Notebook: Wildcats honour Boutilier

MONCTON - Paul Boutilier was honoured before Game 5 of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League final on Friday at Avenir Centre.

The Moncton Wildcats held a moment of silence for Boutilier. It was announced on Thursday that the 63-year-old, who had been a defensive consultant with the Wildcats for the past two seasons, had passed away.

Before the game, the @monctonwildcats observed a moment of silence in memory of Paul Boutilier, who passed away yesterday. 🕊️ pic.twitter.com/pSYKUY9rAo

— QMJHL (@QMJHL) May 15, 2026

After the game, Wildcats head coach Gardiner MacDougall began his press conference with some words on Boutilier. The two worked together during Saint John's 2022 Memorial Cup run before teaming up again in Moncton.

''He's kind of a trailblazer for the defensive part of the game''

With his usual grace, Gardiner MacDougall paid a heartfelt tribute to the Paul Boutilier, the QMJHL and NHL Alumni who passed away 🕊️ @monctonwildcats pic.twitter.com/OTOkbaiKDT

— QMJHL (@QMJHL) May 16, 2026

Boutilier was an assistant coach with the Sea Dogs for two seasons, helping the club capture the 2017 QMJHL championship.

Saltwire has a story on Boutilier's death, which includes some quotes from former Sea Dogs general manager Darrell Young.

CAPITALS FALL IN FINAL

The host Summerside Western Capitals fell 4-1 to Manitoba's Niverville Nighthawks in the championship game of the Centennial Cup on Sunday.

The Nighthawks have only been around since the 2022-23 season and went 51-6-1 during the regular season. They went undefeated at the Centennial Cup, which included beating the Capitals twice.

Summerside outshot Niverville 35-20, including 12-3 in the third period.

The Capitals featured former Sea Dogs defenseman Matthew MacLean and goaltender Justin Robinson. This was the final game of junior hockey for the 20-year-old MacLean, who spent the past two seasons with the Sea Dogs.

MacLean finished the tournament with a goal and three assists in seven games. Robinson appeared in three games – including a couple minutes of Sunday's game – and allowed seven goals on 58 total shots.

Summerside was looking to win their second national championship and first since 1997 – a team that was coached by Gerard Gallant. An Atlantic Canadian team has not won the Centennial Cup since the Halifax Oland Exports in 2002.

Drakkar, Wildcats heading to Game 7

Blizzard Facebook

The Baie-Comeau Drakkar and Moncton Wildcats have had an excellent first round playoff series - and it's not over yet.

The Drakkar forced a Game 7 with a 4-3 overtime win over the Wildcats on Monday at Avenir Centre. Matyas Melovsky scored just 23 seconds into the extra frame to secure the Drakkar the victory.

It wasn't looking like the game would even need overtime. The Drakkar held a 3-2 lead into the final minute when Vincent Labelle scored from a bad angle to tie things up. The goal came at five-on-five but with Moncton on a penalty kill and their goaltender pulled.

Labelle sends it to OT with a late shortie! https://t.co/UYssA7EM2x pic.twitter.com/paVZfBSbTM

— Moncton Wildcats (@monctonwildcats) April 11, 2023

Earlier in the third period, former Sea Dogs forward Marshall Lessard was given a five-minute major and game misconduct for boarding. Baie-Comeau killed off that penalty though.

This was the fourth game of this series that required overtime.

Game 7 will take place Tuesday night at Avenir Centre. It's the only first round series still going in the QMJHL.

A few other notes...

• Brandon Casey and the Edmundston Blizzard will face Benjamin Roode and the Yarmouth Mariners in the Maritime Hockey League final (a very long distance one at that). The Blizzard completed a sweep of the Summerside Western Capitals on Monday.
• No teams from the 2022 Memorial Cup are still alive in the CHL playoffs. The Hamilton Bulldogs blew a 3-0 lead and fell 5-4 to the Barrie Colts on Monday, dropping the series in six games. The Edmonton Oil Kings missed the WHL post-season while the Sea Dogs and Shawinigan Cataractes were eliminated in the first round of the QMJHL playoffs.
• This was the final Bulldogs game in Hamilton for at least the next three seasons. The Bulldogs will be relocating to Brantford while the FirstOntario Centre undergoes massive renovations.
• The Prince George Cougars have advanced to the second round of the WHL playoffs for the first time since 2007. The Cougars eliminated the Tri-City Americans in six games in the opening round. Former Sea Dogs head coach Josh Dixon is an associate coach with the Cougars.
• Worth nothing as well that the Spokane Chiefs did not make the WHL playoffs. Former Sea Dogs assistant coach Stefan Legein is an associate coach with the Chiefs.

Notebook: McCluskey pushes Bearcats to first round MHL series win

UNB Athletics

HALIFAX - Former Saint John Sea Dogs forward Carter McCluskey played a key role in getting the Truro Bearcats into the second round of the Maritime Hockey League playoffs.

McCluskey, who appeared in 22 games with the Cape Breton Eagles earlier this season, recorded four goals and two assists in just three games, helping lift the Bearcats to a 4-2 series win over the Valley Wildcats.

Those numbers included scoring the overtime winner in Game 5 on Sunday.

Carter McCluskey with a statement in his return with a first star performance(2G 1A) which included this overtime winner in front of 1200 strong at the RECC! We can close out the series Tuesday night in Berwick! #ExpectToWin pic.twitter.com/SCBbhpGNeK

— Truro Junior ‘A’ Bearcats (@trurobearcats) March 27, 2023

McCluskey, Cael MacDonald and the Bearcats will face Ben Roode and the Yarmouth Mariners in the next round.

The other series will feature the Edmundston Blizzard (Brandon Casey) facing either the Summerside Western Capitals or Campbellton Tigers (Connor Richard and Dawson Stairs). The Capitals host the Tigers in a Game 7 on Friday.

FINAL RANKINGS

The Gatineau Olympiques finished the regular season fourth in the QMJHL standings but have been ranked No. 1 in the final edition of the CHL Top 10.

Three other QMJHL teams were ranked as well.

The @OlympiquesGAT finish 🔝 of the @KiaCanada CHL Top 🔟 rankings!

— Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) March 28, 2023 

Quick Hits: Sea Dogs locked into No. 3 seed in Eastern Conference

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

SAINT JOHN - The Saint John Sea Dogs are now locked into third-place in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League's Eastern Conference.

With three games remaining in their regular season schedule, the most points the Sea Dogs can finish with is 98. That means they won't be able to catch the Quebec Remparts (100 points) or Charlottetown Islanders (99 points).

The Sea Dogs also can't be caught by the fourth-place Acadie-Bathurst Titan who have struggled (and limped) down the stretch.

Finishing third means the Sea Dogs will play the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference in the first round. Right now that would be the Rimouski Oceanic who have 75 points with two games remaining. The Oceanic could still catch the fifth-place Halifax Mooseheads who have 76 points with one game remaining.

The Sea Dogs were 1-1-0-0 against the Oceanic this season and 6-2-0-0 against the Mooseheads.

A few other notes...

• Sherbrooke's Joshua Roy now leads the QMJHL in points with 113 while William Dufour is second with 112. Both have three games remaining in the regular season.
• Charlottetown's Patrick Guay has tied Dufour for the league lead in goals with 53. Guay and the Islanders have two games remaining.
• The Mooseheads are playing some of their best hockey of the season right now, winning their sixth straight game Tuesday night in Moncton. They are 8-2 in their last 10 games. The Moose have one game remaining in the regular season: a visit to last-place Cape Breton on Sunday.
• Only two QMJHL teams - the Charlottetown Islanders and Quebec Remparts - made the year-end CHL Top 10 rankings, which appears to summarize the year's rankings. The Winnipeg Ice were ranked first.
• Former Sea Dogs forward Alex Drover played in his first game with the Rimouski Oceanic since March 8 on Wednesday. Drover scored his 12th goal of the season in his return from injury.
• Former Sea Dogs head coach Josh Dixon and the Prince George Cougars have been eliminated from the WHL playoffs. The Cougars were swept by the favoured Portland Winterhawks, dropping Game 4 by score of 2-1 on Wednesday. Dixon is an associate coach with the Cougars.
• On TSN's Insider Trading, Chris Johnston reported that an announcement on which Canadian city/cities will host the 2023 World Junior Hockey Championship will be made soon. "We're going to know soon," said Johnston. "There's already been some talks it's going to be Halifax and Moncton, that they're the favourites among the five bids. Hockey Canada has not made a final decision."
• This may already be out there, but Canada's schedule for this summer's world juniors in Edmonton will see the team play Latvia (Aug. 10), Slovakia (Aug. 11), Czechia (Aug. 13) and Finland (Aug. 15). The quarterfinal (Aug. 17), semifinal (Aug. 19) and bronze/gold medal (Aug. 20) matches will take place afterwards.
• As noted by Le Droit's JF Plante, former Sea Dogs goaltender Charlie Millen is now a linesman in the OHL. Millen appeared in three games with Saint John during the 2011-12 season. According to his LinkedIn, Millen also works AHL games and Hockey Canada sanctioned matches.
• The school formerly known as Ryerson University will have a new name for its sports teams this coming season, reports Ben Steiner. The school, now known as Toronto Metropolitan University, will no longer be the home of the Rams.
• The OHL's Ottawa 67's could have a new home in the coming years. The Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group, who own the 67's, unveiled proposed plans to build a new 5,500-seat arena that would be ready for the 2024-25 season. The 67's current home, located underneath one of the football grandstands, has been dying a slow death for some time.

Notebook: Rogers TV won't air NB Q games

Rogers TV New Brunswick Facebook

Local Rogers TV stations in the province are not expected to air New Brunswick-based QMJHL games this season.

Broadcaster Gerry Green confirmed the news on Twitter.

Disappointed to hear we @RogersTVNB will NOT be carrying the @QMJHL games from SJ, Moncton and Bathurst this season. It was a great run and I'll miss it terribly. Some hilites to remember from Feb/20.@PQMiramichi @TTSeanHatchard @MrCDobson @BruceHallihan https://t.co/AoIucswlx9

— Gerry Green (@GGreenMachine) September 8, 2021

Rogers TV was not listed as a broadcast partner in the QMJHL's media guide. The network's included were RDS, TSN, CBC, TVA Sports, Eastlink and Optik TV.

The Saint John Sea Dogs, Moncton Wildcats and Acadie-Bathurst Titan have had around 15-25 games broadcast each season since 2014-15 on Rogers TV.

It does seem that local Rogers TV stations in Ontario will continue to air OHL games. A recent London Knights pre-season game was broadcast on Rogers TV in London.

FRIDAY'S GAME
UNB and Fredericton police have released more details on Friday's campus evacuations, which forced the pre-season game between the Sea Dogs and Moncton Wildcats, scheduled to be played at the Aitken Centre, to be cancelled.

The UNB campuses remained closed until midnight. They are now open and have returned to normal operations. We want to thank the university community for your patience and cooperation during this investigation.

— UNB (@UNB) September 11, 2021

The game will not be rescheduled. The UNB Reds, who are hosting Saint John's pre-season games this year, have announced details on what to do if you had purchased tickets to the game.

QUINN LEAVING SEA DOGS

Jon Quinn, the long-time Sea Dogs in-game announcer and director of marketing and communications, is leaving the team at the end of this week.

"While my time with the team will most likely be defined by all the yelling I did from the stands and the time (well) spent embarrassing unsuspecting fans with the promise of gift cards, that doesn't begin to scratch the surface of the opportunities I was given and the unique experiences I shared with the organization," Quinn wrote in a LinkedIn post on Monday.

"To my office family who make magic happen 34+ times a year, you are the best at what you do," he added. "I will always cherish the time we spent together, the many successes we shared, the bad times and the good."

Quinn has been the team's in-game host and held a variety of other roles since 2014.

Notebook: Dixon joins Cougars staff

Former Saint John Sea Dogs head coach Josh Dixon is back in the Canadian Hockey League.

The Western Hockey League's Prince George Cougars announced Friday that Dixon has joined the team's staff as an associate coach. 

“Josh has the criteria we were looking for in our search. He has head coaching experience and checks off a lot of boxes,” said Cougars general manager and head coach Mark Lamb in a news release. “We have worked together in the past and I know he’ll be a great fit for our organization.”

Dixon has WHL experience. He was an assistant coach with the Regina Pats for three seasons before joining Lamb's Swift Current Broncos, where he acted as an associate coach, for the 2014-15 season.

“It’s an honour to join the Prince George Cougars and have the opportunity to work with Mark again,” said Dixon. “I look forward to working with a young, talented team that’s on the rise and helping them compete for a championship.”

The Cougars have not made a playoff appearance since 2017 and have not advanced past the first round since 2007.

Dixon was head coach of the Sea Dogs for two-and-a-half seasons, posting a record of 39-108-12-6 in 165 regular season games. He was fired on Dec. 2, 2019.

PEI CONNECTIONS

Just like Gerard Gallant, Gordie Dwyer started his coaching career with the MHL's Summerside Western Capitals.

“I talked to Turk quite a bit and his experience coaching here with how he and Mike (Kelly) did things,” Dwyer told The Guardian this past week. “Turk had some good things to say about it.”

Dwyer spent two seasons with the Capitals as head coach and director of player personnel, winning an MHL title in 2011. He went on to coach the PEI Rocket the following season.