Game Day: 2017 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game

QUEBEC CITY - Saint John Sea Dogs goaltender Alex D'Orio will take part in the CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game tonight at Videotron Centre.

D'Orio will suit up for Team Orr at this year's event. Michael DiPietro of the Windsor Spitfires will be the squad's other netminder.

Tonight's line chart for team Orr, CHL Top Prospects Game pic.twitter.com/Job2hruyPn

— Rick Jackson (@RoadKing01CA) January 30, 2017

The 17-year-old D'Orio was ranked eighth amongst North American goaltenders in the latest NHL Central Scouting rankings for the 2017 NHL Draft.

D'Orio has put up impressive numbers in his first QMJHL season, going 14-2 with a 2.35 goals against average and a .901 save percentage.

Team Orr will be highlighted by Halifax Mooseheads forward Nico Hischier while Team Cherry is headlined by Nolan Patrick of the Brandon Wheat Kings. Despite missing most of the season with an injury, Patrick is expected to go first overall in this year's draft.

Tonight's game, which features the best draft eligible players from across the CHL, will go on as planned despite Sunday's shooting. Game time is 8 p.m. and can be seen on Sportsnet and TVA Sports.

Shout-out to Sherwin-Williams paints.

RECAP: Sea Dogs win 5-2

FINAL: Saint John 5, Charlottetown 2

CHARLOTTETOWN - The Saint John Sea Dogs recorded a statement win on Sunday at Eastlink Centre.

Bailey Webster, Mathieu Joseph, Nathan Noel, Cole Reginato and Samuel Dove-McFalls scored while Callum Booth made 24 saves in Saint John's 5-2 road victory over the Charlottetown Islanders.

It was the first meeting between the two teams since both loaded up during the QMJHL's trading period. Playing in front of a playoff-like crowd, the Sea Dogs registered a solid road win and extended their Maritimes Division lead to five points over the third-place Islanders.

The victory also extended Saint John's winning streak to five games.

Pascal Aquin and Filip Chlapik scored for Charlottetown. Matthew Welsh made 30 saves in the loss.

To the notes...

• The Islanders took an early 1-0 lead at 2:32 of the first period when Aquin made some dangles and beat Booth.
• Saint John tied the game at 14:29 when Webster fired a wrist shot from the point that went through some traffic and past Welsh, tying the game at 1-1.
• Charlottetown was applying lots of pressure in the opening half of the second period. At 7:02, Nathan Noel was called for a crosscheck, sending the Isles to the man advantage.
• But with Noel in the box, Joseph entered the offensive zone and made a beautiful move to get past an Islanders defender and slide the puck past Welsh at 8:31, giving Saint John a 2-1 lead.
• On a power play with 1:01 left in the second, Noel ripped a shot high glove side and past Welsh to give the Sea Dogs a 3-1 advantage.
• In the dying seconds of the middle frame, Booth made a big pad save off of a Daniel Sprong break.
• At 8:31 of the third, Spencer Smallamn sailed a perfect pass through the crease to Reginato who scored to make it 4-1 Saint John.
• Just 14 seconds later, Chlapik skated into the zone and went into the high slot, firing a hard wrist shot past Booth to get Charlottetown back within two.
• With 2:16 remaining and the Islanders net empty, Joseph found Dove-McFalls who potted his 10th of the season to make it a 5-2 final.
• Joseph extended his point streak to a franchise record 25 consecutive games.
• With five shorthanded goals, Joseph moves into a tie for the league lead.
• Webster's goal was just his second of the season and third of his career.
• Reginato has two goals and four assists in his past six games.
• Kyle Ward wore a full cage after having his face cut on Saturday in Moncton.
• Four buses of Sea Dogs fans (about 200 people) made the trip to Charlottetown.
• The Sea Dogs and Islanders meet three more times this season - twice in Charlottetown and once in Saint John.

Game Day 47: at Charlottetown

This is a big one. Two of the QMJHL's most hyped teams meet this afternoon in Charlottetown as the Saint John Sea Dogs (30-12-3-1, 1st Maritimes, 3rd QMJHL) take on the Islanders (29-14-3-0, 3rd Maritimes, 6th QMJHL) at 3 p.m.

TV/Radio/Webcast: None/96.1 NewSong FM/QMJHL Live

Last games: The Sea Dogs are coming off a 5-2 win in Moncton last night. Bokondji Imama scored twice while singles came from Matt Green, Kyle Ward and Matthew Highmore. Callum Booth made 18 saves in the win. The Islanders are coming off a 5-4 overtime loss in Sydney on Friday night. Francois Beauchemin, Carl Neill, Adam Marsh and Matthew Grouchy scored for Charlottetown. Mark Grametbauer made 32 saves in the win.

2016-17 head-to-head: The Sea Dogs are 3-1-1-0 against the Islanders this season while Charlottetown is 2-3-0-0 against Saint John.

Last meeting: Dec. 17 at Harbour Station where the Sea Dogs defeated the Islanders 8-2. Spencer Smallman had a hat trick, Matthew Highmore scored twice and Saint John singles came from Bokondji Imama, Samuel Dove-McFalls and John Warren. Charlottetown goals came from Cody Donaghey and Gregor MacLeod. Alex D'Orio made 23 saves in the win. Matthew Welsh made 31 stops in the loss.

Ex-Sea Dogs on the Islanders: Forward Adam Marsh.

Random stat: Assuming everyone plays, this game will feature a ridiculous 17 NHL drafted players.

RECAP: Sea Dogs win 5-2

FINAL: Saint John 5, Moncton 2

MONCTON - The Saint John Sea Dogs will carry a four-game winning streak into Sunday's big game in Charlottetown.

With the exception of a small stretch in the second period, the Sea Dogs registered a dominant performance on Saturday night at the Moncton Coliseum, defeating the Wildcats 5-2. Shots on goal ended 52-20 in favour of Saint John.

Bokondji Imama scored twice for Saint John while singles came from Matt Green, Kyle Ward and Matthew Highmore. Callum Booth made 18 saves in the win.

Charles Taillon and Jeremy McKenna scored for the Wildcats, who have now dropped a franchise high 14 straight games. Matthew Waite made 47 saves in the loss.

The Sea Dogs, 30-12-3-1, sit first in the Maritimes Division with 64 points. They sit three points ahead of the Islanders, 29-14-3-0, heading into Sunday's 3 p.m. showdown at Eastlink Centre. A Saint John win would give the Dogs some much need breathing room in the race for the division title.

To the notes...

• Shots were 8-0 Saint John at the first television timeout, which came less than seven minutes in.
• Saint John opened the scoring at 15:06 when Alexandre Bernier threw the puck on net. The puck hit Green in front and went in past Waite, giving the Sea Dogs their first lead.
• The Sea Dogs outshot the Wildcats 20-1 in the first period. It was just the fourth time in the QMJHL this season a team recorded one or fewer shots in a first period.
• 2:01 into the second period, Joe Veleno sent a perfect pass from the goal line to Ward in front. Ward beat Waite with a one-time shot, giving the Sea Dogs a 2-0 lead.
• Imama made it 3-0 on a power play at 8:08, firing a hard wrist shots from the slot past Waite.
• On a Moncton power play at 9:14, Taillon jammed the rebound of a McKenna shot through the legs of Booth, making it 3-1.
• On another power play at 10:58, McKenna walked into the slot and beat Booth with a wrist shots, making it a 3-2 contest.
• Just 22 seconds after McKenna's goal, Julien Gauthier sent a perfect pass to Highmore who beat Waite to give the Sea Dogs a 4-2 lead and some momentum back.
• Imama scored his second of the night at 13:44 of the third on a power play, making it a 5-2 final.
• Imama's first goal was his 30th of the season.
• Imama now has eight multi-goal games this season.
• Mathieu Joseph extended his point streak to a franchise record 24 games.
• Green has two goals and an assist in his past four games.
• Gauthier now has three goals and three assists in six games with the Sea Dogs. He also had a big hit in this game.
• The Wildcats did manage to win 30 faceoffs while the Sea Dogs had 29.
• Kyle Ward and Bailey Webster both returned to the lineup from injuries.
• The Sea Dogs and Wildcats meet just one more time this season - March 15 at the Moncton Coliseum.

Game Day 46: at Moncton

The Saint John Sea Dogs (29-12-3-1, 1st Maritimes, 3rd QMJHL) return to action tonight when they travel to Moncton to face the Wildcats (13-30-2-1, 6th Maritimes, 18th QMJHL) at 7 p.m.

TV/Radio/Webcast: Rogers TV/96.1 NewSong FM/QMJHL Live

Last games: The Sea Dogs haven't played since last Saturday at Harbour Station where they defeated the Baie-Comeau Drakkar 5-3. Bokondji Imama scored twice for Saint John while singles came from David Comeau, Simon Bourque and Mathieu Joseph. Alex D'Orio made 18 saves in the win. The Wildcats are coming off a 5-4 shootout loss to the Quebec Remparts last night at the Moncton Coliseum. Alexandre Renaud had a hat trick for the Wildcats - who blew a 4-0 third period lead - while Connor Senken added a single. Matthew Waite made 44 saves in the loss.

2016-17 head-to-head: The Sea Dogs are 5-1-0-1 against the Wildcats this season while Moncton is 2-5-0-0 against Saint John.

Last games: Jan. 17 at Harbour Station where the Sea Dogs defeated the Wildcats 7-2. Spencer Smallman and Samuel Leblanc each scored twice for Saint John while singles came from Julien Gauthier, Matt Green and Cole Reginato. Axel Simic and Adam Capannelli scored for Moncton. Callum Booth made 18 saves in the win. Moncton's Dominik Tmej was pulled after allowing three goals on nine shots. Matthew Waite allowed four goals on 35 shots in relief.

Ex-Sea Dogs on the Wildcats: Forward Julien Tessier.

Random stat: Matthew Highmore has five goals and eight assists in seven games against Moncton this season.

Friday notes: Records update

Matthew Highmore continues to inch closer to several Saint John Sea Dogs franchise records.

After recording two assists against the Baie-Comeau Drakkar last Saturday, Highmore moved into second all-time in assists by a Sea Dog with 145. He is just eight back of Jonathan Huberdeau's franchise record.

Highmore now has 227 points in his Sea Dogs career, good for third all-time. With 23 Sea Dogs games remaining in the regular season, the 20-year-old forward sits behind Michael Kirkpatrick (251) and Huberdeau (257). It's not impossible for Highmore to take the franchise lead, but he'll have to steadily produce for the rest of the season.

Highmore and Mathieu Joseph are also inching up the Sea Dogs' all-time goal scoring list. It will take an impressive second half for one of them to surpass Kirkpatrick's record, though.

A record that should be broken - knock on wood - is the all-time games played mark, which is currently held by Mike Thomas (288). Spencer Smallman is currently second (273) while Highmore is third (270).