This Ticket Is In The Hockey Hall Of Fame

TORONTO – I was at the Hockey Hall of Fame last week and snapped the above picture (just look at that glare!).

If you can’t tell, it’s a season ticket holder ticket from the Sea Dogs’ first ever regular season game from back in 2005. Nice to see the St. John’s Fog Devils are represented in the Hall in some way.

QMJHL News & Notes

The Moncton Wildcats named Darren Rumble their new head coach earlier this week.

Rumble had a long pro hockey career, playing 193 games in the NHL and many more in the AHL and other leagues. According to the Wildcats website, “he started his coaching career in 2004 with the Springfield Falcons of the AHL and has over nine years of solid coaching experience including two as Head Coach with the Norfolk Admirals. His most recent assignment was as an assistant coach in the WHL with the Seattle Thunderbirds.”

His coaching career also includes a stop in Lewiston where he was an assistant coach with the Maineiacs (R.I.P.).

Here’s the press conference:

Rumble takes over for Danny Flynn who was relieved of his coaching duties a few months ago.

Some other QMJHL news…

• Rimouski Oceanic general manager Philippe Boucher is the new GM and head coach of the Quebec Remparts, taking over for Patrick Roy. Buzzing The Net has more details.
• TSN analyst Craig Button apologized to the Screaming Eagles via Twitter about the rant he went on after William Carrier was selected in the NHL Draft. “My apologies for making unnecessary comment about on not being able to beat a midget team,” Button tweeted. “It was wrong. Season was tough enough.”
• A new QMJHL blog, Awesome As Puck, has a list of all the players taken by QMJHL teams in the CHL Import Draft. The Sea Dogs selected Slovak Juraj Siska ninth overall if you haven’t heard.
• Stefan Fournier signed with the Montreal Canadiens.

Habs Re-Sign Mayer; Millen Going To Leafs Camp

The Montreal Canadiens have re-signed former Saint John Sea Dogs goaltender Robert Mayer.

General Manager Marc Bergevin announced the signing yesterday. Mayer agreed to a two-year, two-way American Hockey League / National Hockey League contract for the 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 seasons.  As per club policy, financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Mayer went 16-17-3 with the AHL’s Hamilton Bulldogs last season to go with a 2.93 goals against average and a 0.908 save percentage. It was reported a few months ago that Mayer planned to play in Europe next season but obviously things changed.

The Swiss goaltender has spent his entire pro career within the Montreal system, playing with the Bulldogs and the East Coast Hockey League’s Cincinnati Cyclones. He has never played in a NHL game but has been a backup with the club.

Mayer played with Saint John in 2007-08 and 2008-09. He’s been the only – and likely last – European goaltender the Sea Dogs have ever had.

In other former Sea Dogs goaltender news, Charlie Millen (pictured) received an invite to Toronto Maple Leafs development camp.

Millen, the son of broadcaster Greg Millen, played three games with Saint John in 2011-12, going 0-2-0-0 with a 5.38 goals against average and a 0.831 save percentage. He’s played for a bunch of teams since then and spent the 2012-13 campaign with the Ottawa Jr. Senators of the Central Canada Hockey League.

Maple Leafs development camp begins on Tuesday. The full roster can be found here.

Photo: Marc Henwood/Station Nation

LeBlanc Invited To Under-18 Camp

Saint John Sea Dogs defenseman Olivier LeBlanc has been invited to attend Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team selection camp which will be held July 25-29 at the MasterCard Centre in Toronto.

42 players were invited to the camp and 22 of them will play for Team Canada at the annual Ivan Hlinka tournament. This year’s tourney is scheduled for August 5-10 in Piestany, Slovakia and Breclav, Czech Republic.

LeBlanc was one of nine players from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League to receive an invite. The others were Julio Billia (Chicoutimi), Mason McDonald (Bathurst), Alexandre Carrier (Gatineau), Carl Neill (Sherbrooke), Nicolas Aube-Kubel (Val-d’Or), Daniel Audette (Sherbrooke), Clark Bishop (Cape Breton), and Alexis Pepin (Charlottetown). Rouyn-Noranda Huskies prospect Julien Nantel was also invited while Halifax Mooseheads head coach Dominique Ducharme will be an assistant coach.

LeBlanc had a solid rookie season with Saint John last year, recording four goals and 14 assists in 60 games. The 11th overall pick in the 2012 QMJHL Entry Draft also registered a goal and three assists in six games with Team Quebec at the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge.

The Best Atlantic Team Ever?

Which team was better? The 2011 Saint John Sea Dogs or the 2013 Halifax Mooseheads?

It’s something that will likely be debated in Atlantic Canada for decades. Both teams had a record tying 58 regular season wins, each won the President Cup and Memorial Cup, and both capped off their seasons by having a handful of players taken early in the NHL Draft.

The two teams were very similar. They were built through the draft, they dominated offensively, and were pretty much the best team in the Canadian Hockey League all season long.

That’s why, when talking about the greatness of one, it’s difficult to not mention the other. But that is just what TSN.ca columnist Alex J. Walling has done.

His column, posted on July 2^nd, begins with this:

The Halifax Mooseheads have completed the best hockey year ever in this part of the country. There have been great Maritime teams in the past, but none come close to the team and individual accomplishments of the Mooseheads and some of their star players this year.

And ends with this:

It doesn't get any better. They are the best ever hockey team in Atlantic Canada.

Everyone has an opinion and statements like that wouldn’t be too upsetting if the Sea Dogs were at least mentioned and recognized. But they’re not. At All. Nor are the 2001 Saint John Flames or any of Saint John’s other championship hockey teams.

We’re sorry if this post comes across as whiny but stuff like this is annoying. When people don’t spell the city name correctly it’s annoying. When people don’t mention the Sea Dogs in discussions about the greatest Atlantic Canadian hockey teams ever it’s annoying.

We could break the column down more – but we won’t. Maybe Walling just (hopefully) left a couple paragraphs out before sending or something. Let’s hope.

Check out the column HERE.

And on a side note, the Saint John championship parade was way better.

Sea Dogs Select Siska 9th Overall

The Saint John Sea Dogs acquired a Slovakian centre in Wednesday’s 2013 Canadian Hockey League Import Draft.

Saint John used the ninth overall selection to pick Juraj Siska who spent the 2012-13 season with HC Nitra in Slovakia's Under-20 league. He registered a point-per-game in 27 contests, scoring 12 goals and adding 15 assists.

Siska, who the CHL website lists at 6’2” and 194lbs, just turned 17 this past May.

"Juraj Siska is a big forward who can play a power game," said Sea Dogs head coach and General Manager Mike Kelly in a team release. "We know he is recovering from an injury that could potentially delay his arrival, but we felt it would be worth the wait. Those big forwards can dominate as 18 and 19 year olds and we feel he will compliment the speed and skill of the players we currently have. We are thrilled to have Juraj as part of the Sea Dog family." 

Siska was also a third-round selection by HC Slovan Bratislava in the KHL Draft but, judging by what Kelly said in the team release, it doesn’t sound like there will be any issues getting him to report to Saint John.

The Sea Dogs could definitely struggle offensively this season with their young roster but hopefully Siska will be able to step in and help out.

“Skilled pivot who played as an underager at the 2011 U17,” tweeted Sean Lafortune of McKeen’s Hockey. “Has the ability, agility and tricky one on one.”

Elite Prospects has more stats on Siska. Here’s a video of him scoring a goal at some tournament:

Saint John also had the 69^th overall pick in the Import Draft but did not use it. Siska and defenseman Jurij Repe are expected to be the club’s import players for the 2013-14 campaign.