Notebook: Lee (officially) joins Mooseheads

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

As reported a couple weeks ago, former Saint John Sea Dogs assistant coach Mark Lee has officially joined the Halifax Mooseheads.

Lee, who will be an assistant coach under Brad MacKenzie, was one of three coaching staff additions announced by the Mooseheads on Wednesday.

“I couldn’t be more excited to join the exceptional staff that Brad MacKenzie, Peter, and Sam Simon have assembled,” said Lee in a Mooseheads release. “Having known Josh Hepditch for a long time and competing against him as both a player and a coach, I know our coaching styles will complement each other perfectly. The Halifax Mooseheads are not just a phenomenal organization; they are an elite brand and a top-tier franchise in the CHL. I am eager to see what we can accomplish this season as we work collectively toward bringing a championship back to Halifax.” 

“Mark’s passion for the game combined with his ability to build relationships and connect with players makes him a great addition to our coaching staff,” said MacKenzie. “He brings with him a wealth of experience from his playing career as well as recent history coaching in the QMJHL. I’m looking forward to working alongside Mark and having him work closely with our players.”

Lee, who was sitting with the Mooseheads at this year's QMJHL Entry Draft, was an assistant coach with the Sea Dogs for four seasons. He departed the organization at the same time as Travis Crickard.

DRAFT RANKINGS

The 2026 NHL Draft is just over a week away.

Over at FloHockey, Chris Peters has released his final draft rankings. Sea Dogs forward Olivers Murnieks was ranked 50th.

"He’s a good two-way player with potentially limited offensive upside, but looks like he has the jam to play down the lineup if all works out," writes Peters.

The Hockey Writers, meanwhile, listed Murnieks as one of their "sleeper picks" for this year's draft.

"His offensive game isn’t particularly exciting, but he has a decent shot and can make reasonably clever passes under pressure," they write. "There’s certainly bottom-six potential for Murnieks and his late July birthday means he has lots of development still to come."

Cooper, Everblades win Kelly Cup; Marlies one win away

Florida Everblades

For a second time, Oliver Cooper is a Kelly Cup champion.

The former Saint John Sea Dogs forward helped the Florida Everblades capture the ECHL title on Monday night, defeating the Kansas City Mavericks 5-4 in double overtime to take the championship series in six games.

The Everblades scored three goals in the third period to erase a 4-1 deficit. Former UNB Reds forward Isaac Nurse netted the winner at 15:24 of double overtime.

This is the fourth Kelly Cup title for the Everblades over the past five seasons. Florida goaltender Cam Johnson was named playoff MVP for a third time in his career.

Cooper had three shots in the victory and finishes the playoffs with two goals and three assists in 19 games.

The 31-year-old registered 12 goals and 13 assists in 65 regular season games with Florida. He spent the previous two seasons in Europe.

This is the second ECHL championship for Cooper who also helped the Fort Wayne Komets capture the Kelly Cup in 2021. He's now won two Kelly Cup championships; two University Cup titles with the UNB Reds; and a QMJHL championship with the Sea Dogs in 2012.

The Fredericton native spent three seasons with the Sea Dogs before finishing his junior career with the Charlottetown Islanders – which included the 2015-16 season under Jim Hulton.

Over in the AHL, William Villeneuve, Cedric Pare and the Toronto Marlies are a win away from capturing the Calder Cup.

The Marlies defeated the Chicago Wolves 1-0 on Tuesday night to take a commanding 3-0 series lead in the AHL's championship series.

Villeneuve and Pare each had one shot on goal in the victory.

Game 4 is Thursday night in Toronto.

2026-27 schedule released

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

The Saint John Sea Dogs will open up the 2026-27 Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League season.

The Sea Dogs will play in the league's season opener – officially game No. 1 – on Friday, Sept. 18 when they visit the Newfoundland Regiment at 6:30 p.m. Atlantic. The Sea Dogs and Regiment will also battle the following night at Mary Brown's Centre.

The Sea Dogs will play their first home game on Friday, Sept. 25 when they host the Moncton Wildcats. The next day, the Cape Breton Eagles will visit TD Station for a 4 p.m. start.

That 4 p.m. start time is notable because all of Saint John's Saturday home games will begin at that time. The team had a few 4 p.m. Saturday home games last year and obviously liked what they saw.

While Saturday nights are always associated with hockey, afternoon Saturday starts are becoming more common across North America. Many Quebec-based teams have been doing this for years.

According to a Saint John news release release, "of the Sea Dogs’ 32 home games during the 2026-27 regular season, 21 will be played on weekends, with three additional games scheduled on holidays: Thanksgiving Monday, New Year’s Eve, and Family Day."

The Sea Dogs will make four trips to Quebec, including one very late in the season: Oct. 23-25 (Gatineau, Blainville-Boisbriand and Drummondville), Nov. 26-29 (Val-d'Or, Rouyn-Noranda and Victoriaville), Jan. 14-17 (Shawinigan, Chicoutimi and Baie-Comeau) and March 11-14 (Sherbrooke, Quebec and Rimouski).

Jim Hulton's return to Charlottetown will be Nov. 8. Saint John is scheduled to play an 11 a.m. game in Charlottetown on Dec. 16.

Saint John's longest homestand will be six games from Oct. 4-18. The team's longest stretch away from home will be five games from Jan. 7-17.

The QMJHL's regular season ends March 20.

The Sea Dogs' full regular season schedule can be found here. The team's pre-season schedule was released last week.

Of note, both the Drummondville Voltigeurs and Shawinigan Cataractes will start their seasons with lengthy stretches away from home due to arena renovations.

'Hulton Hockey' arrives in Saint John

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

SAINT JOHN - Jim Hulton's message to Saint John Sea Dogs fans came through immediately. 

Before Monday morning's introductory press conference even started, Sea Dogs radio broadcaster Bruce Smith told attendees that there were more seats located in the corners of the team's dressing room. Smith quipped that they must not like the corners.

"Hopefully that changes," joked Hulton, the long-time Charlottetown Islanders head coach that is well known for his gritty and hard-working style of hockey.

Hulton was officially named the 13th head coach in Sea Dogs history on Monday after a few weeks of unofficial confirmation. He'll be joined in Saint John by his long-time assistant Guy Girouard, who was also in attendance.

"We want a team on the ice that makes you proud," Hulton said in his opening remarks. "I come from a small town. I grew up on a dairy farm and I believe in hard work. I believe in grit. I believe in tenacity. And I sure as hell want to win."

The hiring seems like a perfect fit for this Sea Dogs group, one that didn't quite meet expectations last season. There were simply too many nights where the Sea Dogs didn't look prepared to play 60 minutes and lacked defensive structure.

Many of Hulton's comments were likely music to the ears of Sea Dogs supporters.

Hulton named Sea Dogs head coach

SAINT JOHN - Jim Hulton has officially been named the new head coach of the Saint John Sea Dogs.

Hulton becomes the 13th head coach in team history. He takes over for Brian Casey, who took over Saint John's bench late in the season following the departure of Travis Crickard.

From the team:

“We are thrilled to welcome Jim to the Saint John Sea Dogs,” said Sea Dogs president and general manager Trevor Georgie. “Jim and I entered the QMJHL in the same season, and over the years we’ve had a front-row seat to the work ethic and competitiveness of his teams. Year after year, his teams compete hard and his players exceed expectations. He is demanding and prepares young men for what it takes to play professional hockey through a culture built on accountability.

"Beyond his experience, Jim is a true professional and a great person," added Georgie. "He shares our vision for the future of the Sea Dogs, and he wants to win just as badly as all of us do. We’re excited to welcome Jim and his family to Saint John and begin this next chapter together.”

Hulton recently left his position as head coach and general manager of the Charlottetown Islanders. He has been expected to take Saint John's head coaching position for a couple weeks.

Hulton was with the Islanders since the 2015-16 season. He is a two-time winner of the QMJHL coach of the year award and also won the CHL coach of the year honour in 2022.

Guy Girouard, a long-time assistant under Hulton, was also in attendance and confirmed to be an assistant coach with the Sea Dogs.

More to come...

Marlies take 2-0 series lead; Everblades a win away

Embed from Getty Images 

William Villeneuve, Cedric Pare and the Toronto Marlies are two wins away from winning a Calder Cup championship.

The Marlies took the first two games of the American Hockey League's championship series this weekend in Illinois, defeating the Chicago Wolves 4-2 on Friday and 5-4 in overtime on Sunday. The next three games will all be played in Toronto.

Pare scored and had two shots in Friday's series opener. He tied the game at 2-2 in the second period.

NASTY PASS, NASTIER FINISH 🤢

Cédric Paré scores to make it 2-2! | @cocacola_ca pic.twitter.com/33M82Fq5nD

— Toronto Marlies (@TorontoMarlies) June 13, 2026

Pare now has four goals and six assists in 21 playoff games this year.

Villeneuve, meanwhile, had three assists in Sunday's victory – including the secondary helper on Logan Shaw's overtime goal.

With the primary assist on Shaw's second period goal, William Villeneuve recorded his 15th assist of the postseason, setting a new franchise record for most assists by a Marlies player in a single postseason.

Villeneuve surpassed Andreas Johnsson's previous record set in 2018. https://t.co/reix5cQXfr

— Toronto Marlies PR (@AHLMarliesPR) June 14, 2026

Villeneuve now has two goals and 17 assists in 21 playoff games. He continues to lead all AHL defensemen in playoff scoring by a wide margin and now sits second in scoring amongst all skaters.

Game 3 of the series takes place Tuesday night.