#6 - Shawinigan rivalry reaches Memorial Cup
A rivalry built off the ice became very much an on-ice rivalry during the 2011-12 season.
The Saint John Sea Dogs and Shawinigan Cataractes became instantly linked for the 2011-12 campaign after the 2012 Memorial Cup hosting rights were awarded to Shawinigan. The two teams met four times during the regular season and things got heated on a few occasions.
The two split the season series and seemed destined for an epic playoff series - but Shawinigan was eliminated in the second-round, creating plenty of anticipation for the Sea Dogs/Cataractes game to close out the round-robin of the Memorial Cup.
The Sea Dogs had their best game of the tournament, winning 4-1 and earning a spot in the semifinal. But the score was overshadowed by the nastiness of the game, which resulted in both clubs being fined $2,500 for “conduct prejudicial to the welfare of the game and the tournament.”
Last night’s nasty 4-1 Sea Dogs victory has been making headlines thanks to some questionable hits, fights late in the third, and the two coaching staffs yelling at each other after the game. It was quite the contest that may have concluded a feisty Sea Dogs-Cataractes rivalry that has been taking place over the past year.Things got started in warm up when Ian Saab and Dillon Donnelly had to be kept apart by a linesman. During the game, there were plenty of plays that could have resulted in major penalties but were just called minors. Stephen MacAulay and Morgan Ellis both made cross checks to opposing player’s necks, Jonathan Racine put a nasty elbow on Tomas Jurco, and Michael Chaput hit Ryan Tesink from behind just to name a few.After Jonathan Huberdeau scored into an empty net with 1:32 left to make it 4-1 Saint John, things really got heated. Grant West and Vincent Arseneau dropped the gloves at 19:18. The Cataractes then put Donnelly on the ice for the ensuing faceoff who was given a 10-minute misconduct. Buzzing The Net has a great article on that situation with quotes from Cats coach Eric Veilleux.There was a lot more rough stuff in the final minute. After the final buzzer went, the Sea Dogs’ Mike Kelly and Veilleux climbed the glass separating the team benches to get in a yelling match."I wasn't climbing the glass,” said Veilleux. “I was just asking Gerard (Gallant) why he had to spend so much time talking to the maritime referee."
The Sea Dogs and Cataractes met again in the semifinal where Shawinigan pulled off a 7-4 win in a much calmer contest. Shawinigan advanced to the final and eventually defeated the London Knights to win their first national championship.
The Memorial Cup results also ended the season long series between Saint John and Shawinigan with a 3-3 split.
January 12, 2012 at Saint John – Cataractes 4, Sea Dogs 1
February 4, 2012 at Shawinigan – Sea Dogs 2, Cataractes 1
March 11, 2012 – Sea Dogs 2, Cataractes 6
May 23, 2012 – Cataractes 1, Sea Dogs 4
May 25, 2012 – Cataractes 7, Sea Dogs 4
More: Dogs, Cats fined $2,500
More: Ready to rumble... again
Top 10 Sea Dogs Memorial Cup Moments
6. Shawinigan rivalry reaches Memorial Cup
5. Dec. 2
4. Dec. 3
3. Dec. 4
2. Dec. 5
1. Dec. 6 (tickets go on sale)
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