2015 Year In Review

Ah, 2015. It was a year of trades, a year of first round draft picks, a year of suspensions, and a year of exceptionalism. Here's a look back at some of the biggest Sea Dogs stories and events from the year that was.

Jan. 5 - the Sea Dogs made a couple of huge trades, which included shipping out captain Olivier LeBlanc and bringing in Bokondji Imama and Jason Bell. Oh, and they acquired Drummondville's first round pick from Cape Breton.

Jan. 12 - Mark Tremaine was named Sea Dogs captain.

Jan. 27 - Shane Bowers was ranked as the top prospect available for the 2015 QMJHL Entry Draft. Maybe the Sea Dogs will draft him!

Feb. 5 - The Sea Dogs are struggling right now, you guys. And we got to use a fantastic photo.

Feb. 12 - Changes have been made to the QMJHL website. Repeat - CHANGES TO THE Q SITE.

Reviewing The First Half

By Lorne Webster | SN Staff

After having a record seven players drafted in the 2015 NHL Draft, two others given NHL training camp invitations and having the first 15-year-old to gain "exceptional status" on their roster, hopes and expectations ran very high among Sea Dogs players, management and fans entering the 2015-16 season. Upon reflection, as we enter the holiday break, those high expectations may have been a tad overly optimistic. 

With an overall record of 20-13-2-0 in 35 games played - including a 9-5-1-0 record against Quebec based teams - the Sea Dogs are comfortably in a playoff position and second in a tough Maritimes Division. However, it's fair to say that the team has been consistently inconsistent, often playing to the level of their competition. And the Sea Dogs have not performed as expected against the rival Moncton Wildcats, especially at home. The Sea Dogs' three heartbreaking losses (2-1 on Sept. 13, 4-2 on Oct. 24 and 4-3 on Dec. 4) and one down right lousy loss (5-0 on Nov. 12) on Harbour Station ice have left a bad taste in the mouths of fans and management. On the flip side, the Dogs have actually played well at the Moncton Coliseum with a 4-3 overtime loss on Oct. 25 and a convincing 6-2 win on Dec. 9.  

The Sea Dogs have been one of the top three teams on the road thus far - but their pedestrian 9-7 record on Harbour Station ice has more than a few of the faithful scratching their heads as well.  

In assessing what has prevented the Sea Dogs from challenging Rouyn-Noranda, Val-d'Or, Shawinigan and Moncton for first overall at this stage, a few theories have emerged:

Theory 1 - NHL Hangovers

To varying degrees, the nine players that were returned to Saint John from NHL camps (i.e. Thomas Chabot, Jakub Zboril, Samuel Dove-McFalls, Mathieu Joseph, Spencer Smallman, Bokondji Imama, Adam Marsh, Nathan Noel and Jason Bell) along with Luke Green (who was cut from Team Canada’s under-17 team for the Ivan Hlinka summer tournament) have struggled to find their way again in the QMJHL. For virtually all of these guys, it is the first time they have been cut from a team. That's tough for just about anyone - but especially for teenagers with big dreams. Besides the negative impact on their confidence, it's likely that they were told by the respective NHL teams' staffs to focus on improving some aspect of their game.  Anyone who has played competitive sports - or is a golfer - can relate to focusing too much time and effort into one part of their game to the detriment of other aspects. The talent is there, and the results should improve as their hard work builds more confidence.

Looking Back At The First Half

By Andrew McGilligan

SN Staff

With the Christmas break upon us, let's take a look back at the first half of the season.

BIGGEST STORY LINES

News 88.9 reporter and Sea Dogs play-by-play man Tim Roszell recently said the biggest stories of the season thus far are injuries and rise of Danick Gauthier.

Let's start with the injuries.

It's not just the volume of injuries, but many have been to key contributors, particularly the forward group. The most significant injury is the foot of Jonathan Huberdeau. While the third-year Sea Dogs forward is currently on Team Canada for the World Junior tournament, how effective he will be remains to be seen.

Before going down, the Sea Dogs captain had 28 points in just 13 games. In addition to Huberdeau, Russian sniper Stanislav Galiev has also been sidelined and limited to just five games. The Washington Capitals prospect was averaging just above a point per game with six on the season.

Not only has the injury cost Galiev part of his 19-year-old season, but it eliminated his final opportunity to represent his country at the world junior tournament.

Next up on the parade of walking wounded is Ryan Tesink. After a great camp with the St. Louis Blues, the Port City native was off to a great start in his second season. In 20 games, Tesink has notched 25 points and tied his rookie output of eight goals.

Several other players have been sidelined at other points of the first half, but missing three of your top forwards is a huge blow for any team.

However, big injuries leave opportunities for other guys to step up and Gauthier, in this regard, is the ultimate opportunist.

Coming into the season, Gauthier had scored 29 goals in his Quebec Major Junior Hockey League career. He's eclipsed that career mark in 37 games this season by notching 31 goals thus far. At the holiday break, Gauthier is tied for the league goal-scoring lead with Zach O'Brien of the Acadie-Bathurst Titan.

LISTEN: News 88.9's Sea Dogs Montage

News 88.9’s Tim Roszell aired his yearly Sea Dogs montage after last night’s President’s Cup victory.

It’s been a long season – so it’s a long montage. Grab a snack and take a listen to the greatest moments from the 2010-11 campaign.



News 88.9 will be carrying Saint John’s Memorial Cup games live from Mississauga.

- Thanks to Paul for the audio

SEA DOGS OUTSIDER: Hot And Cold First Quarter For Saint John

By Bert Richardson
Station Nation Staff

Just like that, it’s over.

The first quarter of the 2010-11 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League season has come and gone – and it’s been an interesting one at that.

We saw coaches fired, owners turned coaches, Patrick Roy’s hate towards Guy Boucher, the occasional suspension, a major trade involving a Russian, two Brandon Wheat King goaltenders imported, Bathurst still has a team – and they are pretty decent, a hot start for the Remparts, the Baie-Comeau Drakkar sucking, and, without a doubt the biggest news story, Pepsi replacing Coca-Cola at Harbour Station.

Yes, it was an eventful first quarter, and somewhere in the shuffle of all of this chaos were Saint John Sea Dogs – who quietly sit tied for first place in the QMJHL with a record of 15-3-0-1.

But despite their record, it wasn’t all roses for the reigning regular season champions. There were moments when we asked if this team could compete in the division at all, and then there were times when we wondered how fast the President’s Cup Finals would sell-out this season (ah, the life of a sports fan). It was definitely a hot and cold first quarter.

Here is a look back and some thoughts:

IN STATION NATION, WHAT A SUMMER IT WAS

It wasn't that hot, it rained a lot, but it certainly was not boring. Yes, we are talking about the summer (and spring) of 2009, also known as the off-season. Here is a recap on the off-season that was.

• It began with the end of an embarrassing season, as the Sea Dogs were swept by the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles in the opening round of the post-season. We also said goodbye to overagers Shea Kewin, Payton Liske, and Sea Dogs all-time leading scorer Ryan Sparling. The Sea Dogs said farewell to europeans Robert Mayer and David Stich.
• It's official, the Lewiston Maineiacs are not moving to Fredericton. The Maineiacs decide to stay put and rebuild the franchise.
• Former Saint John Sea Dog goaltender Travis Fullertom backstops the UNB Varsity Reds to a national championship.
• The Sea Dogs fire head coach/general manager and the franchises all-time wins leader Jacques Beaulieu. Beaulieu said he was "blindsided" by the firing.
• Payton Liske wins the QMJHL scholastic player of the year award.
• The Sea Dogs hire Gerard Gallant as head coach and Mike Kelly as Director of Hockey Operations.
• Former Sea Dog Shea Kewin lands with the Dalhousie Tigers to play university hockey.
• Alex Grant and Chris DiDomenico are set to battle in the QMJHL Presidents Cup Final.
• Chris DiDomenico breaks his leg in Game 3 of the Presidents Cup final, ending his season.
• Drummondvile wins the Presidents Cup in seven games over Shawinigan to advance to the Memorial Cup. The Windsor Spitfires, Kelowna Rockets, and host Rimouski Oceanic join them.
• Jacques Beaulieu moves back to London to become an assistant coach with the Knights.
• Yvon Vautour and Marc Hussey are named the new Sea Dogs assistant coaches.
• The Windsor Spitfires do the impossible and win the 2009 Mastercard Memorial Cup.
• The Sea Dogs acquire Mike Hoffman and Nicholas Peterson to complete the DiDomenico/Grant deals done in January.
• The Sea Dogs select Pierre Durepos and Jonathan Huberdeau in the opening round of the draft. The Sea Dogs also acquired the rights to Zach Phillips from Lewiston.
• Fredericton native Zach Phillips signs with the Sea Dogs.
• Durepos, Aiden Kelly sign with the Sea Dogs. The signing took place at the Kelly home.
• Simon Despres becomes the first Sea Dogs player to be drafted in the first round of the NHL draft, going 30th to Pittsburgh.
• Mike Hoffman, Nicholas Peterson, and Steven Anthony also selected in the NHL draft.
• The Sea Dogs decide not to draft Kabanov in the CHL Import Draft. Instead, they draft Stanislav Galiev and Tomas Jurco first and fourth overall, respectively.
• David Stich earns an invite to Blackhawks prospects camp.
• Ryan Sparling commits to the St. Francis Xavier University hockey program.
• Kirkpatrick, Thomas get NHL camp invites by the Wild and Flyers.
• The Dalhousie Tigers sign former Dog and speedy winger Francois Gauthier.
• Saint John forward Matthew Stoddard chooses Mooseheads camp over the Dogs.
• The Sea Dogs sign Galiev, Jurco to contracts.
• Mathieu Gingras is traded to Lewiston, reportedly to finalize the Phillips trade.
• Mike Hoffman chooses not to report to Saint John training camp.
• Jonathan Heberdeau signs with Saint John.
• Dogs acquire Will Johnston from the Montreal Junior for a draft pick.
• Phillip Richer is traded to Baie-Comeau for an eighth round pick, Simon Giroux traded to Baie-Comeau for a second rounder, Marc-Antoine Gelinas acquired for an eighth round pick, and the Stoddard deal is completed with Saint John getting a seventh round pick.
• Galiev arrives in Saint John and receives word a few days later he has been cleared to play by the IIHF. Jurco had signed a deal a few weeks prior.
• Sea Dogs end the 2009 pre-season with a record of 4-2.

It was indeed a summer to remember as a new era of Sea Dogs Hockey begins Friday night. Happy Labour Day Station Nation.