Notebook: Training camp continues

With just over a week of training camp completed, first-year Saint John Sea Dogs head coach Greg Gilbert has liked what he's seen so far.

"I've been really happy with camp," Gilbert said in an interview. "The kids have been working and things are coming together."

The Sea Dogs are 1-2 in pre-season play but the team has outshot opponents by wide margins in each game. Saint John has four exhibition matches remaining - including a game this Sunday afternoon at TD Station against the Halifax Mooseheads.

IMPORT UPDATE

Mikael Lalancette has reported that an update on import players could be coming this week.

Bilan de la première semaine de camps d'entraînement #LHJMQ :

Aucun cas de COVID-19;
Le dossier des Européens continue de progresser (mise à jour à venir cette semaine);
Les rappels pourraient être permis (intra-province);
La moitié moins de transactions vs l'an passé.

— Mikaël Lalancette (@MikLalancette) September 8, 2020

The Sea Dogs are waiting on the arrival of imports Vladislav Kotkov and Jan Hampl. Kotkov's situation may be resolved quicker thanks to his affiliation with the San Jose Sharks.

DRAFT DATE MOVED

Some good news for QMJHL teams: the NHL Draft has been moved ahead a few days to Oct. 6-7, instead of Oct. 9-10.

NHL Draft is being moved ahead a couple of days. First round Oct 6, rest on Oct. 7.

— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) September 8, 2020

The move means the QMJHL won't be in the awkward position of having to play games at the same time as the draft. The Sea Dogs, for example, are scheduled to play the night Oct. 9 against Bathurst and Oct. 10 against Moncton. Draft eligible players such as Jeremie Poirier and William Villeneuve presumably would have sat out those games.

McCLUSKY SIGNS WITH RAPIDS
Carter McCluskey has signed with the MHL's Grand Falls Rapids for the upcoming season.

The 17-year-old forward, who was among Monday's Sea Dogs cuts, appeared in four games with the Rapids last season. He spent most of the 2019-20 season with the Saint John Vito's where he led the NB/PEI major midget league in scoring with 36 goals and 63 points in 39 games.

“Carter plays a style of game that represents what we want the Rapids to be known for," said Grand Falls head coach Brad Mackenzie. "His feet never stop moving, he’s hard on pucks, and can create offense with his hockey IQ and puck skills."

McClusky was a 14th-round pick of Saint John in the 2019 QMJHL Entry Draft.

DOGS/MOOSE POST-GAME
A few more pieces of video of Saturday's Sea Dogs/Mooseheads pre-season game courtesy of John Moore.

Some highlights:

Cam MacDonald interview:

D'ORAZIO STAYING IN QUEBEC

Goaltender Michael D'Orazio, a third-round pick of the Sea Dogs in this summer's QMJHL Entry Draft, will play in the Quebec midget AAA league this upcoming season.

Nous sommes extrêmement fiers de vous présenter l’édition 2020-2021 de l’Intrépide de Gatineau. #Noshortcuts pic.twitter.com/MQbyAxUORU

— L'Intrépide de Gatineau (@Lintrepidegat) September 7, 2020

The 16-year-old has spent the past two seasons at Shattuck St. Mary's. He recorded a 1.54 goals against average and a .925 save percentage with the school's under-15 program last year.

ZBORIL LOANED

Former Sea Dogs defenseman Jakub Zboril is one of the latest pro players from North America to be loaned to a European club.

Bruins loan Jakub Zboril to HC Kometa Brno. That's his hometown team in Czech

— Mark Divver (@MarkDivver) September 8, 2020

The 23-year-old has appeared in just two career NHL games. Last season, the former first-round pick of the Boston Bruins appeared in 58 games with AHL Providence, recording three goals and 16 assists.