Recap: Sea Dogs lose 3-2 (OT)

FINAL: Saint John 2, Moncton 3 (OT)

Daniel St Louis/Moncton Wildcats

MONCTON - Losses don't get much more heartbreaking than that.

The Saint John Sea Dogs blew a 2-0 lead in the final minute of regulation time in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Moncton Wildcats on Saturday at Avenir Centre. The Wildcats now lead the best-of-seven first round series 2-0 as things shift to Saint John for the next two games.

The Sea Dogs had taken a 2-0 lead at 9:46 of the third period when Zachary Morin scored. Saint John was playing with confidence and energy following the goal – but it simply wasn't meant to be on this night.

The Wildcats pressed hard in the final few minutes and finally broke through. Niko Tournas scored with 51.8 seconds remaining and then Gabe Smith connected with 4.3 seconds left, sending the match into overtime. Gavin Cornforth, who had a hat trick in Friday's Game 1, scored at 11:00 of extra time to give the Wildcats an improbable come-from-behind victory.

It was a cruel outcome for Saint John, who played just about as well as they possibly could against a superior opponent. Angelo Fullerton netted the Sea Dogs' other goal while goaltender Arseni Radkov, in his first start since his fighting suspension, was excellent in net, making 47 stops in a first star performance.

Rudy Guimond made 22 saves in the win.

Recap: Sea Dogs lose 5-1

FINAL: Saint John 1, Moncton 5
Embed from Getty Images

MONCTON - The Moncton Wildcats scored five unanswered goals in 5-1 win over the Saint John Sea Dogs on Friday at Avenir Centre.

The win gives the Wildcats a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven first round playoff series.

Gavin Cornforth scored a hat trick to lead the way for Moncton while Teddy Mutryn and Gabe Smith added singles. Rudy Guimond made 16 saves in the win.

Alexander Donovan scored Saint John's lone goal. Despite the loss, Rafaël Courchesne had a strong game in net, making 45 saves.

Saint John struggled to create quality scoring chances, registering just nine dangerous shots. Their lone goal came on a power play. The Wildcats, meanwhile, went 2/5 on the man advantage.

Saint John had a solid first period, limiting Moncton's quality chances and taking a 1-0 lead when Donovan scored on a power play at 16:44. The goal was scored during a four-minute high sticking penalty that saw the Sea Dogs struggle to create chances – but were able to score on one of the few they did get.

The Wildcats started to get things rolling in the second period. Cornforth netted back-to-back goals less than a minute apart and then Mutryn scored on a power play at 10:50 to give Moncton a 3-1 lead after two. Shots were 17-5 Wildcats in the middle frame.

Smith and Cornforth scored in the third to make it a 5-1 final. Shots were 20-5 in favour of the 'Cats in the third.

Playoff Game Day 1 & 2: at Moncton

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

MONCTON - The Saint John Sea Dogs make their return to the playoffs this weekend at Avenir Centre.

The Sea Dogs and Moncton Wildcats will play the first two games of their best-of-seven first round series Friday and Saturday night, respectively. Both games have 7 p.m. starts.

This will be Saint John's first playoff appearance since the 2023-24 season and they have not won a playoff series since the 2017 QMJHL final. Moncton, meanwhile, are looking to repeat as league champions – and they've got a legitimate chance of doing so after posting a 104-point season.

The Wildcats are the heavy favourites to win this series. For the Sea Dogs, this is likely a series where they'll look for small victories. Can they win shifts. Can they win periods. Can they keep these games close. Most importantly, it'll be about gaining some experience for next season.

This is just the second playoff series between the provincial rivals. They last met in the 2010 QMJHL final, which Moncton won in six games.

Stream/TV/Radio: FloHockey/None/None

Series status: These are the first two games of the best-of-seven first round series.

Regular season records: The Sea Dogs were 23-36-5-0 for 51 points (eighth Eastern/15th QMJHL) while the Wildcats were 50-10-2-2 for 104 points (first Eastern/first QMJHL).

Last games: The Sea Dogs are coming off a 3-2 win in Cape Breton on Saturday. Angelo Fullerton scored a pair of goals while Nolann Héroux added a single. Rafaël Courchesne made 24 saves in the win. The Wildcats are coming off a 6-1 home win over the Charlottetown Islanders on Saturday. Niko Tournas scored twice for Moncton while singles came from Gabe Smith, Caleb Desnoyers, Kuzma Voronin and Preston Lounsbury. Rudy Guimond only faced 16 shots in the win.

Eagles upset Regiment in Game 1; MHL, NCAA updates

Jeff Parsons/Newfoundland Regiment

If night one is a sign of things to come, we could be in for quite a post-season in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League.

The Cape Breton Eagles, who entered the playoffs having won just two games since Valentine's Day, opened their series against the Newfoundland Regiment with a 3-2 win at Mary Brown's Centre on Thursday night.

The Eagles, who are without one of their leading scorers in Roman Litalien, never led until 10:52 of the third period when Caden Kelly scored just his sixth goal of the entire year – which ended up being the game-winner.

The Regiment finished 11 points ahead of the Eagles in the standings but are considered heavy favourites given Cape Breton's injury woes and the way they finished the regular season.

Game 2 is Friday night before the series shifts to Sydney. This is a 2-3-2 series.

A few other news and notes from this Thursday night...

• The remaining playoff series get going Friday night, which includes the Saint John Sea Dogs visiting the Moncton Wildcats.
• Sea Dogs prospect Jase MacPherson made 37 saves to help the Kensington Wild defeat the Charlottetown Knights 3-2, winning the PEI under-18 championship in six games. The Wild advance to Atlantics, which will take place in Quispamsis from April 1-5.
• In the Maritime Junior Hockey League playoffs, the Summerside Western Capitals have forced a Game 7 in their first round series with a commanding 9-3 win over the Amherst Ramblers. Former Sea Dogs defenseman Matthew MacLean had two assists for the Western Capitals. Game 7 is Saturday night in Summerside.
• The NCAA men's hockey tournament began on Thursday and saw Nate Tivey and the Quinnipac Bobcats defeat Kale McCallum and the Providence Friars 5-2 in the Sioux Falls regional. Tivey was held off the score sheet while McCallum finished a -2 with three shots. The Bobcats will face the winner of the Merrimack/North Dakota game in Saturday's regional final – a game that will have a trip to the Frozen Four in Las Vegas on the line.

First round playoff predictions

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

The opening round of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League playoffs begin Thursday night in St. John's – so let's get to some predictions.

Now, if you've read this site long enough, you'll know that I am a first round hater. I have six of the eight series being sweeps. I hope I am pleasantly surprised and we get more drama than I expect.

Eastern Conference

1. Moncton vs. 8. Saint John - Wildcats in 4

Sorry. The Sea Dogs are going to have to play the best defense they've played all year and get outstanding goaltending to have any chance against a Wildcats team that is rolling right now. 

2. Chicoutimi vs. 7. Halifax - Sagueneens in 4

Halifax pulled off a big first round upset in last year's playoffs but they don't have their star (goaltender Jacob Steinman) from that series anymore. Like Moncton, the Sags have been rolling down the stretch and I don't expect them to have much trouble with the Mooseheads.

3. Newfoundland vs. 6. Cape Breton - Regiment in 4

Cape Breton has just two wins since Valentine's Day and are not entering the playoffs fully healthy. They can't score. I don't think the Regiment will have a lot of trouble here, but the wildcard with Newfoundland remains their discipline, which will be interesting to follow in these playoffs.

4. Charlottetown vs. 5. Québec - Islanders in 5

Only three points separated these two in the standings but it really feels like Charlottetown could take off in these playoffs. All eyes are on Ivan Ryabkin who could legitimately carry the Isles on a deep run.

NCAA tournament begins Thursday for ex-Dogs

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

The NCAA men's hockey tournament begins Thursday and two former Saint John Sea Dogs are set to meet.

Kale McCallum and the Providence Friars will take on Nate Tivey and the Quinnipiac Bobcats in the opening game of the Sioux Falls regional on Thursday. McCallum and Tivey are the lone Sea Dogs alumni that have qualified for the 16-team tournament.

There are four regionals with four teams in each. The winner of each regional will advance to the Frozen Four in Las Vegas, which is set to take place April 9 and 11.

Also in the Sioux Falls regional are the North Dakota Fighting Hawks and the Merrimack Warriors. North Dakota is the top-ranked team in the group followed by Providence, Quinnipiac and Merrimack.

McCallum and the Friars won the Hockey East regular season title but were upset in the single elimination quarterfinals, falling to the No. 8 seeded Warriors who went on to win the tournament. 

Similarly, Tivey and Bobcats were ECAC regular season champions but were upset in the quarterfinals, getting swept in a best-of-three series by the No. 8 seeded Clarkson Golden Knights. The Dartmouth Big Green ultimately won the ECAC tournament.

Here's a look at the full NCAA tournament bracket. 

College Hockey News

The tournament format is neat in theory – but it comes with some problems and is a cautionary tale for the CHL if they ever wanted to do something similar with an expanded Memorial Cup format. Thursday's game between Province and Quinnipiac, for example, is being played on a Thursday afternoon 1,500 miles away from where the two schools are based. The regionals struggle to replicate one of the major aspects that make college hockey so much fun to watch: the atmosphere of the arenas.

Here's a final look at how former Sea Dogs skaters performed in their first college hockey seasons.

Player	Team	GP	Goals	Assists	Points
Charles Savoie	Lindenwood	23	9	18	27
Noah Reinhart	Michigan Tech	38	9	12	21
Cam MacDonald	New Hampshire	33	7	7	14
Kale McCallum	Providence	30	5	9	14
Nate Tivey	Quinnipiac	36	3	5	8
Matteo Mann	Colorado College	28	0	2	2

Charles-Edward Gravel of Mercyhurst was the only ex-Dogs goaltender to play NCAA hockey this season.