RECAP: Dogs Lose. Dogs Lose 3-1.

FINAL: Saint John 1, Halifax 3

HALIFAX – Darcy Ashley had a goal and an assist as the Halifax Mooseheads defeated the Saint John Sea Dogs 3-1 in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action on Friday night at the Metro Centre.

Dominic Beauchemin and Nathan MacKinnon also scored for the Mooseheads. Backup goaltender Chris Clarke made 22 saves for the win in net.

Andreas Tsogkas scored Saint John’s lone goal, a shorthanded marker in the third period. Sebastien Auger made 24 saves in the loss.

This was a fairly dry and uneventful game. Neither team did a whole lot offensively. It wasn’t all that surprising to see given that it was a somber day for both teams, attending the funeral of Stephen MacAulay’s mother earlier that afternoon.

The Moose led 1-0 thanks to a goal by Beauchemin at 16:04. Shots were 10-9 in favour of Halifax. Saint John had a few good scoring chances in the frame but couldn’t cash in on either.

In the second, Ashley scored on a power play at 5:22 to make it 2-0 Moose. It was a dull period with shots just 7-4 in favour of the home team.

MacKinnon muscled the puck past Auger at 1:32 of the third, making it 3-0 Moose. Tsogkas scored his shorthanded marker 13:27 as the puck slid by a stretched out Clarke, making it a 3-1 final.

Shots ended 27-23 in favour of Halifax.

Saint John got into penalty trouble for the second straight game, giving the Mooseheads eight power plays. Fortunately, Halifax scored just once on the man advantage. The Sea Dogs went 0-for-5.

The Sea Dogs and Mooseheads could meet in the first-round of the playoffs. We’ll know no later than Sunday night.

NOTES: See Sea Dogs Postscript tomorrow on SN.

NEXT GAME: The Sea Dogs wrap up the regular season on Sunday afternoon in Charlottetown.

Photo: Marc Henwood/Station Nation