Notebook: Top prospect signs USHL tender

USHL

The player recruitment issues aren't going away for the QMJHL.

Earlier this week the USHL's Muskegon Lumberjacks announced that forward Zaac Charbonneau, one of the top prospects for the 2026 QMJHL Entry Draft, has signed a tender agreement with the club for the 2026-27 season.

“We are getting an elite player that is passionate and loves the game, and it shows in his compete, his IQ, and his ability to score goals from anywhere,” said Lumberjacks general manager Jim McGroarty in a news release. “When you are talking hockey, or anything with Zaac, he always has a smile on his face. These are the types of young men we want in the locker room and our community.”

Charbonneau has played US prep school hockey at Mount St. Charles the past two seasons.

There's still a chance Charbonneau could opt to play in the QMJHL next season, but players have been honouring these commitments of late – which hasn't been good news for the Q. The hope was that these types of things would go away with the NCAA rule change – but they're still happening.

The Lumberjacks in particular have been a problem for the QMJHL. Fredericton native Tynan Lawrence, a top prospect for this year's NHL Draft, is in his second season with the Lumberjacks.

WORLD JR UPDATE

Olivers Murnieks and Team Latvia will face Sweden in Friday's quarterfinals.

Murnieks registered an assist and went 16-14 in faceoffs in 19:54 of ice time in Latvia's 4-2 loss to Czechia on Wednesday, the final day of preliminary round play at the IIHF World Junior Championship.

Latvia finished fourth in Group B with four points. They'll now crossover and face Sweden, who finished first in Group A thanks to a 6-3 win over the United States on Wednesday.

The other quarterfinals will see Czechia face Switzerland, the US take on Finland and Canada face Slovakia.

Following Friday's quarterfinals, the semifinals will take place Sunday and the finals on Monday.

JOSEPH HAT TRICK

Alexis Joseph recorded his second career QMJHL hat trick on Wednesday in Saint John's 6-5 loss to the Newfoundland Regiment.

Here's a look at all three goals:

Joseph also had an assist in the game. He tied a career high for both goals and points in a single game.

Joseph sits sixth in QMJHL rookie scoring with 33 points and is tied for fourth in goals with 17.

Notebook: Quebec road trip begins

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

It's nearly February, but Wednesday night will be the first meeting of the season between the Saint John Sea Dogs and the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada.

The Sea Dogs will begin a three-game Quebec road trip at 8 p.m. Atlantic in the Montreal suburbs. The two will meet again in one week, this time at TD Station.

The expansion cousins haven't met in nearly a year (the last meeting was Feb. 15, 2024). The Armada currently sit 11th overall with 50 points while the Sea Dogs are 15th with 38.

The Sea Dogs have already arrived in the Montreal area, practicing at the Bell Centre on Monday.

Quick stop at the @CentreBell in Montreal for practice last night ahead of tomorrow’s game in Blainville!#GoDogsGo pic.twitter.com/fo2GvJsy3t

— Saint John Sea Dogs (@SJSeaDogs) January 28, 2025

Following Wednesday's game, the Sea Dogs will head northwest to Rouyn-Noranda and Val-d'Or for games on Friday and Saturday, respectively.

SOME STATS

Five current Sea Dogs have new reached double digits in goals.

Dylan Rozzi became the latest to reach the 10-goal mark, scoring his ninth and 10th goals of the season over the weekend. He joins Zachary Morin (12), Tyler Peddle (12), William Yared (11) and Olivier Groulx (10) in double digits. Eriks Mateiko had 14 before he was traded to the Rimouski Oceanic.

Morin sits third in QMJHL rookie goal scoring while Yared in fifth.

Peddle continues to lead the team in power play goals with seven while Groulx and Rozzi each have four.

Captain Nate Tivey continues to lead the team in points (34) and assists (23). He sits sixth in QMJHL defensemen scoring.

Notebook: Chabot's WJC skates on display

Thomas Chabot's skates were on display at a Hockey Hall of Fame exhibit in Ottawa during this year's IIHF World Junior Championship.

Chabot, now a member of the Ottawa Senators, wore the skates during his impressive 2017 world junior tournament with Team Canada. The Saint John Sea Dogs defenseman was named tournament MVP after posting 10 points in seven games.

Canada's 2017 squad, which also featured Mathieu Joseph and Julien Gauthier, fell in a shootout to the United States in the gold medal game.

PLAYOFFS?

It's still early, but it's worth starting to take a peek at the QMJHL's playoff picture.

After a decent first half that saw the club enter the break with a .500 record, this four-game losing streak to start the second half has slid the Saint John Sea Dogs down the standings a couple spots. The Sea Dogs currently sit 13th overall with a 16-20-0-0 record for 32 points.

The top 16 teams make the playoffs. If the playoffs started today, Saint John would face the Moncton Wildcats.

The Halifax Mooseheads, who currently sit 16th, have 27 points. The Sea Dogs and Mooseheads will play a home-and-home this weekend.

ATTENDANCE WATCH

Attendance remains up in the QMJHL, according to the league.

Attendances in the #QMJHL are up 6.5% compared to this time last season!
To all our fans: THANK YOU!

— QMJHL (@QMJHL) January 7, 2025

In Saint John, where the Sea Dogs have lowered adult ticket prices to $20 for the second half, the team is averaging 2,434 fans per game after 17 home games. After 17 home games last year, the Sea Dogs averaged 2,621 fans per game. 

Notebook: Jones died in motorcycle accident

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

Creed Jones died in a motorcycle accident on Friday, CBC News has confirmed.

The death of the former Saint John Sea Dogs goaltender was announced over the weekend. The 24-year-old was one of two people killed in the crash late Friday in the Ottawa area.

The Sea Dogs have released the below statement.

The #SJSeaDogs are saddened to learn about the passing of former goaltender Creed Jones.

Our thoughts are with Creed’s family and friends during this difficult time. pic.twitter.com/4x5vqN6SR1

— Saint John Sea Dogs (@SJSeaDogs) August 4, 2024

Jones also played with the Rimouski Oceanic and Gatineau Olympiques during his time in the QMJHL. The Olympiques announced Monday that they will honour Jones during their game against the Oceanic on Sept. 28.

ST. STEPHEN TICKETS

Tickets are now on sale for Saint John's pre-season opener, which will take place Aug. 20 at St. Stephen's Garcelon Civic Centre.

Tickets cost $15 for adults and $10 for youths and seniors. Tickets can be purchased here.

This will be Saint John's first game of the 2024 pre-season. They'll be facing the Charlottetown Islanders in the first of back-to-back games between the two. The Sea Dogs travel to Pownal, PEI the next night to face the Islanders again.