Sea Dogs add another assistant

Soo Greyhounds

The Saint John Sea Dogs have rounded out their coaching staff for the 2026-27 season.

Joining Jim Hulton's staff will be Daniel Nikandrov, who will be an assistant coach with the Sea Dogs. The team made the announcement on Thursday.

“We are pleased to welcome Danny to the Sea Dogs,” said Sea Dogs president and general manager Trevor Georgie in a release. “He came highly recommended as a player’s coach who builds strong relationships and connects well with young athletes. Having served as a captain during his OHL career, he understands what it takes to compete at this level. Danny was excited about the opportunity to return to the East Coast, and we believe he’ll be an outstanding fit alongside Jim, Guy, and the rest of our coaching staff.”

Nikandrov, 31, spent the past two seasons as an assistant coach with the OHL's Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. Prior to that he spent a season as an assistant at StFX University and three other seasons as an assistant at York University.

York is where Nikandrov's playing days ended. His junior career saw him play with the OHL's Sarnia Sting and Peterborough Petes.

The Greyhounds announced on Monday that Nikandrov and fellow assistant coach Brendan Taylor would not return to the club this fall. 

“We want to sincerely thank Danny and Tayls for everything they’ve done for our program and our players, both on and off the ice,” said Greyhound general manager Kyle Raftis in a release. “Their dedication, professionalism, and commitment have had a tremendous impact on our organization. We’re grateful for the contributions they’ve made during their time with the Greyhounds and wish them nothing but continued success in the next chapter of their careers.”

Soo recently named Drew Bannister their new head coach, replacing John Dean.

Nikandrov will join Hulton and fellow assistant Guy Girouard behind the Saint John bench this season. Hulton and Girouard were officially hired last month. Director of hockey operations and assistant coach Kyle MacDonald is the only member of last season's coaching staff set to return.

Notebook: Galiev broke arm playing soccer

It's been 13 years since Stanislav Galiev broke his arm, keeping him out of the Saint John Sea Dogs lineup for months and forcing him to miss the 2012 world juniors. And here we are, 13 years later, getting some new developments on what actually happened here.

It turns out Galiev broke his arm in a soccer game with Alex Ovechkin and a few others, which he recently revealed to Sport24. From Russian Machine Never Breaks:

The Washington Capitals’ third-round pick from the 2010 NHL Draft relayed the actual story to Erykalov after being asked to provide a story of any “out of the blue” or “annoying” injuries during his career. 

“I once broke my arm when I was playing [soccer] with Sasha Ovechkin and some mutual friends,” Galiev responded. “It turned out that I was out for five months and didn’t go to the World Junior Championship.

“I haven’t stood in goal since then. I’m not a professional goalkeeper, and the guys there shoot like God.”

Galiev appeared in just 20 regular season games with Saint John during the 2011-12 season because of the injury. He exploded in the playoffs, posting 10 goals and 17 assists in 19 games.

The 32-year-old has been playing in the KHL since the 2017-18 season. He will play for Avangard Omsk this coming season.

RICHARD BACK IN AMHERST

Jeremie Richard is returning to the Amherst Ramblers.

The 18-year-old defenseman – who was being used as a forward at Sea Dogs training camp – will join the Ramblers for the upcoming Maritime Hockey League season, the club announced Tuesday.

We are excited to welcome back defenseman Jeremie Richard to the team! After finishing last season in the QMJHL with the Saint John Sea Dogs, Richard will return to the blueline here in Amherst. Welcome back, Jeremie!! #goramsgo🐑 pic.twitter.com/ohGkXx3Aqh

— Amherst JrA Ramblers (@AmherstRamblers) August 29, 2024

Richard appeared in 17 games with Amherst last season and 13 with Saint John.

A former Moncton Flyer, Richard was a third-round pick of Saint John in the 2022 QMJHL Entry Draft.

Memorial Cup hosts moving on in OHL

The 2024 Memorial Cup hosts are still alive.

The Saginaw Spirit secured a spot in the OHL's Western Conference Final with a 3-1 victory over the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in Game 7 of their second round series on Tuesday. The win pushes the Spirit into the league's final four where they'll face the top-seeded London Knights.

Saginaw led 1-0 after one but the Soo tied it up in the second period. The Spirit heavily outshot the Greyhounds in the third and finally retook the lead midway through the period before securing the win with an empty netter. Shots were 14-5 in favour of Saginaw in the third and 34-17 overall.

CALEM MANGONE DOES IT AGAIN 🫡

The Soo native makes no mistake from Michael Misa's pass to re-take the lead for the @SpiritHockey in Game 7 📽️#OHLPlayoffs | #SAGvsSOO pic.twitter.com/SN8tmV181g

— Ontario Hockey League (@OHLHockey) April 24, 2024

Soo seemed to have all the momentum entering Game 7. The Greyhounds posted a statement 5-0 win in Game 6 on Sunday while the Spirit were missing a couple regulars for Game 7.

The Spirit finished with 102 points in the regular season, just two points back of the Knights. The two split the four-game season series.

Winning and hosting the Memorial Cup has been a difficult task over the past 20 years. The host team has not won a league championship since the Kitchener Rangers in 2008. No host has won a league title and the Memorial Cup since the loaded Knights of 2005.

The OHL's Eastern Conference Final will feature the North Bay Battalion taking on the Oshawa Generals.

The third round of the QMJHL playoffs begin Thursday in Baie-Comeau with the Drakkar hosting the Cape Breton Eagles. The other series begins Friday with the Drummondville Voltigeurs hosting nearby rivals the Victoriaville Tigres.

Over in the WHL, the third round will feature the Moose Jaw Warriors taking on the Saskatoon Blades in the east and the Prince George Cougars facing the Portland Winterhawks in the west.

A few other news and notes...

• At the Telus Cup in Sydney, Sea Dogs prospect Kyan Labbé and the Magog Cantonniers are off to a 2-0 start. Labbé, who recently committed to the NCAA's Union College, made 26 saves in Magog's 5-1 victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings on Monday and followed that up with 27 saves in a 6-1 win over the Markham Waxers on Tuesday.
• Former Sea Dogs forward Cole Foston had a goal in the Miramichi Timberwolves' 5-1 victory over the Summerside Western Capitals on Monday, evening the Maritime Hockey League final at 1-1.
• Charlie Coyle is the lone former Sea Dog playing in the Stanley Cup playoffs this year. Coyle has been held pointless through two games as his Boston Bruins are tied 1-1 in their first round series with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
• Team Canada begins the IIHF Under-18 World Championship on Thursday when they take on Sweden. Canada's head coach is Gardiner MacDougall while Travis Crickard is an assistant. Canada has played two pre-tournament games, beating Finland 5-1 on Saturday and Norway 4-3 on Tuesday.

Sea Dogs add Drover and Ballard

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

SAINT JOHN - The Saint John Sea Dogs have announced a couple additional roster moves.

The Sea Dogs announced Sunday that they have signed free agent forwards Alex Drover and Harrison Ballard to Quebec Major Junior Hockey League contracts,

Drover, an overager, spent parts of three seasons with the Sea Dogs before being dealt to the Rimouski Oceanic during the 2020-21 campaign. Last season he registered 14 goals and 37 points in 44 regular season games with the Oceanic. He added three goals in nine playoff games, which included helping the Oceanic upset the Sea Dogs in the opening round of the QMJHL post-season.

Drover started the season with the Western Hockey League's Medicine Hat Tigers where he recorded two goals and two assists in six games. Since being released, the Port-aux-Basques native has put up 12 goals and 29 points in 20 games with the Maritime Hockey League's Valley Wildcats.

“I’m excited to return to the Port City” Drover said in a news release. “I have many fond memories of my time there. I look forward to reconnecting with friends, fans, and the community. Saint John has always been a second home for me. I’m thrilled to finish my junior career wearing a Sea Dogs jersey.”

Drover, forward Brady Burns and defenseman Charlie DesRoches, it appears, will be Saint John's trio of overage players for the second half. Drover is expected to be in the lineup on Sunday when the Sea Dogs host the Oceanic.

Ballard, 18, comes to the Sea Dogs from the Ontario Hockey League's Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds where he recorded an assist in 20 games this season. He registered 14 goals and 14 assists in 54 games with the OJHL's Wellington Dukes last year.

According to a Sea Dogs news release, "Ballard, previously committed to UMass of the NCAA, was ranked ranked 199 on NHL Central Scouting’s Midterm Rankings for 2022 NHL Draft."

The Sea Dogs also acquired forward Nathan Casey and defenseman Tristan Dassylva in trades this past week.

“Welcome to Tristan, Nathan, Harrison, and welcome back to Alex” said Sea Dogs president and general manager Trevor Georgie in a news release. “Each of them bring something unique to the lineup and will will get an opportunity to show us what they do best. We added valuable draft picks and took chances on some players that have something to prove and that we believe can help us this season and beyond.”

Notebook: Memorial Cup dates could change

In an interview with Global News this week, QMJHL commissioner Gilles Courteau mentioned that the dates for the 2022 Memorial Cup could be changed.

“We’re even prepared to modify our playoff format," Courteau said about the QMJHL's desire to complete its regular season schedule. "We’re even looking at the possibility of pushing back the start of the Memorial Cup a week or two later.”

Courteau added that he remains confident the league will be able to restart the week of Feb. 1. If the QMJHL is to play a full 68-game schedule, the regular season will very likely need to be extended - which would create the need to adjust playoff scheduling/formatting.

The Memorial Cup is currently scheduled for June 4-13.

“In terms of the Memorial Cup, all stakeholders are resolved to have it here in June,” Sea Dogs president and general manager Trevor Georgie told Global. “It is still five months away and there has been no talk of cancellation.”

The Global News piece - which the league shared on its Facebook page - is worth the watch/read. 

TALKING 'BOUT PRACTICE

Courteau also told Global News that the league's three New Brunswick teams have asked for permission to practice in another province. New Brunswick's current COVID-19 restrictions only allow people to practice with their household bubble.

Radio-Canada reported Wednesday that the Sea Dogs are looking into practicing in Riviere-du-Loup while the Acadie-Bathurst Titan are looking at Mont-Joli.

Riviere-du-Loup is home to Centre Premier Tech, a 3,000-seat arena that hosted the Telus Cup in 2015.

Monday Notes: We're in for a good finish

The Saint John Sea Dogs have been hot of late.

The team has won seven straight games and its offence has been on fire, averaging nearly six goals per game over their past five matches - and that includes 14 combined goals in their last two contests. Saint John now has a 33-12-3-1 record, giving them a league best winning percentage of .714.

Saint John has been excellent lately, no doubt. The only issue is that a lot of other teams have been very good of late as well.

The Sea Dogs currently sit first overall in the QMJHL standings with 70 points - but the second-place Shawinigan Cataractes and third-place Rouyn-Noranda Huskies also have 70. Saint John has one game in-hand on Shawinigan and two games on Rouyn-Noranda.

While the overall standings are tight at the top, so is the Maritimes Division. The Charlottetown Islanders are just one point back of the Sea Dogs - but have played two fewer games.

In short, the race for first-place is going to be a lot of fun. Stressful, perhaps, but enjoyable. There's a good chance every game remaining will have an impact on the standings.

Saint John will host Shawinigan in a huge game on Saturday night at Harbour Station. Meanwhile, the Sea Dogs and Islanders have three meetings remaining: Feb. 14 in Charlottetown, March 10 in Saint John and March 17 in Charlottetown.

Sea Dogs Sign Bruins Prospect

The Saint John Sea Dogs made a significant free agent signing announcement this morning.

The club announced that they have signed Boston Bruins prospect Mitchell Dempsey. The 19-year old left-winger is taking part in Bruins development camp this week.

Dempsey played in just eight games in the OHL last season – two with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds and six with the Kitchener Rangers – where he registered one assist and 10 penalty minutes.

“He's shown flashes of massive potential,” Greyhounds general manager Kyle Dubas told the Sault Star in October of 2013 when Dempsey was released by the club. “It's there, but it's up to Mitchell to bring it out and it wasn't going to happen here.”

The Sea Dogs are hoping a change of scenery will work wonders for the 6'4", 217 lbs. Cambridge, Ontario native.

"Sometimes people need a change of scenery and need the opportunity to reset their careers, and that is what we are offering Mitchell," said Sea Dogs General Manager Darrell Young in a release. "I've met with his family, his agent and members of the Boston Bruins organization. Everyone is in agreement that this is the best place for Mitchell to play.

"The Bruins still believe he is a legitimate NHL prospect. In Saint John, he will have the opportunity to be mentored by assistant coach Jeff Cowan. Jeff played the same way that Mitchell needs to play in order to play at the next level. In Saint John, he will have the opportunity to step in and contribute immediately."

Dempsey also played in 15 games with the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League’s Kitchener Dutchmen, registering five assists.

In 78 career OHL games, Dempsey had two goals and nine assists. He was a first-round pick of the Plymouth Rangers in the 2011 OHL Draft.

Excited to get the ball rolling with @SeaDogsHockey and couldnt be more grateful for this oppurtunity #NB
— Mitch dempsey (@mitchdempsey95) July 7, 2014

Dempsey, a seventh-round pick of the Bruins in the 2013 NHL Draft, is expected to take part in Sea Dogs training camp next month.