Howard commits to Merrimack

Embed from Getty Images 

Ryan Howard has committed to the NCAA's Merrimack College Warriors.

Howard, who was traded to the Saint John Sea Dogs in June, made the announcement on Instagram Thursday. The 18-year-old forward confirmed that he'll begin attending the Hockey East school following the completion of his junior career.

"I am proud and honoured to announce my commitment to play D1 hockey and further my education at Merrimack College following my time in junior," wrote Howard. "A huge thank you to everyone who has helped me along the way!"

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Ryan Howard (@ryanhowrd)

Howard and defenseman Thomas Charbonneau were traded to the Sea Dogs last month. Howard has spent the previous two years of his QMJHL career with the Quebec Remparts, posting 12 goals and 19 assists in 124 regular season games.

Last season, Howard registered nine goals and 11 assists in 62 games. He added two goals in eight playoff games.

Merrimack, based near Lowell in North Andover, Mass., is not a college hockey heavyweight but is coming off an exciting 2025-26 campaign. The Warriors entered the Hockey East Tournament as the eighth-seed and went on to win their first conference title. They became the first eight seed to win the tournament.

Moncton, Quebec named 2028 Memorial Cup host finalists

The 2028 Memorial Cup will be hosted by either the Moncton Wildcats or Quebec Remparts.

The Canadian Hockey League announced Monday that the two cities are the finalists to host the 2028 tournament, which is the next time the QMJHL has the event.

According to a news release, "Moncton and Quebec were selected by the 2028 Memorial Cup Site Selection Committee, an independent panel of five individuals with extensive experience across the sports landscape. As the first step in the process, the committee reviewed submissions from QMJHL clubs that declared their intent to bid before identifying the two finalist clubs that would advance."

The Newfoundland Regiment and Gatineau Olympiques were believed to also have interest in hosting the event.

Both Moncton and Quebec City have hosted the Memorial Cup in the past – but neither have done so in their new buildings. The Moncton Coliseum hosted the 2006 tournament while Colisee Pepsi hosted a few times, most recently in 2015.

“The Memorial Cup holds a special place in our game because of the players, fans, volunteers, and communities who bring it to life each year,” said Dan MacKenzie, president of the CHL, in a news release. “Moncton and Quebec are two proud hockey markets with deep connections to this championship, passionate fan bases, strong organizational leadership, and a clear understanding of what it takes to host an event of this calibre. We are confident either city would provide an exceptional stage for the 2028 Memorial Cup presented by Kubota, and we thank all of the QMJHL clubs that expressed interest in being part of this process.”

The 2028 host city is expected to be announced by the end of October.

The Rimouski Oceanic were the most recent QMJHL host, holding the event in 2025. The last Maritime city to host was Saint John in 2022.

The OHL's Guelph Storm will host the 2027 Memorial Cup.

2027 NHL Draft hype underway for Saint John

Mathieu Savidant/Saint John Sea Dogs

With Alexis Joseph on their roster, the Saint John Sea Dogs were already a team to watch for the 2027 NHL Draft.

Now, with Jamie Glance officially a Sea Dog, the team will have even more attention on them.

Joseph was ranked as the third best player available for the 2027 NHL Draft by Daily Faceoff last week while Glance was ranked 27th.

"Joseph really impressed me when I watched him at the U-17 World Challenge training camp a year ago," writes Steven Ellis. "In one game, in particular, he had an incredible four goals and five points – a scrimmage, sure, but he was clearly a step ahead of the rest."

The Hockey News recently released a list of five QMJHL players to watch for the 2027 NHL Draft (which was published before Saturday's Glance signing). Joseph was included. 

"He has a fantastic offensive brain that allows him to run a power play and find deft passes in the slot, a trait pretty rare for a player his size, and possesses a very respectable wrist shot that can beat junior goalies easily," writes Rory Arthur.

Joseph had 24 goals and 36 assists in 54 games during his rookie season. It'll be interesting to see what he can do production wise with a better (on paper, at least) supporting cast around him – a cast that now includes Glance.

"Glance plays a highly detailed game – a lot of what he does well doesn’t get rewarded on the scoresheet," writes Ellis. "He forces giveaways, does a good job of chasing after attackers, and draws penalties as well as anyone on the USNTDP this past year. It just feels like every time I zeroed in on Glance, he made something happen."

Glance led the USNTDP under-18 team in scoring last season, posting 23 goals and 33 assists in 62 games.

The Sea Dogs have not had a player selected in the first-round of the NHL Draft since Joe Veleno in 2018. They haven't had two players picked in the opening round since 2015 when Jakub Zboril and Thomas Chabot were both drafted.

Carter Meyer of the USNTDP – who reportedly wants to leave the program early to join the Quebec Remaprts – was ranked fifth. Quebec's James Scantlebury was ranked 29th.

Quebec's lone regular season visit to Saint John is sadly on a Thursday night (Nov. 12). They also meet on Friday, March 12 in Quebec City.

Defenseman Landon DuPont, who recently announced he's leaving the Everett Silvertips to join the University of Michigan, was ranked first by Daily Faceoff.

Notebook: Lee (officially) joins Mooseheads

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

As reported a couple weeks ago, former Saint John Sea Dogs assistant coach Mark Lee has officially joined the Halifax Mooseheads.

Lee, who will be an assistant coach under Brad MacKenzie, was one of three coaching staff additions announced by the Mooseheads on Wednesday.

“I couldn’t be more excited to join the exceptional staff that Brad MacKenzie, Peter, and Sam Simon have assembled,” said Lee in a Mooseheads release. “Having known Josh Hepditch for a long time and competing against him as both a player and a coach, I know our coaching styles will complement each other perfectly. The Halifax Mooseheads are not just a phenomenal organization; they are an elite brand and a top-tier franchise in the CHL. I am eager to see what we can accomplish this season as we work collectively toward bringing a championship back to Halifax.” 

“Mark’s passion for the game combined with his ability to build relationships and connect with players makes him a great addition to our coaching staff,” said MacKenzie. “He brings with him a wealth of experience from his playing career as well as recent history coaching in the QMJHL. I’m looking forward to working alongside Mark and having him work closely with our players.”

Lee, who was sitting with the Mooseheads at this year's QMJHL Entry Draft, was an assistant coach with the Sea Dogs for four seasons. He departed the organization at the same time as Travis Crickard.

DRAFT RANKINGS

The 2026 NHL Draft is just over a week away.

Over at FloHockey, Chris Peters has released his final draft rankings. Sea Dogs forward Olivers Murnieks was ranked 50th.

"He’s a good two-way player with potentially limited offensive upside, but looks like he has the jam to play down the lineup if all works out," writes Peters.

The Hockey Writers, meanwhile, listed Murnieks as one of their "sleeper picks" for this year's draft.

"His offensive game isn’t particularly exciting, but he has a decent shot and can make reasonably clever passes under pressure," they write. "There’s certainly bottom-six potential for Murnieks and his late July birthday means he has lots of development still to come."

Notebook: Lyons' improvement leads to selection

QMJHL

HALIFAX - A year ago, Brock Lyons was projected to be a fourth-round pick by QMJHL Central Scouting. The Saint John Vito's forward didn't hear his name called.

A year later, he was drafted by his hometown QMJHL team in the ninth-round. The improvements he made on the ice over the past year didn't go unnoticed by the Saint John Sea Dogs' scouting staff.

"Brock was a guy that we were looking at last year but we thought that his compete level was a little inconsistent," said Sea Dogs director of scouting Nick Lepore on Saturday following the conclusion of the QMJHL Entry Draft. "We saw the talent, we saw the skill. He's got size. He really has a lot of good tools. And then this year he really surprised us with his compete levels. Very consistent. It might be due to the fact that he was overlooked last year and he had a chip on his shoulder. He was really, really good all year."

Lyons, 17, posted 25 goals and 28 assists in 36 games with the Vito's. He also appeared in three games with the Maritime Junior Hockey League's Amherst Ramblers.

"We were following him all year. Last year we were kind of saying with Brock, if he steps up his compete level, he can be a very good player and he did that this year," added Lepore.

"By no means did we just select him because he's in Saint John. We really, really like the player. I think he can mix it up at camp as well and he can really force our hand maybe into something. He's a really good player with a lot of good tools and he has a lot of offense in his game as well. He is a shooter. Having him where we got him, it was a no brainer."

Sea Dogs feeling good about draft weekend performance

Vincent Ethier/QMJHL

HALIFAX - An eventful weekend was a good weekend for the Saint John Sea Dogs.

The Sea Dogs made a lot of noise during the first-round of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League Entry Draft, trading down to eventually pull off one of the biggest deals of the night, acquiring defenseman Thomas Charbonneau and forward Ryan Howard from the Quebec Remparts.

With the 14th overall pick, Saint John selected Pictou's Lawrence Williams, one of the top-ranked defensemen in this year's draft class.

The Sea Dogs leave Halifax with a bolstered lineup via trades, 10 players added via the draft and a number of additional picks for future drafts.

"I thought we accomplished mostly what we were looking to do," said Sea Dogs president and general manager Trevor Georgie. "We had a plan coming into the weekend. We wanted to grow our assets, make sure that we were really flexible moving forward in terms of picks and players. We obviously had a positional need on left shot defense and being able to add
Tom (Charbonneau) and Lawrence (Williams), that can make a difference for our group. Howard was a guy we always really liked. Plays hard, plays physical. I think his best years are ahead. So we were able to add him, which fits into our age group. I feel really good about it."

While much of the buzz on Friday centered around Charbonneau and Howard, the Sea Dogs were certainly happy with the selection of Williams. Ranked ninth overall by QMJHL Central Scouting and second amongst defensemen, Williams recorded over a point-per-game (10 goals and 28 assists in 32 regular season games) with the under-18 Weeks Major Midgets last season.

"A two-way defenseman, very reliable, can play offence, can play defensively, can be a shutdown, can play physical. He's kind of like a jack of all trades, he can do a lot of different things," said Sea Dogs director of scouting Nick Lepore. "I think he's the type of player that stabilizes a d-core and that a coach can put on the ice and really have no worries about whether it's offensively or defensively. And just also a great human being, a great kid. We interviewed him twice and we really, really like his character."

Sea Dogs acquire Charbonneau, Howard; draft Williams

HALIFAX - Pick No. 14 proved to be quite eventful for the Saint John Sea Dogs during Friday's opening round of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League Entry Draft.

Earlier in the night, the Sea Dogs acquired the 14th and 17th overall picks from the Victoriaville Tigres in exchange for the fifth overall selection. When pick No. 14 came around, the Sea Dogs made a major trade with the Quebec Remparts.

In exchange for the 14th overall pick, Saint John acquired defenseman Thomas Charbonneau, forward Ryan Howard and a second-round selection in this year's draft. The Sea Dogs are also expected to receive a second-round pick in the 2027 draft, which Quebec currently doesn't have.

Charbonneau, who will turn 17 next week, posted two goals and nine assists in 48 games during his rookie campaign with Quebec. He added an assist in 11 playoff games.

Charbonneau was drafted fourth overall by the Remparts in last year's draft. He previously played at Shattuck St. Mary's. 

C’est tout un revirement de situation.

À pareille date l’an dernier, Charbonneau était choisi 4e au total par Québec. Simon Gagné le comparait alors à Marc-Édouard Vlasic.

Les choses vont vite dans le junior. https://t.co/pe84KbLRKt

— Mikaël Lalancette (@MikLalancette) June 6, 2026

Howard, 18, recorded nine goals and 11 assists in 62 regular season games with the Remparts last season, his second with the club. He added two assists in eight playoff games.

Notebook: Sea Dogs returning to St. Stephen

The Saint John Sea Dogs are returning to St. Stephen it appears.

St. Stephen's Garcelon Civic Center has shared on Facebook that the venue will host the Sea Dogs and Moncton Wildcats in a QMJHL pre-season game on Wednesday, Aug. 26.

The Sea Dogs and Wildcats faced off in St. Stephen last year as well. Moncton won the game 4-1.

The Sea Dogs are 1-2-0-0 in pre-season play at the Garcelon Civic Center.

TRADE PERIODS

From Jeremy Fraser of the Cape Breton Post, here's when you could see player movement this week.

QMJHL Trade Periods for Entry Draft Week:

- Tuesday, June 2 - 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

- Thursday, June 4 - 8:30-9:30 a.m.

- Friday, June 5 - During the draft.

- Saturday, June 6 - During the draft.

Note: The times indicated are Atlantic Time. #qmjhl #lhjmq

— Jeremy Fraser (@CBPost_Jeremy) May 30, 2026

LATVIA DONE IN QUARTERS

Olivers Murnieks and Team Latvia had their IIHF World Championship come to an end in the quarterfinals on Thursday, falling 2-0 to Norway.

Murnieks did not play in the game.

The Sea Dogs forward appeared in five of Latvia's eight games and was held pointless.

Finland will take on Switzerland in the gold medal game while Canada will play Norway for bronze.

Notebook: Murnieks, Latvia finish fourth at U18 worlds

Micheline Veluvolu/IIHF

Saint John Sea Dogs forward Olivers Murnieks and Team Latvia finished fourth at the IIHF U18 Men's World Championship.

The Latvians fell 4-1 to Czechia in the event's bronze medal game on Saturday. On Friday, Latvia fell 1-0 to Slovakia in the semifinals, forcing them into the third-place game.

Murnieks had one shot and was a -2 in 21:08 of ice time – which led the team. He finished the tournament with a goal and five assists in seven games.

Following Friday's game, Murnieks was named one of Latvia's top three players of the tournament.

Sweden defeated host Slovakia 4-2 in the gold medal game.

Sea Dogs forward Alexis Joseph and defenseman Cameron Chartrand were part of Team Canada, who were eliminated in the quarterfinals. Sea Dogs draft pick Jamie Glance was a member of Team USA, who also fell in the quarterfinals.

CRICKARD MEETS MEDIA

Former Sea Dogs head coach Travis Crickard met with the Swift Current media via Zoom this past week.

Crickard was named the Broncos new head coach and general manager last Friday.

The Southwest Booster and Swift Current Online both have stories on the hiring. CTV also posted a couple videos.

Notebook: Joseph nominated for another award

JaimeLee Gouthro/Cape Breton Eagles

MONCTON - Saint John Sea Dogs forward Alexis Joseph was named a finalist for the QMJHL's Sidney Crosby Trophy, which is awarded annually to the league's rookie of the year.

Moncton Wildcats defenseman Tommy Bleyl won the award. Victoriaville Tigres forward Egor Shilov was also nominated.

From the league's press release:

Joseph finished sixth in rookie scoring with 60 points (24 goals, 36 assists) in 54 games. Notably, he was the only 16-year-old player in the top six. In addition to 18 power-play points, he led all rookies with four shorthanded goals. The Sea Dogs’ second-leading scorer, Joseph will not be eligible for the NHL Draft until 2027.

Joseph was also nominated for the Michel-Bergeron Trophy, which is awarded annually to the offensive rookie of the year, and the Paul-Dumont Trophy, which is awarded to the personality of the year.

Bleyl, meanwhile, was also named the QMJHL's defenseman of the year.

LONGEST SEA DOGS GAME

How does the longest game in Sea Dogs history compare to Thursday's four overtime contest between the Moncton Wildcats and Blainville-Boisbriand Armada?

The Sea Dogs have never had a game go beyond double overtime – but they came very close twice during the 2011 President Cup final against the Gatineau Olympiques. Game 4 of that series is the longest in Sea Digs history, lasting 99:16 with Ryan Tesink scoring at 19:16 of the second overtime. The second longest is Game 6, which lasted 95:45 and ended at 15:45 of the second overtime with Alexandre Beauregard scoring the Cup clinching goal.

Saint John has only gone to double overtime four times in team history.

Thursday's game between the Wildcats and Armada was the fifth longest in league history.

Three series sweeps completed

Dany Germain/Val-d'Or Foreurs

And just like that, three of the four teams that will take part in the semifinals of the Gilles-Courteau Trophy Playoffs are locked in.

The Moncton Wildcats, Chicoutimi Sagueneens and Rouyn-Noranda Huskies all completed series sweeps on Wednesday night, securing spots in the next round. The only second round series remaining is between the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada and Newfoundland Regiment, which is currently tied at 2-2.

The Wildcats won a 17th straight game on Wednesday, defeating the Val-d'Or Foreurs 4-1. Former Saint John Sea Dogs defenseman Max Vilen had three shots in the victory.

Moncton swept Saint John in the first round with their lone hiccup coming in Game 2, which required overtime. In the Val-d'Or series, the Wildcats' toughest match was also Game 2, which they won 3-2.

Like the Wildcats, the Sagueneens are also 8-0 in these playoffs. Lucas Beckman stopped all 20 shots he faced in a 5-0 win over the Quebec Remparts on Wednesday.

Former Sea Dogs forward Egan Beveridge did not play for the Remparts after getting injured in Monday's Game 3.

The Huskies, meanwhile, needed seven games to eliminate the Gatineau Olympiques in the opening round. They really shortened that timeline in the second round, completing a sweep of the Shawinigan Cataractes on Wednesday with a 4-2 victory.

Three of the four games of this series were decided by two goals or less.

This result ends the junior career of former Sea Dogs forward Vince Elie, who scored in the loss. Elie, who is committed to play at Clarkson University this fall, finishes the playoffs with a goal and three assists.

The Sagueneens will face the Huskies in the third round while the Wildcats will take on the winner of the Armada/Regiment series.

McCallum scores first pro goal; Beveridge hurt by blindside hit

Trois-Rivieres Lions

Kale McCallum has scored his first professional goal.

The former Saint John Sea Dogs defenseman scored in the Trois-Rivieres Lions' 5-1 win over the Adirondack Thunder on Sunday. The goal came midway through the first period to make it 2-0 at the time.

KALE MCCALLUM INSCRIT SON PREMIER BUT CHEZ LES PROFESSIONNELS 🚨

TR 2 - 0 ADK pic.twitter.com/REqeOWLfny

— Lions de Trois-Rivières (@Lions3r) April 12, 2026

McCallum was also a +2 with two shots in the game.

The night prior, the offensive defenseman registered his first professional points, posting two assists against the Thunder.

The Lions have two regular season games remaining. They will not qualify for the ECHL's Kelly Cup Playoffs.

McCallum spent this past season with the NCAA's Providence College Friars where he recorded five goals and nine assists in 31 games. 

The 24-year-old spent the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons with the Sea Dogs.

A few other news and notes...

• Former Sea Dogs forward Egan Beveridge was injured in the Quebec Remparts' 4-0 loss to the Chicoutimi Sagueneens on Monday. The Sags now lead the series 3-0 and will look to complete the sweep on Wednesday in Quebec City.

  Blindside hit by Liam Lefebvre on Egan Beveridge. Lefebvre gets 5 and a game for it, Beveridge has not returned.
  
  Expecting a possible suspension for Lefebvre as well, the league will look at this pic.twitter.com/vsoGiizqHk

  — Robert Chalmers (@IvanIvanlvan) April 13, 2026

• The Blainville-Boisbriand Armada have taken a 2-1 series lead with a 4-1 win over the Newfoundland Regiment on Monday in St. John's. Jacob Beaulieu had three shots and got into some rough stuff with Ryan Dwyer late in the third period. Game 4 is Tuesday night.
• In the Maritime Junior Hockey League playoffs, the Summerside Western Capitals have forced a Game 7 in the North Division final thanks to a 2-1 win over the Truro Bearcats on Sunday. The winner of Thursday's Game 7, which will be played in Summerside, will take on the Edmundston Blizzard in the MHL final.

Notebook: Impressive rookie seasons

JaimeLee Gouthro/Cape Breton Eagles

Both Alexander Donovan and Alexis Joseph came up just short of tying the Sea Dogs franchise record for goals in a season by a rookie.

Donovan finished the year with 25 goals while Joseph posted 24. The team record is 26, which is held by Tomas Jurco (2009-10) and Ostap Safin (2017-18).

Joseph did set team records for most goals (24) and points (60) in a season by a 16-year-old. 

Jospeh's 60 points tie him with Stansislav Galiev (2009-10) for the second most in team history amongst all rookies. The overall rookie points record remains Chris DiDomenico's 75 in 2006-07)

BALDWIN'S NUMBERS

Everett Baldwin finishes the season with 15 goals, placing him in a tie with Charlottetown's Marcus Kearsey for the league lead in goals by defensemen.

Baldwin ties Alex Grant for the third most goals in a season by a Sea Dogs defenseman. Jeremie Poirier had 20 in 2019-20 and 16 in 2021-22.

Baldwin set the Sea Dogs franchise record for both goals (15) and points (44) by a rookie defenseman. 

Notebook: Coyle plays 1,000th NHL game

Charlie Coyle became the first former Saint John Sea Dog to play in 1,000 NHL games this week.

Coyle played his 1,000 game on Thursday when the Columbus Blue Jackets took on the Dallas Stars.

all eyes on #3! pic.twitter.com/cDP3cXQK5Y

— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) January 22, 2026

FanDuel Sports Network had a feature on Coyle's milestone this week.

The 33-year-old has split his NHL career between the Minnesota Wild, Boston Bruins, Colorado Avalanche and now the Blue Jackets. Coyle has 11 goals and 22 assists in 51 games with Columbus this season, his first year with the club.

Coyle left Boston University and joined the Sea Dogs for the second half of the 2011-12 season, helping the club win the President Cup. He posted 15 goals and 23 assists in 23 regular season QMJHL games and added 15 goals and 19 assists in 17 playoff games. He was named QMJHL playoff MVP.

COMING UP

After playing just one game last week, the Sea Dogs have a much busier week coming up.

On Thursday the Sea Dogs will travel to Moncton to face a hot Wildcats team. Moncton will be coming off a three-game road trip in Quebec, one that saw them earn wins in Baie-Comeau, Chicoutimi and Quebec City.

After a day off Friday, the Sea Dogs will travel to Charlottetown to take on the Islanders on Saturday night. 

The Sea Dogs will return "home" on Sunday, hosting the Baie-Comeau Drakkar at 3 p.m. in Fredericton. This will be Saint John's third and final game at the Aitken Centre this season.

Notebook: Mateiko done for season

Hershey Bears

Some brutal news for former Saint John Sea Dogs captain Eriks Mateiko.

Mateiko will miss the rest of his rookie American Hockey League season and the upcoming Winter Olympic Games after having surgery this week.

"Hershey Bears forward Eriks Mateiko underwent a surgical procedure to repair his right Achilles tendon yesterday afternoon following a skate blade laceration during Sunday’s game in Hershey," the team tweeted on Tuesday. "Based on the nature of the procedure, Mateiko will miss the remainder of the season."

You can the see incident below.

This is where Mateiko got injured. He turns a little awkwardly and goes down right away but note the officials scraping the ice a little at the blue line. pic.twitter.com/lUlayiV0fB

— Bears Hockey Nation (@HBHNationBlog) January 11, 2026

The 20-year-old has posted a goal and five assists in 27 AHL games. He was recently named to Latvia's Olympic roster.

TICKET DISCOUNT

This from the Saint John Regional Hospital Foundation Facebook page:

The discount applies to Saint John's next home game: Saturday, Jan. 24 against the Sherbrooke Phoenix. Note that this is a 4 p.m. start.

Beveridge producing with Remparts

Maxime Amyot/Rimouski Oceanic

MONCTON - In just seven games with the Quebec Remparts, Egan Beveridge has nearly doubled in his point total on the season.

After recording four points in 26 games with the Saint John Sea Dogs in the first half, Beveridge has recorded four goals and two assists since joining the Remparts. That included a career high four points – and his first QMJHL hat trick – in Quebec's 10-6 win over the Rimouski Oceanic on Saturday.

The Sea Dogs and Remparts do not meet again this season.

A team that the Sea Dogs will be seeing a few more times this season is the Moncton Wildcats, where defenseman Max Vilen has been fitting in quite well. Two games in, he's been playing on the team's second pairing with fellow newcomer Evan Dépatie.

Defenseman Patryk Zubek, meanwhile, has yet to play for the Newfoundland Regiment. He was listed as a healthy scratch in all three of the team's games this past weekend – but did take part in warmup.

In the Western Conference, the Blainville-Boisbriand have been struggling over the past few weeks and are just 3-5-1-1 in their past 10 games. With the Armada, Jacob Beaulieu has been held pointless with 12 penalty minutes in eight games while Elliot Dubé made his debut on Sunday, going 5/6 on faceoffs in a 5-0 win over the Cape Breton Eagles.

Tuesday night notes

Tim Austen/IIHF

This and that on a Tuesday night...

• Olivers Murnieks and Team Latvia have secured a spot in the quarterfinals of the IIHF World Junior Championship thanks to a 6-3 win over Denmark on Tuesday. Murnieks played 21:45 and recorded two assists – his first points of the tournament – three shots, a + 1 rating and he went 14-13 in the faceoff circle. Latvia will play Czechia on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. on the final day of preliminary round play. All four quarterfinals will take place Jan. 2.
• Egan Beveridge made his debut with the Quebec Remparts on Monday, recording two shots, two hits, two penalty minutes and a -1 rating in a 6-0 loss to the powerhouse Chicoutimi Sagueneens. He played on the team's fourth line with Nathan Birch and Andrew Waugh. 
• It's been a rough go for Jacob Beaulieu and the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada this week. After blowing a 3-0 lead and losing to Chicoutimi on Sunday, the Armada blew another 3-0 lead and fell 5-4 in a shootout to the Sherbrooke Phoenix on Monday. Beaulieu, playing on the Armada's fourth line again, took two minor penalties in Monday's loss and was a -1 with one hit.
• The Moncton Wildcats will host the Charlottetown Islanders in front of a sold out Avenir Centre on New Year's Eve. TD Station will definitely not be sold out, but hopefully there is a good crowd. The Sea Dogs had a season high 3,673 fans attend their home game on Sunday.
• All 18 QMJHL teams will play on New Year's Eve, ranging from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. local starts.
• The Halifax Mooseheads have signed free agent defenseman Brenden Espenell from the BCHL's Alberni Valley Bulldogs. The Winnipeg native is committed to Merrimack College for the 2026-27 season.
• The Newfoundland Regiment and Baie-Comeau Drakkar made a big trade on Tuesday, which included Gordie Dwyer's son, Ryan Dwyer, joining the Regiment.
• A reminder that the QMJHL's trade deadline is Jan. 6, which is now less than a week away.
• ECHL games will resume on New Year's Eve after the league and the Professional Hockey Players’ Association (PHPA) announced that both parties have ratified an agreement on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Sunday night notes

Tim Austen/IIHF

A few other news and notes from Sunday night...

• It was a rough day for Olivers Murnieks and Latvia at the IIHF World Junior Championship, falling 8-0 to Finland. Murnieks played 17:09, going 6-11 in the faceoff circle.
• The Latvians have Monday off to prepare for a big game against Denmark on Tuesday. Team Canada will face Denmark on Monday night.
• Jacob Beaulieu made his Blainville-Boisbriand Armada debut on Sunday, playing on the team's fourth line with Rafaël Cloutier and Ludovik Grenier. Beaulieu was a -1 and took a roughing penalty in the first period. The Armada, who welcomed back Bill Zonnon, blew a 3-0 lead and fell 4-3 to the Chicoutimi Sagueneens.
• The Sagueneens continue to load up. Before Sunday's game, they acquired 20-year-old defenseman Jordan Tourigny from the Shawinigan Cataractes. Tourigny has played in the league for what feels like forever. He appeared in all four of Shawinigan's games at the 2022 Memorial Cup in Saint John.
• Egan Beveridge, who the Sea Dogs traded on Saturday, was a healthy scratch for the Quebec Remparts in their game against the Gatineau Olympiques on Sunday. Quebec won the game 3-0. The Remparts host the Sagueneens on Monday night.

Notebook: Murnieks, Latvia almost upset Canada again

Tim Austen/IIHF

On the one-year anniversary of Eriks Mateiko's shootout winner against Canada at the IIHF World Junior Championship, Team Latvia almost pulled off another massive upset.

The Latvians pushed the Canadians as much as they could, sending the match into overtime where Michael Hage scored the winner on a power play, giving Canada a 2-1 win.

The Latvians did an excellent job at limiting quality scoring chances. Like last year, Latvia hung around and scored late in the third period to send the match into extra time. This year though, they didn't have quite enough to get the win.

As expected, Saint John Sea Dogs forward Olivers Murnieks was Latvia's top line centre. He played 19:38, recording one shot and going 15-15 in the faceoff circle.

Despite the loss, this result will no doubt give the Latvians some confidence. They play Finland on Sunday at 5:30 p.m. Atlantic.

BEVERIDGE TRADE

The Sea Dogs made their second deal of the trade period on Saturday, sending forward Egan Beveridge to the Quebec Remparts in exchange for forward Félix Pronovost and a 2027 sixth-round pick.

Here's what team president and general manager Trevor Georgie had to say about the trade in a news release.

“We are sad to see Egan go but are excited for him to get a fresh start in Quebec,” said Georgie. “He is an outstanding young man and he will be missed around the team and in the community. We wish him the very best.”

The Sea Dogs do not play the Remparts again this season.

Beveridge traded to Remparts

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

The Saint John Sea Dogs have traded forward Egan Beveridge to the Quebec Remparts.

In exchange, the Sea Dogs have received 17-year-old forward Félix Pronovost and a sixth-round pick in the 2027 QMJHL Entry Draft.

The move doesn't come as a huge surprise. Beveridge had fallen down Saint John's depth chart and was primarily being used on the fourth line while occasionally being a healthy scratch. A fresh start with a new club could be just what he needs. 

The 18-year-old was a second-round pick of Saint John in the 2023 QMJHL Entry Draft and entered the league with quite a bit of hype. After recording 19 points in his rookie season, he posted 11 last year and is on pace for eight this season.

In 26 games with Saint John this year, the New Hampshire native has two goals and two assists.

Pronovost, meanwhile, has appeared in just seven career QMJHL games over two seasons. He spent most of last season with the Collège Esther-Blondin Phénix – the team that was led by Sea Dogs forward Alexis Joseph.

The Lachenaie, Quebec native was a fourth-round pick of the Remparts in the 2024 QMJHL Entry Draft. In four games with the team this season, he's recorded one assist. 

Pronovost has spent most of this season with the Quebec collegiate league's Champlain St. Lawrence Lions where he's posted nine goals and eight assists in 21 games.

This is just the second deal the Sea Dogs have made since the trade period opened. Before Christmas, the team traded forward Jacob Beaulieu to the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada.

The QMJHL's trade deadline is Jan. 6.