Notebook: Lawrence, Mooseheads look to force a Game 7 in QMJHL final

HALIFAX - The Gilles-Courteau Trophy will be in the building once again as the Quebec Remparts try and close out the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League championship series against the Halifax Mooseheads.

The Mooseheads forced a Game 6 back in Halifax with a 3-2 win in Game 5 on Friday in Quebec City. The Remparts now lead the series 3-2.

Game time Sunday at Scotiabank Centre is 5 p.m. A Game 7, if needed, would be Monday night at 8:30 p.m. back in Quebec City.

Tickets for this series have proven to be a hot commodity in both markets. Tickets for Sunday's match sold out within a few hours, reports Global Halifax.

Former Saint John Sea Dogs forward Josh Lawrence continues to lead the QMJHL in playoff scoring with 30 points. He has, however, been held pointless over the last two games.

The winner of this series advances to the 2023 Memorial Cup in Kamloops, which begins Friday.

THUNDERBIRDS ADVANCE

The Seattle Thunderbirds are Western Hockey League champions.

The Thunderbirds defeated the Winnipeg Ice 3-1 on Friday to take the WHL championship series 4-1. While Winnipeg was the No. 1 seed, the Thunderbirds, who loaded up at the trade deadline, have arguably the best roster in junior hockey (on paper).

Seattle will join representatives from the QMJHL, OHL and the host Kamloops Blazers at the 2023 Memorial Cup. The Thunderbirds' last trip to the Memorial Cup came in 2017 where they went 0-3 - which included a 7-0 loss to the Sea Dogs.

Seattle's roster includes forward Dylan Guenther and defenseman Luke Prokop who were members of last year's Edmonton Oil Kings squad that played in the 2022 Memorial Cup in Saint John. Guenther did not play in the tournament due to an injury.

MARINERS SEASON OVER

The Yarmouth Mariners' season came to an end on Friday.

The Maritime Hockey League champions fell 2-1 to the host Portage Terriers in the quarterfinals of the Centennial Cup. The loss comes after the Mariners finished third in Group A with a 1-2-1 record in the preliminary round.

Former Sea Dogs defenseman Ben Roode finished the tournament with four assists. The overager will play for the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks next season.

The Terrebonne Cobras did not qualify for the playoff round after falling to the Mariners in their final preliminary round game. Former Sea Dogs goaltender Nikolas Hurtubise, also an overager, will play for the Concordia Stingers in the fall.

TITAN UPDATE

There was some good news for Acadie-Bathurst Titan fans this week.

In an interview with Radio Canada, QMJHL commissioner Mario Cecchini said that even if the Titan are sold, they will not leave Bathurst in the near future.

The news comes as reports continue to indicate that Steve Leal, the president and CEO of Fix Network World, will continue to try and purchase the team. 

Mise à jour : Steven Leal est toujours dans le dossier du Titan d'Acadie-Bathurst. L'équipe prévoit présenter une entente à la ligue aux Assises en juin

— steve turcotte (@steveturcotte) May 16, 2023

Reports last year said Leal planned to purchase the Titan and move them to the Montreal suburbs once a new arena was constructed.

ECBL FINISHED FOR THE YEAR

The Saint John Union and the entire Eastern Canadian Basketball League have called it a season earlier than expected.

The startup abruptly announced this past week that its regular season would end early due to financial constraints. A planned season-ending tournament has since been cancelled as well.

The ECBL has indicated in a couple press releases that it plans to return with an improved structure next season.

The Union had been playing their home games at TD Station.

OTHER THINGS

• TD Station was ranked sixth in Stadium Journey's most recent QMJHL arena rankings. Quebec City's Videotron Centre ranked first followed by Moncton's Avenir Centre and Halifax's Scotiabank Centre.
• Speaking of Scotiabank Centre, Global News reports on possible renovations for the aging building over the next few years.
• This year's QMJHL final has set an attendance record. Even with small crowds in Saint John and Moncton, playoff attendance overall has been excellent. From the QMJHL: "Another record that has been continuously getting broken since this year’s finals began is the average attendance per playoff game in a single year. During the 2005 QMJHL postseason, an average of 5,324 fans had attended every matchup. With each additional game being played in this year’s championship series, the new record of 5,400+ attendees per game continues to be broken."
• Yannic Bastarache, who appeared in two pre-season games with the Sea Dogs in 2021, has committed to play at the Universite de Moncton this upcoming season. Bastarache was the captain of the MHL's Grand Falls Rapids this past season.
• Philip Fife, who attended Sea Dogs training camp once-upon-a-time, has been named the new head coach and general manager of the MHL's Amherst Ramblers. The 30-year-old, who is a former forward with the MHL's Woodstock Slammers, has spent the past three seasons as an assistant coach with the SJHL’s Estevan Bruins.
• Tickets are now on sale for the 2023 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, which will take place in Charlottetown and Summerside Nov. 4-11.
• Bradly Nadeau of Saint-François-de-Madawaska was named the BCHL playoff MVP after helping the Penticton Vees capture the league championship. His brother, Josh Nadeau, led the BCHL in playoff scoring. Both are committed to the University of Maine for next season.