meet again this afternoon – this time at TD Station. Game time for Saint John's teddy bear toss game is 3 p.m.

Halls = decked 🎄❄️

See this year's Christmas jerseys in action starting this Sunday for Teddy Bear Toss at 3:00 p.m. against the Wildcats!

🎟️ » https://t.co/6iKEhaRiX4#GoDogsGo pic.twitter.com/DbVg07DZ70

— Saint John Sea Dogs (@SJSeaDogs) December 4, 2025

It's been a rough stretch for the Sea Dogs – but Thursday's game did have some positives. Saint John was able to fight back from a 4-1 deficit and tie it up at 4-4 early in the third period. While the Dogs weren't able to take the lead, getting back into the game – against one of the QMJHL's top teams – was at least a positive sign.

The Wildcats, meanwhile, are on a 7-0-0-1 run and now have the league's second best winning percentage.

Stream/TV/Radio: FloHockey/None/Sea Dogs Audio Network

Records: The Sea Dogs are 10-15-1-0 for 21 points (ninth Eastern/17th QMJHL) while the Wildcats are 18-6-2-1 for 39 points (second Eastern/second QMJHL).

Last games: The Sea Dogs are coming off that 7-4 loss in Moncton on Thursday. Alexis Joseph, Alexander Donovan, Olivier Duhamel and Olivier Groulx all scored for Saint John. Rafaël Courchesne made 26 saves in the loss. The Wildcats are coming off a 3-1 win over the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies on Friday. Caleb Desnoyers, Kuzma Voronin and Preston Lounsbury scored for Moncton. Rudy Guimond made 31 stops in the win. 

A night of QMJHL hockey outdoors

TROIS-RIVIERES, QC - The temperatures were low but the vibes were high at the Hippodrome racetrack on Friday night.

The Victoriaville Tigres edged the Sherbrooke Phoenix 3-2 in the second game of the 55 Cup, a four-team tournament that also includes the Drummondville Voltigeurs and Shawinigan Cataractes. Victoriaville and Drummondville will meet in Sunday's final while Sherbrooke and Shawinigan will play for third on Saturday.

The Hippodrome is quite a venue, with horse racing on this site dating all the way back to 1830. This was my 14th outdoor hockey game and fourth non-NHL – but a couple of those non-NHL games were played the day after an NHL game at the same venue. The Hippodrome had an impressive setup given that these QMJHL games are the highlight of a week long hockey festival.

The most challenging part of the event was finding the entrance. Once fans made their way in, they were greeted to an area of food trucks and sponsorship activations.

There was also a merchandise trailer.

Recap: Sea Dogs lose 7-4

FINAL: Saint John 4, Moncton 7

Daniel St-Louis/Moncton Wildcats

MONCTON - It wasn't a win, but the Saint John Sea Dogs at least made a game of it on Thursday at Avenir Centre.

The Sea Dogs managed to climb out of a 4-1 deficit and tie it 4-4 early in the third period. But the red hot Moncton Wildcats fired off three goals in the final frame to take it 7-4.

The loss extended Saint John's losing streak to five games – but the Sea Dogs at least showed some resilience in this game. Much of this losing skid has seen Saint John get down and stay down.

The Sea Dogs got off to a rough start, going down 2-0. Saint John started to gain some momentum though and Alexis Joseph made it 2-1 at 14:39 – only to have the Wildcats score two minutes later. Saint John's inability to carry momentum has been a problem.

Saint John outshot Moncton 22-6 in the second period and exited the frame down 4-3. It was an unexpected outburst given that the Sea Dogs have struggled in second periods of late.

Olivier Groulx tied it up at 4-4 at 2:27 of the third with a shorthanded marker. But the Wildcats would go on to score three to make it a 7-4 final.

Shots were 49-33 in favour of Saint John, which was certainly a positive. Defensively the struggles continue with the Sea Dogs having now allowed seven of more goals in four of their past five games.

Joseph, Groulx, Alexander Donovan and Olivier Duhamel all scored for Saint John. Rafaël Courchesne made 26 stops in the loss.

Teddy Mutryn and Caleb Desnoyers each scored twice for Moncton while singles came from Niko Tournas, Adam Fortier-Gendron and Matthew Virgilio. Rudy Guimond made 45 stops in the win.

Game Day 26: at Moncton

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

MONCTON - The Saint John Sea Dogs will look to put a bad weekend behind them tonight.

The Sea Dogs are coming off a three-in-three that saw them fall in each contest and get outscored 20-7. Saint John has dropped four straight games and allowed at least five goals in each of them.

Unfortunately for the Sea Dogs, their schedule doesn't get any easier.

Saint John will travel to Moncton tonight to take on the Wildcats at 7 p.m. Moncton is one of the hottest teams in the league right now, going 8-1-0-1 over their past 10 games.

A positive for the Sea Dogs: the Wildcats have been very average on home ice this season, going 5-4-1-0 – and one of those losses was against Saint John.

Stream/TV/Radio: FloHockey/None/Sea Dogs Audio Network

Records: The Sea Dogs are 10-14-1-0 for 21 points (ninth Eastern/17th QMJHL) while the Wildcats are 16-6-2-1 for 35 points (second Eastern/third QMJHL).

Last games: The Sea Dogs are coming off a 5-2 loss to the Cape Breton Eagles in Fredericton on Sunday. Alexis Joseph and Angelo Fullerton scored for Saint John. Rafaël Courchese was pulled after allowing four goals on 12 shots. Justin Robinson stopped all 26 shots he faced in relief. The Wildcats are coming off a 3-2 shootout win in Drummondville on Sunday. Alex Mercier and Teddy Mutryn scored for Moncton. Rudy Guimond made 32 saves in the win.

Dogs look to turn things around vs 'Cats

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

MONCTON - The Saint John Sea Dogs will look to turn things around on Thursday night against the Moncton Wildcats.

While it's a mismatch on paper – the Wildcats are 16-6-2-1 overall and sit second in the Eastern Conference – the Sea Dogs, 10-14-1-0, have had recent success at Avenir Centre. Saint John is 1-0 in Moncton this season and are an impressive 10-7-1-1 over the past five seasons.

Saint John will need all the positivity and good vibes they can generate given their recent struggles. The Sea Dogs head into Thursday's game on a four-game losing streak and went a disappointing 3-8-0-0 in November. Eight of their 11 games last month were played at TD Station/Aitken Centre.

The Wildcats, meanwhile, have been heading in the opposite direction. They are 8-1-0-1 in their last 10 games and have collected points in each of their past six games.

The Sea Dogs and Wildcats meet Thursday night in Moncton and Sunday afternoon in Saint John. This will certainly be a challenging couple games for the Dogs but, at the same time, there is an opportunity here to really turn their momentum around.

These are the first two of 10 games the Sea Dogs will play in December. Just four of those 10 games will be played at TD Station.

Some other news and notes...

• The Sea Dogs are now averaging nearly four goals against per game (3.96) and have allowed five or more goals in each of their past four games. 
• Saint John has allowed the first goal in each of their past three games.
• The Wildcats currently sit third overall in the league with 35 points. Only Chicoutimi and Blainville-Boisbriand – who each have 37 points – have better records.
• Wildcats captain Caleb Desnoyers enters play Thursday on a six-game point streak. He posted two goals and three assists during Moncton's three-in-three Quebec road trip last weekend. With Team Canada's world junior selection camp roster expected to be announced next week, Desnoyers is likely a little extra motivated to have a strong few games.
• After lighting up the Sea Dogs last weekend, Cape Breton Eagles forward Romain Litalien was named the QMJHL 's player of the week. Litalien now has four goals and seven assists in six games against Saint John this season.
• Newfoundland's Justin Larose continues to lead the QMJHL in scoring with 43 points (17 goals and 26 assists) in 26 games. His 26 assists leads the league.
• Shawinigan's Felix Lacerte has scored a league high 22 goals in 23 games.
• There will be four outdoor QMJHL games played this week at a racetrack in Trois-Rivieres. Victoriaville, Sherbrooke, Drummondville and Shawinigan will each play two games between Thursday and Sunday.