Notebook: First era night happens Saturday

Embed from Getty Images

The Sea Dogs will hold their first championship era night of the season on Saturday when they host the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies at TD Station.

The team will honour the 2011 and 2012 Sea Dogs championship teams, which saw the club win back-to-back QMJHL titles and a Memorial Cup championship.

Former players Mike Thomas, Zack Phillips, Kevin Gagne, Ryan Tesink, Pierre Durepos, Jason Cameron, Aidan Kelly and Spencer MacDonald will all be in attendance. Former head coach Gerard Gallant will be in town as well.

First 1000 fans at tonight's game will receive a limited edition 2011/2012 Championship Era Poster. 🙌

Plus, get it signed by #SJSeaDogs alumni during the first intermission autograph session!

🎟️ » https://t.co/Lv9oltkgiG#GoDogsGo pic.twitter.com/18lBPthvNJ

— Saint John Sea Dogs (@SJSeaDogs) November 2, 2024

An autograph session will be held during the first intermission. Fans can also take photos will the Gilles-Courteau Trophy.

The first 1,000 fans in attendance will receive a poster honouring the teams.

This is the first of three championship era nights this season. On Jan. 19 the 2017 President Cup team will be honoured while on Feb. 17 the 2022 Memorial Cup squad will be honoured.

HALLOWEEN FUN

Following their 3-2 overtime win over the Moncton Wildcats on Thursday, the Sea Dogs are now 5-2-0-0 all-time in Halloween games. They've won the last three they'e played.

2010-11: 7-0 win at Rouyn-Noranda

2012-13: 2-1 loss vs Blainville-Boisbriand

2015-16: 5-3 win vs Val-d'Or

2019-20: 6-1 loss vs Rimouski

2020-21: 5-3 win vs Cape Breton

2021-22: 4-3 win vs Halifax

2024-25: 3-2 win vs Moncton (OT)

Six of the seven games the Sea Dogs have played on Halloween have been at TD Station.

New CHL event coming in 2025-26?

Is a new event coming to the Canadian Hockey League calendar in 2025-26?

During the second intermission of Friday's Memorial Cup opener on TSN, Darren Dreger reported that the CHL is looking to add a third national event, joining the Top Prospects Game (whatever that looks like in the future) and the Memorial Cup.

Dreger discusses the event – and what the NCAA's latest court rulings mean for the CHL – beginning at the 1:04 mark of the video below.

Dreger indicated that it will be some sort of in-season event – but what that event looks like seems to still be in the ideation phase.

It's a bit surprising it's taken the CHL this long to add a third national event with the Canada-Russia Series on hiatus. You'd have to think TSN, the league's television rights holder, would also like a third event.

It was reported in January that next year's Top Prospects Game could have a new format.

I've written about this before, but the CHL has to find a way to get the league's best players (and/or teams) facing each other during the season. Whether that be creating Memorial Cup "qualifiers," creating inter-league play or, at minimum, some kind of national all-star event, something needs to be done to make these matchups happen.

Notebook: Draft moves into primetime

It's happening: the first round of the QMJHL Entry Draft will be held Friday in primetime.

The QMJHL confirmed the news on Tuesday when it announced that TVA Sports and Eastlink will both be broadcasting the first round, which will take place Friday, June 7 at Moncton's Avenir Centre.

Big news! The first round of next summer's #QDraft will air live on @Eastlink TV!

Details 👉 https://t.co/9AqBoD0q69 pic.twitter.com/stzQDXWwPY

— QMJHL (@QMJHL) January 30, 2024

The remaining rounds will take place Saturday.

The QMJHL Entry Draft has traditionally been a one day event with all rounds taking place on a Saturday. But the first round is a big show put on by the league, a show that is much more of a Friday night vibe than a Saturday morning.

COMING UP

The Sea Dogs are on the road once again this weekend — but this time much closer to home.

The Sea Dogs travel to Bathurst on Friday to face the Titan at 7 p.m. Then on Sunday, the Dogs make the quick trip to Moncton to take on the Wildcats at 4 p.m.

Saint John went 1-2-0-0 on their three-game Quebec road trip last weekend, posting an upset win over the Victoriaville Tigres.

The Sea Dogs are on the road the following weekend as well, visiting Halifax and Charlottetown. They don't play at TD Station until Feb. 15.

Notebook: Cajkovic traded to Pens

Former Saint John Sea Dogs forward Maxim Cajkovic was involved in a minor NHL trade on Thursday.

The Minnesota Wild traded Cajkovic to the Pittsburg Penguins in exchange for defenseman Will Butcher.

The Penguins have acquired forward Maxim Cajkovic from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for defenseman Will Butcher.

Cajkovic is signed through the 2023.24 season and his contract carries an average annual value of $925,000 at the NHL level.

Details: https://t.co/6OKKAyRBkW pic.twitter.com/dJSsBmkGmw

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) January 25, 2024

According to the Penguins, "Cajkovic is signed through the end of the 2023-24 season and his contract carries an average annual value of $925,000 at the NHL level." The 23-year-old has yet to appear in an NHL game and has split his pro career bouncing between the AHL and ECHL,

In 20 games with the ECHL's Iowa Heartlanders this season, Cajkovic has 12 goals and six assists. He's also recorded two goals and an assist in five games with the AHL's Iowa Wild.

Cajkovic spent the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons with the Sea Dogs before playing his final year of junior with the Val-d'Or Foreurs.

REYNOLDS INJURED

Former Sea Dogs forward Peter Reynolds was injured in Friday's Halifax Mooseheads game.

Forward Peter Reynolds is officially out for the game with an upper body injury. #GoMooseGo

— Halifax Mooseheads (@HFXMooseheads) January 27, 2024

Reynolds left the ice with an apparent arm/shoulder injury and did not return. He did not dress for Sunday's game and the Mooseheads have him listed as "week-to-week" with a return possible in mid-February.

The overage forward has a goal and seven assists in 10 games with the Mooseheads.

Was this the last CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game?

Daniel St. Louis/CHL

Was Wednesday's CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game the last?

It certainly looks like it could have been.

Sportsnet's Jeff Marek reported Thursday morning that the plan is to replace the event with a two-game series between the best from the CHL and the best from the United States.

CHL News - sounds like last night's CHL/NHL Top Prospects game will be the final one. Look for the event to be replaced with a two-game series between the best prospects in the CHL vs the best prospects in the U.S.

— Jeff Marek (@JeffMarek) January 25, 2024

This has long been a dream for many junior hockey and prospect followers and would be a welcome breath of fresh air in an event cycle that hasn't had many new additions in recent years.

The concept of the Top Prospects Game is a good one, but there likely wasn't anyone leaving the Avenir Centre on Wednesday blown away by the entertainment value. The all-star game style format just doesn't bring the intensity — or the atmosphere — that a league vs league or country vs country event would bring out.

The timing of this is certainly interesting with the NCAA continuing to take a beating in court and the western portion of the CJHL seemingly falling apart. It's believed there is a very strong possibility that the NCAA may be forced to remove its long-standing eligibility requirement where CHL players lose college hockey eligibility. This would be a major shakeup in the hockey development world — and would also allow for more cross-border events. This new event may not be related to any of this, but it's worth noting if the CHL is starting to look at some new things.

This will be an interesting period for the CHL with new commissioners either here or on the way for all three leagues.

Team Red takes Top Prospects Game

Daniel St. Louis/CHL

MONCTON - Raoul Boilard of the Baie-Comeau Drakkar scored twice to lift Team Red to a 3-1 win over Team White at the 2024 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game at Avenir Centre on Wednesday.

Boilard scored the game-winner just 5:52 into the third period, getting the puck across the line on a scramble in the crease. He secured the win with an empty net goal late in the frame.

Ben Danford of the Oshawa Generals also scored for Team Red.

Ryerson Leenders of the Mississauga Steelheads allowed a goal on 20 shots in the first half of the game. Lukas Matecha of the Tri-City Americans stopped all 19 shots he faced in the second half of the match.

Liam Greentree of the Windsor Spitfires scored the lone goal for Team White.

Carter George of the Owen Sound Attack allowed a goal on 12 shots in the first half of the game. Dawson Cowan of the Spokane Chiefs allowed a goal on 17 shots in the second half.

It was a fairly evenly played game throughout the night with shots ending 39-30 in favour of Team White. It wasn't the most offensively thrilling game — but there were a few posts hit.

Saint John Sea Dogs forward Eriks Mateiko, a member of Team Red, was held pointless but was on the ice for the empty net goal. He recorded three shots in the match while skating on the fourth line with Andrew Basha of the Medicine Hat Tigers and Nathan Villeneuve of the Sudbury Wolves.

CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game nearing

Daniel St. Louis/CHL

MONCTON - Eriks Mateiko and the rest of the players taking part in this year's CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game were on the Avenir Centre ice on Tuesday.

The event participants went through off- and on-ice testing along with a practice ahead of Wednesday's game. Mateiko finished with the fourth best time in the "30m forward skate with puck" drill, according to the CHL's results.

Mateiko in action.

Every time I filmed he hit a flag so I’d like to apologize for that. https://t.co/b9pXrebwnK pic.twitter.com/gIUlN2TZE4

— Jamie Tozer (@station_nation) January 23, 2024

The Top Prospects Game isn't a make-or-break event for this year's NHL Draft class, but a strong performance can certainly get you some more attention down the stretch.

"I know there will be people watching from Latvia and it's really exciting."

The @SJSeaDogs' Eriks Mateiko is excited to represent his native 🇱🇻 at the 2024 #CHLKTP. pic.twitter.com/bEDaizShNJ

— Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) January 22, 2024

Tomas Lavoie and Eriks Mateiko comment following the first day of practice before the #CHLKTP. 🎥 @CBEHockey | @SJSeaDogs pic.twitter.com/jjLFt2C6NR

— QMJHL (@QMJHL) January 23, 2024

"In his second season in the QMJHL after playing in Latvia, Mateiko is a big 6’5" winger with a good all-around game and scoring touch," writes NHL Central Scouting, via the CHL. "He plays in all situations for Saint John; kills penalties and does well using his long reach and anticipation. Getting more time on the power play where he is a dual threat as a net front player and as a shooter. Smart getting to the openings and has a quality shot release which he can let go in stride. Skating stride is strong and delivers good speed, capable to pull away with the puck. Mateiko displays good puck skills and vision with his hockey sense to execute under pressure. The type of offensive player who can excel down low protecting the puck and playing an effective cycle game."

This year's CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game takes place at 7:30 p.m. in Moncton and can be seen on TSN.

A Monday in Moncton

CHL

MONCTON - Greetings from a very chilly Moncton, where players have arrived for Wednesday's CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game.

Saint John Sea Dogs forward Eriks Mateiko was officially added to the event's roster on Monday along with Nathan Villeneuve of the Sudbury Wolves. They will replace the injured Cayden Lindstrom of the Medicine Hat Tigers and Ryder Ritchie of the Prince Albert Raiders.

Mateiko's appearance in the event allows for a rare occurrence: a Sea Dogs jersey hanging in the Moncton Wildcats dressing room.

Set-up ✅ #CHLKTP pic.twitter.com/80YXrGYP6E

— Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) January 22, 2024

Both teams will hold practices on Tuesday at Avenir Centre ahead of the Wednesday's 7:30 p.m. match.

A few other things to catch up on...

• Patrick Roy is now the head coach of the New York Islanders — and he's brining Gatineau Olympiques head coach Benoit Desrosiers with him, according to RDS (although the Islanders are pumping the brakes on this one). Desrosiers, a former assistant coach with Roy's Quebec Remparts, leaves a red hot Gatineau team racing for the league's final playoff spots. He'll reportedly be replaced by general manager Serge Beausoleil who will make his return behind a QMJHL bench.
• The Olympiques had their six-game winning streak end on Saturday with a 5-1 loss to the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies. The Halifax Mooseheads, meanwhile, had their home losing streak end on Saturday with a 3-2 victory over the Chicoutimi Sagueneens.
• After allowing shorthanded goals in three straight games, the Sea Dogs have given up a total of eight shorties on the season. Only the Sherbrooke Phoenix have allowed more with nine.
• Baie-Comeau's Justin Poirier, the younger brother of former Sea Dogs defenseman Jeremie Poirier, was left off the CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game roster but enters the week as the QMJHL's leader in goals (34).
• One of the players to watch at Wednesday's game is London Knights defenseman Sam Dickinson, projected by many to be a top-10 pick in this year's NHL Draft. The Knights have won 14 straight games and sit first overall in the OHL standings.
• The UNB Reds won both of their games over the weekend to improve to 24-0 on the season. They host Saint Mary's and Acadia at home this weekend.
• A group in St. Stephen is in talks to bring an NCDC franchise to the community. According to The Saint Croix Courier, the ownership group involves Doug Holland, a former part-owner of the Sea Dogs.
• More drama involving the BCHL as five of the AJHL's biggest franchises have announced that they plan to join the "outlaw" league next season. The BCHL is currently playing its first season outside Hockey Canada.

Mateiko added to CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

Eriks Mateiko has been added to next week's CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game in Moncton.

The Saint John Sea Dogs announced the edition Tuesday afternoon. Mateiko is presumably an injury substitution, likely replacing Medicine Hat Tigers forward Cayden Lindstrom who had surgery last week.

Mateiko is certainly worthy of a roster spot and was always high on the list of players who would slide in if there was an injury. The 18-year-old has 15 goals and 15 assists in 30 games with Saint John this season and just recently returned from playing with Team Latvia at the World Junior Hockey Championship.

The annual event features the top draft eligible players from across the CHL. It's not a great draft year for the QMJHL with just five players from the league taking part: defensemen Spencer Gill (Rimouski) and Tomas Lavoie (Cape Breton) along with forwards Mateiko (Saint John), Raoul Boilard (Baie-Comeau) and Maxim Masse (Chicoutimi).

There are a couple other Sea Dogs connections taking part in this year's game with former head coaches Gerard Gallant and Mike Kelly both being honourary coaches. Gallant will be part of Dan Lacroix's (Moncton) Team Red staff while Kelly will join Jim Hulton's (Charlottetown) Team White. 

The game takes place next Wednesday at Moncton's Avenir Centre at 7:30 p.m. The game can be seen on TSN.

Sunday stuff: Reynolds, Elie score first goals with new teams

Halifax Mooseheads

At long last, Peter Reynolds scored his first goal as a member of the Halifax Mooseheads on Sunday.

The former Saint John Sea Dogs captain scored in Halifax's 4-3 overtime victory over the Moncton Wildcats at Avenir Centre.

His 1st Mooseheads goal brings a smile to the face of Peter Reynolds 😀

🚨 Reynolds (21) 9:18 2nd period
🍎 Denis | #GoMooseGo pic.twitter.com/iJukzS6Mx0

— Halifax Mooseheads (@HFXMooseheads) January 14, 2024

The 21-year-old, who now has 21 goals on the season, has a goal and four assists in six games with the Mooseheads. 

Halifax has been struggling of late — which includes a 3-2 home loss to the rebuilding Quebec Remparts on Saturday — but should get steadily better as their new acquisitions and world junior players begin to mesh with the team's existing roster.

Sunday's win over the Wildcats keeps the Mooseheads in top spot in the Maritimes Division. This could be a fun race down the stretch.

Former Sea Dogs forward Vince Elie, meanwhile, scored his first goal as a member of the Shawinigan Cataractes on Friday.

Pour revoir le premier but de Vince Élie dans l’uniforme des Cats! 👇🏼⚡️#JeSuisCataractes pic.twitter.com/dJghs1Jxpi

— Cataractes de Shawinigan (@Cataractes_Shaw) January 13, 2024

Elie has a goal and an assist in three games with the Cataractes.

Notebook: Gauthier off to strong start

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

Mathis Gauthier has gotten his Gatineau Olympiques career off to a strong start.

The former Saint John Sea Dogs defenseman recorded a goal and four assists in his first two games with the Olympiques last week, helping last-place Gatineau earn back-to-back wins.

Gauthier's performance earned him a spot on the QMJHL's team of the week.

Here are your top performers from the first week of 2024! 👇#QMJHL | #TOTW

— QMJHL (@QMJHL) January 8, 2024

The 20-year-old recorded five goals and 12 assists in 36 games with Saint John before being dealt. He was traded to the Olympiques for a draft pick.

The Sea Dogs visit Gatineau on Jan. 28 and host them on Feb. 17.

NEW CAPTAINS?

All three members of Saint John's official leadership group have been traded away in recent weeks.

Captain Peter Reynolds was traded to the Halifax Mooseheads while alternates Noah Reinhart and Mathis Gauthier were traded to the Drummondville Voltigeurs and Gatineau Olympiques, respectively.

No players have been wearing letters for the Sea Dogs in recent games. That will surely change soon.

SAINT JOHN VISIT

QMJHL commissioner Mario Cecchini will make his first official visit to Saint John on Thursday and will hold a press conference at 11:30 a.m.

According to a Sea Dogs release, "this is Commissioner Cecchini's first visit to the Maritimes since changing the League's name from Quebec Major Junior Hockey League to Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. He will be discussing the significance of the change and the future of the League."

Sea Dogs president Trevor Georgie will also be in attendance.

Cecchini will also hold a press conference in Bathurst on Sunday morning.

Gallant, Kelly named honourary coaches for CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

Only four players from the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League have been named to the CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game — and Saint John Sea Dogs forward Eriks Mateiko was not one of them.

Defensemen Spencer Gill (Rimouski) and Tomas Lavoie (Cape Breton) along with forwards Raoul Boilard (Baie-Comeau) and Maxim Masse (Chicoutimi) were the only QMJHL players named to the event's roster, which will take place Jan. 24 at Moncton's Avenir Centre.

The 18-year-old Mateiko, who will likely play a key role for Latvia at this year's World Junior Hockey Championship, has 15 goals and 15 assists in 28 games with the Sea Dogs.

Another notable omission was Baie-Comeau forward Justin Poirier, who enters the holiday break as the QMJHL's league leader in goals (25 in 34 games).

The full roster can be found here.

There will be a couple Sea Dogs connections behind the bench. Former Sea Dogs head coaches Gerard Gallant and Mike Kelly have both been named honourary coaches for the event.

Gallant will be part of Dan Lacroix's (Moncton) Team Red staff while Kelly will join Jim Hulton's (Charlottetown) Team White.

Moncton awarded 2024 Top Prospects Game

The Moncton Wildcats will host the 2024 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game.

The announcement was made Friday morning at the Avenir Centre. The annual event, which will be held Wednesday, Jan. 24, will take place in Atlantic Canada for just the second time (Halifax hosted in 2013).

“We are thrilled to bring the 2024 Kubota CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game to Moncton for the first time,” said Canadian Hockey League president Dan MacKenzie in a news release. “With a surplus of CHL talent eligible for the 2024 NHL Draft, we look forward to bringing the stars of tomorrow to the Maritimes.”

Here is Mr. Irving to announce that Jan 24, 2024 the @AvenirCentre & @monctonwildcats will host the @CHLHockey 2024 Kubota Top Prospects Game!

The ticket to this game will be INCLUDED to all Season Ticket Holders next season #TopProspectsGame #DefendTheDen pic.twitter.com/tfXQ9unlqN

— 🎙X-Wildcast Podcast 🎧 (@MonctonWildcast) March 24, 2023

Ticket information will be released in the fall.

While Halifax got much of the spotlight at this year's World Junior Hockey Championship, Moncton had a successful run as the "secondary host." The Avenir Centre is one of the finest junior hockey buildings in the country and you have to think the city will be welcoming a steady stream of events in the coming years.

That leads to the question: will the Wildcats bid to host the 2025 Memorial Cup? Hosting the Top Prospects Game is certainly a good test run and showcase for the organization.

In theory, it seems unlikely that a Maritime city would be the QMJHL's host for a third straight time (Halifax did it in 2019 and Saint John in 2022). The event hasn't been held in Quebec since 2015 (Quebec City). But, Moncton may be best positioned to host if they are interested.

Gatineau and the new Slush Puppie Centre would be a great option to host in 2025, but it's unlikely they will be able to create a competitive team by then. Same goes for Sherbrooke (although their arena may be a bit too small anyways). Chicoutimi would be a great host but their aging rink and Olympic sized ice sheet are an issue. Rimouski and Shawinigan could be options, but both are in the medium/small market size. Quebec City will always be on the CHL's radar but they just hosted in 2015 (although that was at the old Colisee Pepsi) and it's hard to say what the Remparts could look like in a couple years.

In the Maritimes, recent hosts Halifax and Saint John aren't options which... leaves Moncton as perhaps the best option in the QMJHL. Time will tell.

The 2025 Memorial Cup host will presumably be announced next spring.

The host of the 2024 Memorial Cup should be announced soon. Kingston, Sault Ste. Marie, Niagara and Saginaw all submitted bids. Pension Plan Puppets recently examined the four potential hosts.

Notebook: Bezeau among AHL fight leaders

Embed from Getty Images

Riley Bezeau is making a name for himself in the American Hockey League.

The former Saint John Sea Dogs forward is among the AHL leaders in fights this season, dropping the gloves five times in 26 games with the Charlotte Checkers. The league leader, Matthew Rempe of the Hartford Wolf Pack, has seven.

Fighting Riley Bezeau - not a great idea! pic.twitter.com/GO9vtIr8nQ

— Charlotte Checkers (@CheckersHockey) January 24, 2023

All five of Bezeau's fights have come on home ice. The 20-year-old has two goals, two assists and 52 penalty minutes in his first professional season.

Billy Sweezey and Riley Bezeau
Go blow for blow#CLEvsCHA #CLEMonsters #LetsGoCheckers @fpc_ahl pic.twitter.com/w887bTZN36

— Elaine Shircliff (@imaraindancer) January 22, 2023

Bezeau spent parts of three seasons with the Sea Dogs, helping the club win the Memorial Cup last June.

ONE FOR ALL FESTIVAL

The Sea Dogs have announced details for the One For All Festival, which will take place Family Day Weekend at TD Station.

From the team's press release:

From Friday, February 17 to Monday, February 20 (Family Day), the One for All Festival will take over TD Station, with four days of events capturing the spirit of the 2022 Memorial Cup and building upon it. It will bring together and integrate arts, culture, and the entire community into the hockey experience.

The Sea Dogs will play three home games during that span and each will feature a musical performance. Full details can be found on the team's website.

Notebook: Lawrence close to team record

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

WINNIPEG - Josh Lawrence has quietly climbed up the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League points leader board.

Lawrence enters action Sunday sitting seventh in league scoring with 75 points. His 54 assists in second only to Sherbrooke's Joshua Roy who leads the circuit with 56. Lawrence posted four helpers in Saint John's 8-3 victory over the Moncton Wildcats on Friday.

The Fredericton native has a good shot at breaking the franchise record for most assists in one season. The record currently belongs to Jonathan Huberdeau who recorded 62 in 2010-11.

Lawrence's 54 assists this season place him in a tie with Michael Kirkpatrick (2009-10) for fifth in team history.

WINNING STREAK

The Sea Dogs' winning streak came to an end at 10 games this past week in Charlottetown.

The 10-gamer ties this year's squad with the 2010-11 team for the fourth longest winning streak in franchise history. This was the first time Saint John had won 10 of more games consecutively since the 2011-12 season.

The franchise record remains 22 straight wins, set in 2009-10 - a record that will likely never be broken.

Notebook: New dates for QMJHL Entry Draft

With the Canadian Hockey League season extended a couple weeks, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League has pushed its annual Entry Draft.

The two-day event will now take place July 4-5, which is the Monday and Tuesday following the final week of the 2022 Memorial Cup in Saint John. From the QMJHL:

The 2022 Entry Draft was initially scheduled to take place on June 17-18, 2022. However, with the recent schedule adjustments, the draft’s first round will now take place on the evening of Monday, July 4, while rounds 2-14 will occur the next day.

As originally planned, the QMJHL Entry Draft will once again, sadly, be virtual rather than on an arena floor.

Of note, the 2022 NHL Draft is scheduled to be held just a few days later, taking place July 7-8 in Montreal.

DUFOUR EARNS HONOURS

William Dufour: he's still pretty good.

The Sea Dogs forward was named the QMJHL's player of the week on Monday. He's the first Sea Dog to win the award this season, although defenseman Vincent Sevigny did win the honour twice already this year while he was a member of the Victoriaville Tigres.

Dufour was also named to the QMJHL's team of the week.

The New York Islanders prospect recorded three goals and five assists during Saint John's three-game road trip in Quebec last week. He had a 20-game point streak and seven-game goal streak come to an end last Friday in Rimouski.

Notebook: Final Quebec trip set to start

For the final time this regular season, the Saint John Sea Dogs have bussed outside the Maritimes.

The team began its final Quebec road trip after Sunday's 6-2 win over the Rimouski Oceanic at TD Station. They'll visit Baie-Comeau, Chicoutimi and Rimouski this week.

The new-look Sea Dogs are coming off strong back-to-back home wins. They'll look to continue that momentum on this road trip.

Saint John sits ahead of all three of their road trip opponents in the standings. The Sea Dogs are 3-1-0-0 against teams from the East Division this season.

Following this road trip, the Sea Dogs will have a week to prepare for their next contest, a Friday, Feb. 18 match in Halifax against the Mooseheads.

DEBUTS

Several former Sea Dogs debuted with their new teams this weekend.

• Goaltender Jonathan Lemieux made 41 stops and was named third star in Moncton's 4-3 shootout win over Rimouski on Saturday.
• Forward Evgeny Sapelnikov had two goals and an assist in his first two games with the Drakkar. Both of his goals came in Baie-Comeau's 5-2 victory over the Mooseheads on Sunday, a game that saw Sapelnikov named first star.
• Defenseman Christopher Inniss did not play for the Sagueneens over the weekend, serving a two-game suspension he received in Saint John's final game before the Christmas break.
• Cape Breton had the weekend off, meaning Charles Savoie and Carter McCluskey have yet to suit up for their new club. The Eagles are in action Friday in Boisbriand.

THE SHUTOUT

Nikolas Hurtubise's shutout on Friday against the Armada: memorable in more than a few ways.

#QMJHL #LHJMQ BLB/SNB: @SJSeaDogs get their run to the Memorial Cup off to a spectacular start as Nikolas Hurtubise redirects 17, tied for the third fewest in a shutout in franchise history. Team's first goaltender to debut with a shutout since Jacob DeSerres, 10/16/10.

— Geoffrey Brandow (@GeoffreyBrandow) February 5, 2022

BEZAEU FIGHT

Via HockeyFights.com, here's Riley Bezeau's fifth fight of the season from Friday's game.

Bezeau, who served an automatic one-game suspension on Sunday for accumulating major penalties, continues to lead the league in fights.

Notebook: Hurtubise impressive in debut

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

Nikolas Hurtubise did something on Friday night that hadn't been done by a Saint John Sea Dogs goaltender in over two years: record a shutout.

That long length of time is a little misleading given how few games the Sea Dogs have played over the past two years compared to normal times. But still - that's a long time.

The last Sea Dogs shutout was recorded by Zachary Bouthillier, who made 32 saves in a 3-0 home win over the Baie-Comeau Drakkar on Jan. 12, 2020. Bouthillier had two shutouts during the 2019-20 season that ended abruptly due to COVID.

Hurtubise wasn't tested a ton on Friday, facing only 17 shots. But he was sharp when he had to be and made a few very nice saves.

Friday's contest began a stretch of five games in eight days for the Sea Dogs. We'll likely see Thomas Couture in action soon with Noah Patenaude still out with an injury suffered in December.

FAMILIAR FACES

It looks like Christopher Inniss could make his Chicoutimi Sagueneens debut on Wednesday against the Sea Dogs.

The overage defenseman was placed on waivers by Saint John at the trade deadline and was picked up by the Sags. Inniss was handed a two-game suspension for high sticking in Saint John's last regular season game on Dec. 18, a suspension that will presumably be served this weekend when the Sags host the Halifax Mooseheads and Charlottetown Islanders.

After this weekend's pair of games, Chicoutimi's next contest is on Wednesday against the Sea Dogs.

Inniss is just one of a few former Sea Dogs that Saint John will see in their first five games of the restart. They'll also be seeing Evgeny Sapelnikov (Baie-Comeau) and Alex Drover (Rimouski).

LONG TIME NO SEE

Folks, these are crazy times we live in.

• Last time the Armada visited Saint John (before Friday): Dec. 1, 2019
• Last time the Oceanic visited Saint John: Oct. 31, 2019
• Last time the Sea Dogs visited Baie-Comeau: Feb. 1, 2020
• Last time the Sea Dogs visited Chicoutimi: Jan. 31, 2020
• Last time the Sea Dogs visited Rimouski: Jan. 28, 2020

POWER RANKINGS

Stephane Leroux of RDS has moved the Sea Dogs all the way up to No. 2 in his latest QMJHL power rankings. Only the Charlottetown Islanders were ranked higher.

Rounding out the top five are Sherbrooke, Shawinigan and Quebec.

QMJHL extends pause until Feb. 1

The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League confirmed Friday what we already knew: Saint John Sea Dogs hockey will not return in the month of January.

The QMJHL announced that its pause, which was scheduled to end next week, has been extended until Feb. 1. From the league:

With no clear timeline of COVID-19 restrictions being eased, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League today announced the postponement of its return to play plans.

Initially scheduled for a return in the week of January 17, the regular season will now resume on February 1. The league is still working on rescheduling all postponed games, with the primary objective of having all franchises play their full 68-game schedule.

The news comes as no surprise given previous reports that the league doesn't want to return to game action until all 18 clubs are allowed at least 50% capacity in their arenas. Even a Feb. 1 return seems like wishful thinking at this point - but every day is an adventure in these unprecedented times we live in. We'll wait and see how things look in a couple weeks.

Friday's QMJHL news comes just hours before New Brunswick enters level 3 of its "winter plan," which does not even allow for full team practices.

Notebook: More on the Desnoyers deal

Halifax Mooseheads

More details on the expected Elliot Desnoyers trade have surfaced.

Mikael Lalancette of Le Soleil reports that the Saint John Sea Dogs will acquire the Halifax Mooseheads captain in exchange for prospect Natan Grenier and a first-round pick. Grenier, 16, was a first-round pick of the Sea Dogs in the 2021 QMJHL Entry Draft and has five goals and 18 points in 24 games with the Seminaire St-Francois Blizzard this season.

On me confirme que les Sea Dogs ont remporté le derby Elliott Desnoyers des Mooseheads. Il était l’un des 4 joueurs de la #LHJMQ au Mondial junior. Annonce à venir lors de la fin de la période des transactions. #lesoleil

— Mikaël Lalancette (@MikLalancette) January 2, 2022

This deal will likely have other pieces attached to it come the 2022 QMJHL Entry Draft this summer.

The QMJHL's trade deadline is this Thursday, Jan. 6.

DUBE SWEEPSTAKES OVER

20-year-old forward Pierrick Dube will be joining the Shawinigan Cataractes.

Transaction 🔁

Les Cataractes ont acquis l’attaquant de 20 ans, Pierrick Dubé du Le Drakkar de Baie-Comeau .

En retour, les Cats cèdent le vétéran de 20 ans, Marc-Antoine Pépin et un choix de 3e ronde en 2022.

🗞 https://t.co/eFHrzxvdkA#JusquAuBut pic.twitter.com/ktl3u1ZfBz

— Cataractes de Shawinigan (@Cataractes_Shaw) January 2, 2022

Dube started the season with the nearby Trois-Rivieres Lions of the ECHL where he recorded a goal and three assists in 10 games. He was released by the club a few weeks ago with, reportedly, intentions on returning to the QMJHL.

Dube played with both the Quebec Remparts and Chicoutimi Sagueneens last season, posting solid numbers. His QMJHL rights are currently owned by the Baie-Comeau Drakkar.