Notebook: Another busy week ahead

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

HALIFAX - Another busy week of games awaits the Saint John Sea Dogs.

For a third straight week, the Sea Dogs will face the Halifax Mooseheads at Scotiabank Centre on Wednesday night. After defeating the Mooseheads 3-2 on Feb. 18, Saint John got off to a rough start last Thursday and fell 6-2 in Halifax.

The Sea Dogs are 3-1-0-0 against the Mooseheads this season. The two teams have been battling for positioning in the middle of the standings all season long.

The Dogs and Moose also meet on Sunday afternoon at TD Station.

On Saturday night, the Sea Dogs will host a team they haven't seen in quite some time: the Cape Breton Eagles. The 7 p.m. contest will be the first meeting between the two since Oct. 16. Including Saturday's match, the Sea Dogs and Eagles will meet seven times in the second half.

"NOT ENOUGH IS BEING DONE"

Sea Dogs president and general manager Trevor Georgie recently interviewed Boko Imama to discuss his time in Saint John, playing pro hockey and his experiences with racism in the sport.

Craig Morgan also has a very nice article on Imama, which includes some discussion on the infamous Kelly Bent fight and his breakout 2016-17 season.

HURTUBISE UPDATE

In an interview on 93 CFBC during the second intermission on Sunday's game, Sea Dogs goaltender Nikolas Hurtubise provided an update on his injury.

"I'm going to be out for a few days only," Hurtubise told radio broadcaster Bruce Smith. "I will probably be able to play in the next game or the other one, that's for sure. It's minor and I'm going to be back soon."

When asked by Smith if his removal from the lineup was more of a precautionary measure, Hurtubise said "yeah, it's exactly that."

Hurtubise, acquired by the Sea Dogs from the Victoriaville Tigres at the trade deadline, is 3-2 with a 2.91 goals against average and an .887 save percentage since arriving in Saint John. He has not dressed for the team's past two games due to an injury.

LESSARD UPDATE

Before exploding for eight goals on Sunday, the Sea Dogs were struggling to finish, scoring just five times during a three-game losing streak. The team's offense could certainly use the help of Marshal Lessard.

Lessard, acquired by the Sea Dogs during the holiday trade period, has a combined nine goals and five assists in 13 games with Saint John and the Val-d'Or Foreurs this season.

The 19-year-old forward has not played since Feb. 9 because of a knee injury. The Telegraph-Journal (paywall) reported Friday that he may have been able to return for last weekend's games, which obviously did not happen.

"He is a big piece for us," head coach Gordie Dwyer told the T-J. "Having his physicality and his scoring touch in our lineup would be a big plus for us."

DUFOUR TIES RECORD

William Dufour's four-goal performance was one for the history books.

Dufour became just the fifth player in Sea Dogs history to score four goals in a game, joining Jonathan Huberdeau (2011-12), Nathan Noel (2014-15), Boko Imama (2016-17) and Ryan Francis (2020-21). No Sea Dogs player has scored more than four goals in a game.

Dufour now has a league high 35 goals this season. With 27 regular season games remaining, the New York Islanders prospect remains on pace to break Danick Gauthier's franchise record of 47 goals in a single season.

Only five Sea Dogs have ever scored more than 40 goals in a season: Gauthier (47 - 2011-12), Mike Hoffman (46 - 2009-10), Huberdeau (43 - 2010-11), Scott Howes (42 - 2007-08) and Imama (41 - 2016-17).

ROY'S BIG WEEK

Former Sea Dogs forward Joshua Roy had a huge week to pull ahead in the QMJHL's points race.

Roy enters play Tuesday with 73 points on the season after putting up 12 over three games with the Sherbrooke Phoenix. That includes back-to-back three-point games (one goal and two assists) and a career high six-point night (one goal and five assists) on Saturday.

Roy was named the QMJHL's player of the week on Monday.

Saint John's William Dufour currently sits second in scoring (67 points) while Bathurst's Felix Lafrance is third (63 points).

BURBIDGE'S DECISION

Saltwire had a story last week on Cole Burbidge, who recently made the decision to sign with the Sea Dogs instead of taking the NCAA route.

“Now that I have my mind made up, I think it is definitely the right (choice),” Burbidge said. “I think it’s going to be a really good opportunity for me.”

Burbidge's sister Maggy had been playing US college hockey with Robert Morris before the program was shut down last year. She's now playing at StFX. The London Free Press coincidentally noted this week that Jacob Chantler's sister, Madison Chantler, is committed to play at Quinnipiac University in the fall. The two Chantlers could be playing in major tournaments at the same time this June: Jacob in the Memorial Cup and Madison in the rescheduled world women's under-18 championship.

“They’re both once in a lifetime opportunities,” Madison told the Free Press. “My brother and I were laughing about it. My parents, not so much.”

VOLUNTEERS

It's not too late to get involved with the 2022 Memorial Cup.

THANK YOU to the over 400 volunteers already registered! We can't make history without you!

Want to join them and be a part of the 2022 Memorial Cup presented by Kia? Sign up here: https://t.co/XDHHPzsTev@CHLMemorialCup @QMJHL @KiaCanada pic.twitter.com/vVwsfnyUcZ

— Saint John Sea Dogs (@SJSeaDogs) February 25, 2022

OTHER THINGS 

• The Charlottetown Islanders continue to lead RDS' power rankings while the Sea Dogs have slid to sixth.
• An interesting note brought up on the Wildcast podcast last week: only four teams in the QMJHL remain winless when trailing after two periods. Those four teams: Charlottetown (0-7-1-0), Quebec (0-9-0-0), Saint John (0-8-0-2) and Shawinigan (0-7-0-0).
• The Wave has a story on former Sea Dogs captain Michael Campoli winning $10,000 on the cooking show "Wall of Chefs."
• This past Sunday's Sea Dogs game was broadcast on TSN.ca and the TSN App. The next (and final) regular season Sea Dogs game to air on TSN's digital platforms is Sunday, March 27 against the Halifax Mooseheads.
• The Sea Dogs website has a story on Philippe Daoust. "We’ve got a good looking team and we’re really excited to win two cups here," Daoust said.
• Bathurst's Bennett MacArthur has signed an entry-level contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
• As of Monday, the QMJHL's Quebec-based clubs (with the exception of Quebec City's Videotron Centre) can have 100% capacity once again.
• Laval has been awarded the 2023 AHL All-Star Classic, which will take place Feb. 5-6 next year. Laval was scheduled to host the 2021 event and then the 2022 event but both were cancelled by COVID-19. The third time is, hopefully, the charm.
• Will NHL teams send their top prospects to this summer's world juniors? The Hockey News examines this topic. If many NHL teams don't, this certainly gives William Dufour another opportunity to make Team Canada.
• Le Journal de Quebec writes about the significant drop in fighting in the QMJHL in recent years.
• Atlantic University Sport has announced its revised playoff format for men's hockey, which includes a play-in game and a one-game final.