Report: Bowers' rights going to Volts

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SAINT JOHN - Is Shane Bowers finally on his way to the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League?

News surfaced Sunday night that the Saint John Sea Dogs will trade Bowers' QMJHL rights to the Drummondville Voltigeurs following the completion of the World Junior Hockey Championship. Bowers is currently playing with Team Canada - which happens to feature two current Voltigeurs forwards in Joe Veleno and Maxime Comtois.

According to Mikael Lalancette of TVA Sports, the deal will, unsurprisingly, involve conditional picks. Lalancette reports that the Sea Dogs will receive a first-round pick if Bowers plays for the Volts.

Les Voltigeurs vont faire l’acquisition des droits de Shane Bowers des Sea Dogs, un membre d’Équipe Canada junior 2019. La transaction se fera le 6 janvier seulement. Choix conditionnels cédés en retour. #tvasports

— Mikaël Lalancette (@MLalancetteTVA) December 24, 2018

Si Shane Bowers joue à Drummondville cette saison, il y aura au moins un choix de premier tour cédé aux Sea Dogs.

Bowers a été un choix de première ronde des Sénateurs l’an dernier. #tvasports

— Mikaël Lalancette (@MLalancetteTVA) December 24, 2018

Reports also indicate that it's not a sure thing that Bowers reports. After years of wondering and speculation, this seems like the most opportune time for the forward to play in the league. Bowers would be leaving Boston University to join one of the CHL's elite teams this season in his 19-year-old year. A Colorado Avalanche prospect, there's a good chance he'll be playing pro next year, which makes leaving college hockey now understandable.

Veleno, Bowers invited to Canada camp

Former Saint John Sea Dogs captain Joe Veleno has been invited to Team Canada's World Junior Selection Camp.

Veleno was one of the 34 players invited to the camp, which will take place Dec. 11-14 in Victoria. The roster consists of three goaltenders, 12 defensemen and 19 forwards.

The Drummondville Voltigeurs forward has 19 goals and 26 assists in 25 games this season. He's one of the hottest players in Canada right now, recording eight goals and 14 assists in his past six games. Most "experts" had Veleno on the fence of receiving an invite - but his hot play of late likely secured a spot.

Eight players from the QMJHL received invites: Veleno (DRU), Pierre-Olivier Joseph (CHA), Noah Dobson (BAT), Jared McIsaac (HFX), Nicolas Beaudin (DRU), Maxime Comtois (DRU), Alexis Lafrenière (RIM) and Raphael Lavoie (HFX).

Also invited was Boston University forward and Halifax native Shane Bowers. The Colorado Avalanche prospect was a draft pick of Saint John in 2016 bur never reported to the club. He has three goals and two assists in 13 NCAA games this year.

The selection camp will feature three exhibition games against a U Sports all-star squad. The U Sports lineup includes former Sea Dogs defenseman Matt Murphy of the UNB Reds.

Elsewhere around the globe, former Sea Dogs forward Ostap Safin of the Halifax Mooseheads and defenseman Radim Salda of the Rimouski Oceanic have been invited to the Czech Republic's world junior camp. Both played in last year's tournament.

World junior pre-tournament play begins on Dec. 18. The real thing starts on Boxing Day in Vancouver and Victoria.

Bowers remains committed to BU

He's said it before and he's just said it again: Shane Bowers is not reporting to the Saint John Sea Dogs at this time.

In a video posted on Wednesday, the Boston University commit was asked straight up by John Moore if he ever intends to play with the Sea Dogs.



While there's always a chance of Bowers reporting at some point, that chance seems awfully slim at this time - especially since he is committed to a powerhouse college program (and also a quality school).

Bowers was a second-round pick of the Sea Dogs in the 2016 QMJHL Entry Draft. The Halifax native has spent the past two seasons with the USHL's Waterloo Black Hawks. He was a first-round pick of the Ottawa Senators in this year's NHL Draft.

We've written about it to death over the past several years, but the Sea Dogs have really struggled to swing players with NCAA interest to major junior, especially when compared to the Moncton Wildcats and Halifax Mooseheads.

The Terriers begin play on Sept. 30 against Union College. BU travels to Orono, ME to take on the University of Maine on Nov. 17.

NHL Draft Notes: Off year for the QMJHL

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As most of you have probably heard, it was not a great 2017 NHL Draft for the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

Just 14 players were chosen overall with only five of those picks coming in the first two rounds. Only 14 QMJHL players were picked in the 2016 NHL Draft as well, which was a sharp decline from the 30 taken in 2015.

As you can see from the numbers tweeted out by RDS' Stephane Leroux, the QMJHL has become hot and cold in recent years, either having having a very good year or very poor. The 2017 Draft could be another bounce back year for the league, so that's good.

Here's the full list of QMJHL players chosen:

1. Nico Hischier (Halifax Mooseheads) – New Jersey Devils
23. Pierre-Olivier Joseph (Charlottetown Islanders) – Arizona Coyotes
50. Maxime Comtois (Victoriaville Tigres) – Anaheim Ducks
51. Zachary Lauzon (Rouyn-Noranda Huskies) – Pittsburgh Penguins
60. Antoine Morand (Acadie-Bathurst Titan) – Anaheim Ducks
121. Drake Batherson (Cape Breton Screaming Eagles) – Ottawa Senators
130. David Noel (Val-d’Or Foreurs) – St. Louis Blues
136. Leon Gawanke (Cape Breton Screaming Eagles) – Winnipeg Jets
165. Arnaud Durandeau (Halifax Mooseheads) – New York Islanders
171. D’Artagnan Joly (Baie-Comeau Drakkar) – Calgary Flames
173. Cedric Pare (Saint John Sea Dogs) – Boston Bruins
176. Pavel Koltygin (Drummondville Voltigeurs) – Nashville Predators
191. Jocktan Chainey (Halifax Mooseheads) – New Jersey Devils
212. Ivan Chekhovich (Baie-Comeau Drakkar) – San Jose Sharks

Something else was noticeable this year:

The biggest shock of the 2017 Draft in my book -- only 8 of the 217 players drafted were Quebec kids out of the QMJHL.

— Steve Kournianos (@TheDraftAnalyst) June 25, 2017

This also marked the second straight year the Montreal Canadiens did not choose any Quebec-born players, which is - rightly or wrongly - something a lot of people care about.

Hischier highlights quiet night for QMJHL

The first few minutes of the 2017 NHL Draft's first round were big for the QMJHL. Beyond that, it was fairly quiet.

The New Jersey Devils opted to keep the first overall pick and select Halifax Mooseheads forward Nico Hischier. The Devils chose the Swiss star over Brandon Wheat Kings forward Nolan Patrick, who had been ranked first by most draft publications up until a few weeks ago.

Hischier joins a pretty exclusive club of QMJHL players who have been selected first overall.

1er choix total #LHJMQ

Lafleur-71
Hawerchuk-81
Lemieux-84
Turgeon-87
Daigle-93
Lecavalier-98
Fleury-03
Crosby-05
Mackinnon-13
Hischier-17

— Stephane Leroux (@StephRDSJunior) June 23, 2017

Saturday Night Live's Kyle Mooney sent out a completely random tweet congratulating Hischier.

congrats 2 @nicohischier for being no. 1 draftpick by @NJDevils ..this #sportsfanatic right here is excited! #teams #devilsdraft #onejersey pic.twitter.com/cJnqRI1Aw5

— Kyle Mooney (@kylemooney) June 24, 2017

The only other QMJHL player to be selected in the first round was Charlottetown Islanders defenceman Pierre-Olivier Joseph who was taken 23rd overall by the Arizona Coyotes.

Will Shane Bowers be a first round pick?

As the 2016-17 hockey season moved along, Shane Bowers' draft ranking, for the most, either stayed relatively the same or lowered slightly.

That's not to say Bowers underperformed this season as other players may have simply moved passed him. In his second year with the USHL's Waterloo Black Hawks, the 17-year-old registered 22 goals and 51 points in 60 games. He added two goals and three points in six playoff games.

Bowers was also named to the USHL's third all-star team, which is apparently a thing.

A Halifax native, Bowers was a second-round pick of the Saint John Sea Dogs in the 2016 QMJHL Entry Draft. He is committed to Boston University for the 2017-18 season (of note, BU will host UPEI in an exhibition game on Oct. 1).

If an NHL team the Sea Dogs have had a relationship with in the past selects Bowers, it could certainly increase the odds of him reporting to Saint John at some point. But it also might have no impact at all... but it might... but it might not... but it...

Long story short: seeing where Bowers lands this weekend gives us Sea Dogs followers something intriguing to watch in what is not a terrific draft for the QMJHL.

NOTEBOOK: Otters confident in Timpano heading into tonight's semifinal

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WINDSOR, Ont. - Troy Timpano's stats don't look that great at this year's Memorial Cup.

The Erie Otters netminder is sporting a 3.73 goals against average and a .823 save percentage heading into tonight's semifinal contest against the Saint John Sea Dogs.

Otters head coach Kris Knoblauch told reporters Friday morning at WFCU Centre that the numbers aren't representative of Timpano's play so far.

"We've done a good job at keeping the shots down, so that's why his save percentage doesn't look really good," said Knoblauch. "Numbers can be misleading a lot of time."

Knoblauch added that he feels Timpano didn't have much of a chance on the goals he has allowed so far in the tournament.

Timpano has been known to let in the occasional bad goal. He's also very active with the puck, which can create some interesting moments.

The netminder posted a 13-4-1 record to go along with a .895 SV% and 2.73 GAA during the OHL playoffs.

"We changed goalies a little bit throughout the playoffs where (Joseph) Murdaca came in, and he came up big. The players believe that Troy is our goalie. He's the guy that got us here throughout the regular season and playoffs."

LOOKING TO ADVANCE
The Otters are looking to advance to their first Memorial Cup final tonight.

This is the second ever Memorial Cup appearance for the Otters and their first since 2002. In '02, Erie lost 5-4 in overtime to the Victoriaville Tigres in the tournament semifinal. The Otters blew 3-0 and 4-2 leads in that game, with Victoriaville's Danny Groulx tying the game with five seconds remaining in the third period.

The Kootenay Ice defeated the Tigres 6-3 in the 2002 Memorial Cup final.

HUBERDEAU TALKS 2011
The Canadian Press caught up with Jonathan Huberdeau this week to talk about the Sea Dogs' 2011 Memorial Cup win.

"I'm watching them a lot," Huberdeau told CP about this year's Sea Dogs. "It's fun to always follow your team and it's great they have a chance to win this year."

Read the full story here.

Notes: Del Paggio joining Thunderwolves

Daniel Del Paggio is headed home.

The Thunder Bay native has committed to Lakehead University for the 2017-18 U Sports season. He's the school's first recruit of the new year.

“I’m a hometown boy and friends and family are important to me," said Del Paggio in a news release. "I grew up watching the Thunderwolves and I’m excited to have the opportunity to become one myself. I also chose Lakehead because the team is up and coming, and I want to contribute right off the bat and be an all-around solid player, work hard and provide some leadership."

The Lakehead Thunderwolves have added Daniel Del Paggio from Gatineau for the 2017-18 season. pic.twitter.com/y07piYrWz8

— Victor Findlay (@Finder_24) April 18, 2017

Del Paggio is coming off an overage season where he registered 15 goals and 36 assists in 66 QMJHL games. 64 of those games were with the Gatineau Olympiques while the two others were with the Sea Dogs. He also had a goal and four assists in seven playoff games with Gatineau this year.

Del Paggio was signed by the Sea Dogs as a free agent prior to the 2014-15 season and went on to spend two seasons with the club. He was traded to Gatineau in October in exchange for a couple draft picks.

The forward ends his QMJHL career with 45 goals and 128 points in 193 regular season games. He also had six goals and 20 points in 29 playoff games.

Here are a few other notes...

• Meanwhile, former Sea Dogs/Olympiques/Wildcats forward Joey Richard has committed to UdeM for next season.
• Mathieu Joseph is featured in The Hockey News' latest prospect roundup.
• The Manitoba Moose were pretty awful in the AHL this season. But, Luke Green did get into a few games after joining the club following the completion of the Sherbrooke Phoenix's regular season. Green recorded one assist in four games with the Moose.
• If you haven't been following the USHL playoffs, Shane Bowers and the Waterloo Black Hawks are off to the Western Conference final. Bowers has two goals and an assist in three playoff games.

Pare, D'Orio make final NHL CSS rankings

Two members of the Saint John Sea Dogs cracked NHL Central Scouting's final rankings for the 2017 Draft.

Sea Dogs forward Cedric Pare was ranked 146th amongst North American skaters - an improvement from his midterm rank (203rd). Meanwhile, Alex D'Orio was ranked 13th amongst North American goaltenders, a slide from his No. 8 position at the midterm.

Sea Dogs prospects Shane Bowers (16th), Ben Mirageas (63rd) and Morgan Barron (98th) were also listed.

Pare, a first-round pick of the Sea Dogs in the 2015 QMJHL Entry Draft, had five goals and 11 assists in 54 regular season games during his first full campaign with Saint John. This post-season, the forward has one goal and one assist.

D'Orio, also a 2015 first-round pick of the Sea Dogs, went 19-4 during the regular season, recording a 2.40 goals against average and a .903 save percentage. He has not seen any action this post-season.

D'Orio was recently ranked 80th amongst all skaters and goaltenders available for the draft by Future Considerations.

According to the CHL website, only 29 QMJHL players made Central Scouting's final listing. Halifax's Nico Hischier was ranked second.

The 2017 NHL Draft takes place June 23-24 in Chicago.

Three Dogs draft picks appear in USHL Top Prospects Game

Three Saint John Sea Dogs prospects recently took part in the USHL/NHL Top Prospects Game.

Like the CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game, the the game featured the best draft eligible prospects from around the league.

Despite not recording a point, Shane Bowers of the Waterloo Black Hawks was one of the stars of the show. According to NHL.com, Bowers was the lone A-rated prospect (going by NHL Central Scouting's rankings) to play in the game.

From NHL.com:

"He is a difference maker because he is a highly skilled power forward who has an excellent work ethic," Central Scouting's David Gregory said. "He handles the puck very well and is an effective passer. He plays a power-forward game and can create turnovers and scoring chances using his size and strength. He has deceiving speed when carrying the puck on the attack. When combining this with his work ethic and puck skills he can have an impact on every shift and projects very well as a NHL prospect."

Bowers, who has 10 goals and 12 assists in 30 games in his second USHL season, is projected to be a mid to late first-round pick in the 2017 NHL Draft. He was a second-round pick of the Sea Dogs in the 2016 QMJHL Entry Draft. He is committed to Boston University for next season.

17-year-old defenceman Ben Mirageas, a ninth-round pick of Saint John in the 2015 draft, was also held pointless in the game. He has seven assists in 29 games with the Bloomington Thunder this season, his first full year in the USHL.

Mirageas is committed to Providence College for 2018-19.

Lastly, 17-year-old forward Marc McLaughlin, a sixth-round pick of Saint John in 2015, took part in the game and was held pointless as well. A Boston College commit for 2018-19, McLaughlin has one goal and four assists in 31 games with the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders this year.

Tuesday notes: Aces acquire Lafreniere

Alexandre Lafreniere is on the move in the Maritime Hockey League.

On Monday, the St. Stephen Aces announced that they had acquired the Saint John Sea Dogs prospect from the Amherst Ramblers in exchange for a 2017 fifth-round pick and Pierre Bourgoin.

Lafreniere had five goals and 10 assists in 18 games with the Woodstock Slammers this season, according to Elite Prospects, and was pointless in four games with the Ramblers. He has played in 13 games with Saint John this year, recording one goal and two assists.

The 17-year-old forward will be reunited with fellow Sea Dogs prospect Ben Reid in St. Stephen. The two were linemates during the Saint John Vito's Telus Cup run in 2015-16.

“Alex is a dynamic young player who has a huge upside,” Aces head coach and general manager Josh Hepditch said in an article on the team's website.

Meanwhile, defenceman David Comeau, who is sticking with the Sea Dogs for the remainder of the season, had his MHL rights traded from Woodstock to Miramichi.

MHL trades can be tracked here. The trade deadline is tonight (Jan. 10) at 10 p.m.

News & Notes: Li on Russia roster

There is a familiar name on the Russian team that will compete in the Canada Russia Series.

Nikita Li, who played in one regular season game with Saint John in 2014-15, is on the roster. The Sea Dogs put Li, a second-round pick in the 2015 CHL Import Draft, on waivers where he was claimed by the Victoriaville Tigres.

2014-15 was Li's only season in the QMJHL, recording 10 goals and six assists in 61 regular season games. He added one goal in four playoff games.

According to Elite Prospects, Li has three assists in 17 games with the KHL's Spartak Moscow this season.

The Canada Russia series begins on Monday in Prince George.

Some notes...

• Speaking of the Canada Russia Series, Sportsnet has list of players to watch at the event. No. 1 on the list? Sea Dogs forward Mathieu Joseph.
• The Sea Dogs' Jan. 7 in Halifax will be broadcast nationally on Sportsnet. Game time has been adjusted to 4 p.m.
• The Tampa Bay Lightning website has a feature on Mathieu Joseph. 
• How about the Ottawa Senators' handling of Thomas Chabot? The blog Silver Seven looks at that.
• It certainly appeared the Ottawa 67's were destined to host the Memorial Cup in 2018. They have withdrawn their bid though, according to TSN Radio host.
• Sea Dogs prospect Shane Bowers was ranked 20th in the Sportsnet's November NHL Draft rankings. Bowers has six goals and six assists in 11 games with the USHL's Waterloo Black Hawks this season.
• Meanwhile, Bowers was ranked 24th in ISS' November rankings.
• The Sea Dogs fell to the "honourable mention" category in the CHL Top 10 this week.
• Saint John takes on the Titan in Bathurst tomorrow night at 7 p.m. They return home on Sunday to take on the Charlottetown Islanders at 3 p.m.
• Mathieu Joseph and Thomas Chabot both appear a new CHL on Sportsnet commercial:

Photo: Marc Henwood/Station Nation

Bowers commits to BU

Saint John Sea Dogs prospect Shane Bowers has committed to Boston University.

The 17-year-old forward tweeted his decision on Thursday:

Excited to play college hockey at Boston University. Looking forward to being a part of the BU tradition! Can't wait to be a Terrier! 🐾

— Shane Bowers (@shanebowers15) October 27, 2016

Bowers, projected to be a first-round pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, has five goals and four assists in nine games with the USHL's Waterloo Black Hawks this season. It's his second year in the USHL after opting not to play in the QMJHL two years in a row.

The Halifax native was a second-round pick of the Sea Dogs in this year's QMJHL Entry Draft but has never reported to the team. In 2015, the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles selected the forward fourth overall but could not get him to report, either.

Boston University is, of course, one of the top NCAA hockey programs. The good news: a player has left BU in the past to join the Sea Dogs. So ... that's something.

Bowers is expected to join BU for the 2017-18 season.

Photo: USHL

News & Notes: Sea Dogs slide down Top 10

A 0-2-0-0 start to the season has slid the Sea Dogs down the CHL Top 10 rankings.

After placing second in the pre-season rankings, the Sea Dogs have moved down to seventh. The Rouyn-Noranda Huskies (third), Shawinigan Cataractes (sixth) and Drummondville Voltigeurs (10^th) were the other QMJHL teams to crack the Top 10. The Charlottetown Islanders were an honourable mention.

#CHL Top-10 for Week 2: 1-LDN, 2-BDN, 3-ROU, 4-WSR, 5-SEA, 6-SHA, 7-SNB, 8-PG, 9-HAM, 10-DRU. HM: REG, SAR, CHA: pic.twitter.com/Ixvu1V8Vr7

— CanadianHockeyLeague (@CHLHockey) September 28, 2016

The Sea Dogs could quickly make their way back up the rankings with a plethora of players returning from NHL camp this week.

In other news…

• The Sea Dogs will play their home opener on Friday night at 7 p.m. against the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles. They’ll also play on Saturday at home against the Moncton Wildcats.
• As CSN Boston reports, Jakub Zboril quit Twitter because of the haters.
• Bailey Webster enjoyed his time at Boston Bruins camp, reports The Guardian.
• The CHL website previews the Sea Dogs.
• CBC New Brunswick has some details on the new ice level bar at Harbour Station.
• Sea Dogs draft pick Shane Bowers, currently with the USHL’s Waterloo Black Hawks, was ranked 18th in HockeyProspect.com’s top 50 rankings for the NHL Draft.
• If you didn’t hear, the QMJHL made some changes to its draft lottery.
• A couple videos from John Moore:

Shane Bowers speaks

Shane Bowers hasn’t said a whole lot since being drafted by Saint John earlier this summer.

But that certainly changed on Tuesday. The Chronicle Herald spoke to Bowers, who talked quite openly about his plans for the future.

Here’s a piece of what Bowers said:

"Yeah, for sure, the plan is still to head back to Waterloo for next season,” Bowers said this week. “I’m definitely exploring the college route, but that being said, whatever happens after next season with the (NHL) draft or whatever, who knows what could happen. I could easily end up back in major junior, but for now, I’m playing for Waterloo and (staying eligible for) the college route.”

The full story can be read on the Chronicle Herald website.

As many have speculated, it appears as though Bowers is set to play in Waterloo this season – but after that is where things get interesting. Especially if the Halifax native is taken high in the 2017 NHL Draft, the Sea Dogs could be a more appropriate development spot.

Bowers and Sea Dogs forward Joe Veleno were both named to Team Canada’s Ivan Hlinka roster on Tuesday. The two were roommates at Hockey Canada’s development camp in Calgary this past week.

Photo: USHL