What has the makings of a fascinating season officially gets underway Saturday morning as the Saint John Sea Dogs open up training camp at the Quispamsis qplex.
The first phase of camp begins at 10:30 a.m. with an on-ice session which will be followed by a goaltending session at 12:30 p.m.. The team will do that all over again on Sunday before the second phase of camp – which will feature veterans and returning players – begins on Monday.
This weekend's sessions will give fans their first look at the team's 2026 draft class along with free agent invites. That includes defenseman Lawrence Williams, the team's first-round pick from June's QMJHL Entry Draft.
While there will be plenty of attention on the players, there will also be some eyes on the coaching staff. The Jim Hulton era of Sea Dogs hockey is set to begin – and it's no doubt going to bring a fresh style to Saint John.
As we enter the first day of camp, here are a few additional notes on Saint John's roster...
- The Sea Dogs announced on Friday that forwards Glenfall Lewis and Dylan-Alec Chery have been added to the camp roster. Lewis, 17, spent last season with the OJHL's Markham Royals and was a 15th-round pick of the OHL's Brantford Bulldogs in 2025. Chery, meanwhile, has spent the past three seasons playing US prep school hockey. The Boisbriand native was a 12th-round pick of Saint John in the 2024 QMJHL Entry Draft.
- All 10 of Saint John's picks from the 2026 QMJHL Entry Draft are expected to attend training camp along with two of their three import picks.
- Here's a quick breakdown of the 13 free agent invites that were announced on Wednesday, most of whom we've written about previously this summer. Click the name to read more.
- F Kareem Baig-Mirza
- F Samuel Deschenes (a Wildcats pick in 2024)
- F Carson Ferdinand
- F Dylan Hug
- F Wyatt Jinman
- F Travis Tremblay
- F Brayden Waterhouse
- D Xavier Ayotte
- D Jayden Connors
- D Ben Louks
- G Daniel Blanchard (Dog Bowl MVP)
- G Pierce Brackett
- G Olivier Pépin
- One previously announced free agent who has not been added to Saint John's training camp roster – yet, anyways – is recent Memorial Cup champion Matthew Hlacar.
- At this time, Hlacar is one of four overage players fighting for three spots. The others are:
- F Olivier Lemieux (acquired from Armada)
- D Xavier Ayotte (free agent)
- D Julien Lanthier (acquired from Cataractes)
- The players on Saint John's online protected list that were not included on the initial training camp roster (I think I've got everyone):
- F Max Donatelli - attended the first couple days of Rimouski Oceanic training camp on a loan
- F Matthew Hlacar - see above
- F Maxime Lafond - not attending camp due to personal reasons; was on loan from the Drummondville Voltigeurs
- F Joseph Monteiro - expected to play NCAA hockey (Providence)
- F Olivers Murnieks - expected to play NCAA hockey (Boston College)
- F Finnegan Sears - expected to play with USNTDP
- D Carl-Otto Magnusson - recently signed in the BCHL (Nanaimo)
- D Everett Baldwin - expected to play NCAA hockey (Providence)
- D Ethan Tatomir - attended camp last year as a free agent; spent last season in the OJHL (Leamington)
- D Vertti Svensk - at the moment, appears to be signed to play in Finland (SaiPa)
- D Brian McFadden - expected to play in USHL (Chicago)
- D Matas Janulis - looks like he's heading to the USHL (Cedar Rapids)
- G Samuel Doyon-Cataquiz - expected to play in the USHL (Muskegon)
- Nothing official has been announced on this, but Olivier Duhamel is expected to start the season on the injured list, which opens up another spot on the backend for at least the first couple months of the season.
- Saint John begins pre-season play on Wednesday when they host the Moncton Wildcats at 7 p.m. in St. Stephen.
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