WJC Today - 12/23/11

ABOUT LAST NIGHT

Team Canada cruised to a 7-1 victory over Switzerland last night in world junior pre-tournament action.

Devante Smith-Pelly scored twice while Boone Jenner, Mark Stone, Freddie Hamilton, Tanner Pearson, and Ryan Strome added singles. Scott Wedgewood got the win in goal. Moncton Wildcats defenseman Brandon Gormley had two assists.

Here are some Sea Dogs related notes on the game.

• Playing in his first game since November 5, winger Jonathan Huberdeau didn’t look bad in his debut. Canada plays Sweden tonight, a much tougher opponent. It will be interesting to see how Huberdeau, still not at 100%, stakes up against some stronger competition.
• Huberdeau started the game on a line with Winnipeg Jets prospect Mark Sheifele and Anahiem Ducks draft choice Devante Smith-Pelly. He had a few scoring opportunities in the opening frame but couldn’t beat Swiss netminder Tim Wolf. Canada led 3-1 after 20 minutes.
• In the third period at 6:14, Huberdeau threw the puck through the crease while falling. Tanner Pearson was right there to slide it in and make it 6-1 Canada.
• Huberdeau took a penalty late in the third period after slashing a Swiss player who high-sticked him the face. The call drew plenty of boos from the Red Deer crowd.
• “I’m not quite there but it was pretty good for not playing for six weeks,” said Huberdeau to the Edmonton Sun. “For me, just getting into a game was a big deal. But for everybody coming north to Red Deer and now getting back on the bus to Edmonton means it’s getting pretty close. I think we’re getting better every day and that we’re going to be ready for the 26th.”
• Nathan Beaulieu had another solid game and had a few scoring chances. He has played well in both pre-tournament games.
• Really bizarre seeing Beaulieu, Huberdeau and Gormley playing for the same team.

IN THE NEWS

The Globe and Mail had an article on Thursday comparing Huberdeau and Mark Stone.

Huberdeau Expected To Play Tonight

For the first time in a long time, Jonathan Huberdeau is expected play in a competitive hockey game.

“I think I’m ready now to play a game,”Huberdeau told the Calgary Herald on Wednesday. “It’s nice to be back with the team.”

“For execution, I’m not really at my top right now,” he added. “I need two games maybe to get back and ready for the 26th.”

The Herald also reported that Huberdeau hopes to play tonight against Switzerland and Friday against Sweden in pre-tournament action. He will wear extra protection on his skate to protect his foot throughout the tournament.

Huberdeau broke his foot on November 5 in a game in Baie-Comeau. He had 10 goals and 18 assists in just 13 games before getting hurt.

Canada defeated Finland 3-1 in their first pre-tournament game on Monday. Sea Dogs defenseman Nathan Beaulieu was held off the score sheet but had a couple of solid scoring chances in the contest.

Team Canada plays their final exhibition game tomorrow against Sweden at Rexall Place. The tournament begins on Boxing Day with Canada taking on Finland.

In other action tomorrow, Tomas Jurco and Slovakia take on Charlie Coyle and the Americans. 

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.

Coyle Named To Team USA

Charlie Coyle has been named to Team USA’s roster for the upcoming World Junior Hockey Championships. USA Hockey announced their final roster for the tournament this morning.

Coyle, who left Boston University last week to sign with the Saint John Sea Dogs, is one of four forwards to make the team that won bronze at last year’s event. The 19-year old was one of the top Americans in last year’s tournament, recording two goals and four assists for six points in six games.

He has three goals and 11 assists in 16 games with BU this season. He’ll be joining the Sea Dogs for the second half.

Coyle recorded a goal in Team USA’s pre-tournament 7-3 win over Switzerland last night. The Americans fell 6-3 to Russia on Tuesday. The Pipeline Show has a complete recap of last night’s game.

University of Vermont forward Connor Brickley, whose QMJHL rights are held by the Sea Dogs, also made the team. UVM has denied recent rumours that he is close to signing with Saint John.

In 15 games with UVM this year, Brickley has eight goals and two assists.

The US plays their final exhibition game on Friday against Slovakia. They open the tournament on Boxing Day against Denmark. They’ll play Jonathan Huberdeau, Nathan Beaulieu, and Team Canada on New Year’s Eve. 

Sea Dogs Notebook

KELLY TALKS TRADE PERIOD

Sea Dogs director of hockey operations and associate coach Mike Kelly spoke to the Times & Transcript earlier this week aboutthe trade period.

"We think we have a good team and our best players are our older players," said Kelly. "Obviously, when you're in that position you're going to try to improve your team if you can and we'll look to do that.

"We go into the trade period with the attitude that yes we want to improve our team, but we're not going to pay over the top. What we believe is fair is what we'll stick with and if we're not able to get trades done then we'll move on."

Kelly wouldn’t say if he was after a specific player.

"We've talked to a lot of teams about a lot of players," said Kelly. "I don't get into specifics. I don't think it's fair to the kids."

It’s been a fairly quiet trade period so far. The deadline is January 7.

STORE HOURS

Christmas is almost here – and Sea Dogs Styles has extended store hours. From the Sea Dogs:

The store will be open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. through Dec. 23. The last day for Sea Dog Styles Christmas shopping will be on Dec. 24, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

Fans looking to browse merchandise online can do so via the store’s new and improved web page at http://saintjohnseadogs.com/page/merch. For orders outside normal hours, fans can email info@saintjohnseadogs.com

I was down there yesterday. The Sea Dogs’ Memorial Cup commemorative book, ‘Hockey Heaven,’ is unreal. They also have some new hat styles and the jumbo hockey cards of each player have returned.

Also, Cleve’s Source for Sports has an unlimited amount of Memorial Cup championship hats (pictured).

CHRISTMAS GIFTS

Speaking of Christmas, Telegraph-Journal columnist Peter McGuire had his annual gift giving piece in Tuesday’s paper. This year’s edition features plenty of gifts related to the 2012 Memorial Cup host site selection.

Scott McCain - a second Memorial Cup championship. Let's have former prime minister Jean Chretien - an ambassador for Shawinigan - present the hardware, offering congratulations to McCain, whose reply might be, 'Thanks. You may have won the battle, but we won the war.' 

The 2012 Memorial Cup Selection Committee - not a darn thing.

Some solid gifts right there.

Dogs Ranked 4th At The Half

The Saint John Sea Dogs close out the first half of the 2011-12 season ranked fourth in the Canadian Hockey League. The latest edition of the BMO CHL MasterCard Top 10 Rankings were released this afternoon.

The Sea Dogs enter the holiday break on a two-game winning streak. They defeated the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles 4-3 on Friday at Centre 200 and the Moncton Wildcats 5-2 on Sunday in the Hub City.

Saint John sits second in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League with a record of 28-10-0-1 for 57 points. They are two points back of the first-place Quebec Remparts.

The Remparts are ranked third in the top 10 this week. The only other QMJHL team to crack this week’s list were the Shawinigan Cataractes at No. 5. The Halifax Mooseheads were an honourable mention.

The weekly rankings of the Canadian Hockey League’s Top 10 teams are selected by a panel of National Hockey League scouts.

Here are the BMO CHL MasterCard Top 10 Rankings for week 14.

1. London Knights (25-7-0-1)
2. Tri-City Americans (27-7-0-0)
3. Quebec Remparts (28-6-2-1)
4. Saint John Sea Dogs (28-10-0-1)
5. Shawinigan Cataractes (25-9-2-2)
6. Plymouth Whalers (22-9-2-1)
7. Kamloops Blazers (24-9-1-1)
8. Edmonton Oil Kings (23-9-1-2)
9. Kitchener Rangers (22-10-1-0)
10. Moose Jaw Warriors (22-9-3-1)

Honourable Mention:
Ottawa 67's (20-9-4-1)
Halifax Mooseheads (22-11-1-2)
Vancouver Giants (22-12-1-1)

This week 14 edition of the BMO CHL MasterCard Top 10 will be the final set of rankings for 2011, with the next list to be released the first week of January, 2012.

In Buzzing The Net’s Dynamic Dozen this week, the Sea Dogs were ranked second behind the Remparts.