GAME DAY 51: vs Islanders

The Saint John Sea Dogs (32-14-4-0, 68 points, 1^st Maritimes, 3^rd QMJHL) continue their homestand tonight at 7 p.m. against the Charlottetown Islanders (23-23-5-2, 53 points, 4^th Maritimes, 12^th QMJHL).

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

Last games: The Islanders are coming off a 6-4 win over the Halifax Mooseheads on Sunday in Charlottetown. Alexis Vanier and Jake Coughler each had two goals while singles came from Kameron Kielly and Filip Rydstrom. Matthew Welsh made 32 saves in the victory. The Sea Dogs are coming off a 5-4 loss to the Victoriaville Tigres on Saturday at Harbour Station. Mathieu Joseph scored twice while Nathan Noel and Luke Green also scored. Alex Bishop made 17 saves through 40 minutes of action. Matthew Williams made five saves in the third period.

2015-16 head-to-head: The Sea Dogs are 5-0-1-0 against the Islanders this season while Charlottetown is 1-4-1-0 against Saint John.

Last meeting: Jan. 21 in Charlottetown where the Islanders defeated the Sea Dogs 5-4 in overtime. Samuel Blais scored twice for Charlottetown while Will Thompson, Bradley Kennedy and Filip Chlapik also scored. Saint John had a pair of goals from Matthew Highmore and singles from Nathan Noel and Sam Povorozniouk. Mason McDonald made 45 saves in the win. Marc-Antoine Turcotte was pulled after allowing three goals on seven shots. Alex Bishop made 16 saves in relief.

Ex-Sea Dogs on the Islanders: Forward Oliver Cooper and defenseman Will Thompson.

Player to watch: After recording five goals and 12 points in 28 games with Gatineau in the first half, Jake Coughler has scored 12 goals and 15 points in just 14 games with the Islanders.

Three Things to Know

1. The Sea Dogs are coming off their first regulation time loss since Dec. 17. Saint John had picked up points in 15 straight games before Saturday’s loss to Victoriaville.

2. The Islanders have picked up steam as of late, winning two straight and seven of their last 10.

3. Nathan Noel is on a 16-game point streak while Matthew Highmore and Sam Povorozniouk have points in 11 straight.

Notes: The Sea Dogs are 15-8-2-0 on home ice this season… the Islanders are 10-11-4-1 on the road… Nico Blachman leads all rookies in major penalties with eight… Matt Murphy is fifth in defensemen scoring with seven goals and 39 points in 50 games… Jakub Zboril has assists in four straight games… Mathieu Joseph has goals in three straight home games… Samuel Blais has points in six straight road games.

Out of town:

Baie-Comeau at Cape Breton - 7:00 PM AST
Halifax at Gatineau - 7:00 PM EST
Blainville-Boisbriand at Sherbrooke - 7:00 PM EST
Québec at Victoriaville - 7:00 PM EST
Drummondville at Rimouski - 7:30 PM EST

Next game: The Sea Dogs host the worst team in the QMJHL, the Baie-Comeau Drakkar, on Saturday night at 7 p.m.