Sea Dogs announce five camp invites

The Saint John Sea Dogs announced five invites to the team's training camp earlier this week.

Here's a quick look at each invite.

G Pierce Brackett

The son of Toronto Maple Leafs assistant general manager Judd Bracket, Pierce Bracket is a 17-year-old netminder from Hingham, Mass. Listed at 6'2" and 165 lbs, Bracket has spent the past couple seasons with the Cape Code Whalers program. Last year with the under-16 team, he went 5-4-1 with a 2.18 goals against average in 19 games, according to Elite Prospects.

D Xavier Ayotte

An overage defenseman, Ayotte has spent the past two seasons in the QJHL. Last season split between the Princeville Titan and Terrebonne Cobras, Ayotte recorded three goals and 13 assists in 46 games. He added a goal in two playoff contests. The 6'4", 185 lbs d-man is listed as a member of the QJHL's Montreal Phoenix for the 2026-27 season.

D Ben Loucks

A Lexington, Mass. native, Loucks spent most of last season playing US prep school hockey at Middlesex School where he recorded a goal and an assist in 21 games. The 17-year-old is big – Elite Prospects lists him at 6'5" and 194 lbs. 

F Carson Ferdinand

A New Maryland native, Ferdinand spent last season with the under-18 Fredericton Caps where he posted nine goals and 18 assists in 34 regular season. He added four goals and three assists in 11 playoff games. Ferdinand, who will turn 17 in November, is the younger brother of Mathew Ferdinand, who has attended Sea Dogs training camp in the past.

F Wyatt Jinman

A 14th-round pick of the Mississauga Steelheads in the 2023 OHL Priority Selection, Jinman has only appeared in five OHL games in his career. Jinman has spent most of his junior career in the OJHL, including last season with the Collingwood Blues where he posted seven goals and 22 assists in 48 games. Jinman, who will turn 19 in October, is listed at 6'3" and 165 lbs.

F Brayden Waterhouse

A Fredericton native, Waterhouse has spent the past two seasons with the Fredericton Caps. Last season, the 17-year-old recorded 18 goals and 32 assists in 37 regular season games and added six goals and six assists in 11 playoff contests. He also appeared in one game with the MHL's Edmundston Blizzard – who selected him 12th overall in the 2025 draft – last season.

Saint John's training camp will start later this month. The team's pre-season schedule begins on Wednesday, Aug. 26 when the Sea Dogs host the Moncton Wildcats in St. Stephen.

Sea Dogs make two deals with Cataractes

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The Saint John Sea Dogs and Shawinigan Cataractes made a couple deals on the opening day of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League trade period.

The Sea Dogs acquired 20-year-old defenseman Julien Lanthier from the Cataractes in exchange for a 2027 second-round pick (originally Charlottetown's) and a conditional 2028 second-rounder. In a separate deal, Saint John traded forward William Yared to Shawinigan for a conditional 2029 second-round pick.

Lanthier will likely be a key piece on Saint John's backend this year – one that looks to make major improvements. The overager has appeared in 225 regular season QMJHL games split between the Cataractes and Baie-Comeau Drakkar. He's also appeared in 38 playoff games.

“Julien is one of the most experienced defensemen in the league,” said Sea Dogs president and general manager Trevor Georgie in a news release. “We are adding a reliable, high-character, two-way defenseman with more than 30 playoff games of experience who wants to win.”

Lanthier posted three goals and 12 assists in 43 regular season games last year. He added a goal and three assists in 11 playoff games.

Listed at 6'0" and 185 lbs, Lanthier was the 10th overall pick in the 2022 QMJHL Entry Draft.

Yared, meanwhile, was rumoured to be on the move.

“After discussions with William, the timing made sense for a fresh start for him,” said Georgie in the team's press release. “We wish him the best of luck with his new team and in taking the next step in his hockey career.”

Yared was the fifth overall pick in the 2024 QMJHL Entry Draft. He posted 24 goals and 31 assists in 106 games with Saint John split over two seasons.

It will be interesting to see how Yared performs in Shawinigan, who should have a good team this coming season.

The Sea Dogs visit Shawinigan on Jan. 14 while the Cataractes play in Saint John on Feb. 24.

The QMJHL's pre-season trade period ends on Sept. 2.

Joseph to wear an 'A' at Hlinka Gretzky Cup

Alexis Joseph has officially been named to Canada's roster for the upcoming Hlinka Gretzky Cup.

Joseph was one of 22 players named to the team that will take part in the under-18 tournament beginning on Monday. The Saint John Sea Dogs forward will wear an 'A' on his sweater.

Meet the captains! / Voici nos capitaines! 🇨🇦

C: Landon DuPont (@HockeyAlberta)
A: Alexis Joseph (@HockeyQuebec)
A: Maddox Schultz (@hockeysask)#HlinkaGretzkyCup | #CoupeHlinkaGretzky pic.twitter.com/Yez2bgQhsd

— Hockey Canada (@HockeyCanada) August 1, 2026

Joseph was named to Canada's camp roster a couple weeks ago and was essentially a lock to make the team. Joseph has already represented Canada at both the under-17 and under-18 levels. 

The 17-year-old appeared in two games as an underager with Team Canada at the IIHF U18 World Championship this spring. Last fall, Joseph captained Canada Red to a gold medal at the U17 World Challenge, a tournament that saw him record six goals and seven assists in five games.

Other QMJHL players named to Canada's roster for the Hlinka Gretzky Cup include Sam Berthiaume (Cape Breton Eagles), Malik L'Italien (Halifax Mooseheads), Quinn Norman (Newfoundland Regiment) and Benjamin Veitch (Newfoundland Regiment).

The event takes place Aug. 3-8 in Edmonton. Canada will play Switzerland (Aug. 3), Slovakia (Aug. 4) and Sweden (Aug. 5) before the playoff round takes place Aug. 7-8. All of Canada's games will air on TSN.

Joseph is one of three Sea Dogs that will be playing in the tournament. Oliver Ozogany will play for Slovakia while Matyas Cancik was named to Czechia's roster.

Report: Yared to be traded

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

William Yared will be traded in the coming days, reports Matthew Vachon of La Nouvelliste.

Vachon reports that the Saint John Sea Dogs forward will be dealt to the Shawinigan Cataractes when the QMJHL's trade period opens on Monday.

Pause du congé de paternité:

À l’ouverture de la période des transactions dans la #LHJMQ, l’attaquant natif de Mont-Royal Will Yared va passer des Sea Dogs aux Cataractes.

Sélectionné au 5e rang en 2024, Yared, 18 ans, a 106 matchs et 55 points en deux saisons.

— Matthew Vachon (@MatthewVachon_) July 30, 2026

There has been speculation for a few months now that Yared would be on the move at some point this off-season.

The fifth overall pick in the 2024 QMJHL Entry Draft, Yared hasn't quite been able to find the level he was projected to reach – and a fresh start might be the right move for him. The 18-year-old recorded 10 goals and 15 assists in 48 games last season, five points less than he generated in his rookie season (a season where he played in 10 additional games).

Yared is committed to Penn State University following his QMJHL career.

The QMJHL's pre-season trade period opens on Monday and will end on Sept. 2.

Sea Dogs invite Hlacar, Connors to camp

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The Saint John Sea Dogs have announced a couple of intriguing training camp invites.

20-year-old forward Matthew Hlacar – a recent Memorial Cup champion with the Kitchener Rangers – and 19-year-old defenseman Jayden Connors – who was this year's Maritime Junior Hockey League playoff MVP – have both been invited to Saint John's training camp next month.

Hlacar was a seventh-round pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2025 NHL Draft. He's spent the past two seasons with the Rangers and is more known for his physicality than his offensive numbers.

In 94 career regular season OHL games, the Binbrook, ON native posted 13 goals and seven assists. He added two goals in 29 playoff games.

It'll be interesting to see how Hlacar performs at training camp. He'll need to have a strong camp to take one of the team's overage spots. It's interesting as well to see Saint John inviting a gritty forward from Ontario – something Jim Hulton did a lot of during his time with the Charlottetown Islanders.

Connors, meanwhile, also has OHL roots. The Toronto native has appeared in four career OHL games, including three last season with the Sudbury Wolves. Connors spent most of 2025-26 campaign with the MHL champion Truro Bearcats, posting seven goals and 19 assists in 32 regular season games and another two goals and seven helpers in 17 playoff contests. 

Connors, who was considered one of the MHL's top defensemen last season, also has BCHL and OJHL experience. He's committed to the NCAA's University of New Hampshire for the 2027-28 season.

Sea Dogs training camp will begin next month ahead of the team's pre-season schedule. Saint John's first exhibition game is set for Aug. 26 in St. Stephen where they'll host the Moncton Wildcats.

Glance scores at Showcase; Ozogany heading to Hlinka

Saint John Sea Dogs forward Jamie Glance showed off his scoring ability in Team USA Blue's 5-1 victory over Finland on Monday at the World Junior Summer Showcase.

Glance, playing on a third line with Cooper Simpson and Logan Stuart for a second straight game, scored in the third period to give the Americans a 4-1 lead at the time.

Jamie Glance has been quite noticeable today and he just made it 4-1 USA Blue. #WJSS #NHLDraft pic.twitter.com/Axs6CmZ3fU

— Steven Ellis (@SEllisHockey) July 27, 2026

Team USA Blue defeated Sweden 6-1 the day before.

Sea Dogs draft pick Vertti Svensk was in Finland's lineup again on Monday, playing on the team's second defense pairing.

There are no games at the event on Tuesday. Play resumes Wednesday with the United States facing Finland and Canada opening up their schedule against Sweden. Sea Dogs goaltender Samuel Meloche is part of the Canadian roster.

Rosters for the Hlinka Gretzky Cup, meanwhile, continue to take shape. On Monday, the Sea Dogs confirmed that forward Oliver Ozogany, who was selected 44th overall by the club in this year's CHL Import Draft, has been named to Slovakia's roster for the event.

The 17-year-old spent last season with the USHL's Tri-City Storm, posting nine goals and eight assists in 56 regular season games. 

Ozogany played with Slovakia at this year's IIHF U18 World Championship where he had one assist in five games.

The Sea Dogs will be well represented at this year's Hlinka Gretzky. Matyas Cancik has been named to Czechia's roster while Alexis Joseph was previously named to Team Canada's camp roster.

The tournament takes place Aug. 3-8 in Edmonton.