More on the 2022 Memorial Cup bid

The biggest and most obvious question facing Saint John's 2022 Memorial Cup bid: does the original "We Want The Cup" video still hold up 10+ years later?

It's actually pretty okay.

April 7, 2011 was when the 2012 Memorial Cup selection committee awarded the tournament to Shawinigan. After several months of hype and campaigning, it was a heartbreaking day for the Sea Dogs and the city.

The selection committee visited Saint John on Feb. 9, 2011. It was a full day of events, which included Kevin Gagne speaking at a school and a reception at the Imperial Theatre. Here's how the teams were reportedly judged for the 2012 tournament (which may be different than how Saint John and Quebec will be judged this year):

1. Logistics - Accreditation plan, hotels, etc.

2. Hockey operations - Will the team be competitive?

3. Host facility - Does it have large enough seating capacity, enough luxury suites, big enough dressing rooms, a state-of-the-art score clock?

4. Strength of the organizing committee

5. CHL Events - Are there adequate facilities to host such events as the awards banquet and golf tournament?

6. Sales and marketing - Is there enough corporate sponsorship?

7. Finance - How will a team foot the bill?

It feels like Saint John is more of the underdog than the favourite this time around - but 2012 showed us that nothing is certain or guaranteed. The major knock on the Remparts will be the fact that they've hosted the event twice in somewhat recent history: 2015 and 2003.

Joseph wins second Stanley Cup

Embed from Getty Images

Mathieu Joseph is a Stanley Cup champion again.

Joseph helped the Tampa Bay Lightning win their second consecutive NHL playoff title on Wednesday, defeating the Montreal Canadiens 1-0 to take the series in five games.

The former Saint John Sea Dogs forward had 8:26 of ice time in last night's win, finishing off what proved to be an impressive post-season for the 24-year-old. Joseph had a strong showing in the final, recording two assists in the four games he appeared in and received high praise from NHL analysts.

After not appearing in any playoff games in the bubble, Joseph appeared in six this season, registering two helpers. He had 12 goals and seven assists in 56 regular season games.

His play against Montreal likely earned him a permanent spot in next year's Lightning lineup - which will likely lose several of its depth forwards. Or, he's become a very nice trade chip for Tampa this off-season (The Hockey News has him being selected in the Seattle Kraken expansion draft). Either way, Jospeh is likely to see more playing time in 2021-22.

From growing up dreaming about playing against Carey Price, to playing and winning the Cup against him.

What a dream come true for Mathieu Joseph. 💙 #ItsOn | #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/7z9kC3PR9E

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) July 8, 2021

Joseph remains the only former Sea Dog to win the Stanley Cup.

Sea Dogs to bid on 2022 Memorial Cup

The Saint John Sea Dogs are doing it.

After many years of anticipation and then a year-or-so of unknown, the Canadian Hockey League confirmed Wednesday that the Sea Dogs are one of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League teams intending to bid on hosting rights for the 2022 Memorial Cup.

As expected, the Quebec Remparts on the only other QMJHL team bidding.

“We are excited to have two outstanding franchises express their interest to bid for the 2022 Memorial Cup presented by Kia,” said CHL president Dan MacKenzie in a news release. “The excitement for this event will be at an all-time high given the events of the past 18 months and we look forward to both celebrating our great game and honouring the brave men and women who served and continue to serve our country.”

According to the CHL, "the Quebec Remparts and Saint John Sea Dogs will each submit their bids prior to the CHL deadline the week of August 23, with the winning bid then announced the week of September 6."

The Sea Dogs have been publicly discussing their intentions on bidding for the 2022 tournament for a number of years and have built the core of their team around this coming season. But, like everything, the pandemic threw uncertainty into the bid.

"We certainly have interest in hosting but given all that has gone on in the last 12 months, the landscape has changed considerably," said Sea Dogs president and general manager Trevor Georgie in an interview in April.

This will be Saint John's second bid to host the tournament after losing in 2012 to the eventual champion Shawinigan Cataractes.

“It has been my goal since founding this franchise in 2005 to host the Memorial Cup tournament right here where I grew up, in New Brunswick,” said Sea Dogs CEO and owner Scott McCain in a news release. “The legacy of the Memorial Cup and its significance in paying tribute to fallen Canadian Military Personnel is deeply important to the organization. Our team, our community and most importantly our fans have waited for the opportunity to host this historic event and now is the time to showcase what makes Saint John so special.”

The 2022 Memorial Cup will take place June 3-12, 2022. It will be the first time the tournament has been played since 2019 in Halifax due to the pandemic.

Notebook: Joseph one win away from Cup

Embed from Getty Images

Mathieu Joseph and the Tampa Bay Lightning are one win away from lifting the Stanley Cup for a second straight season.

The Lightning took a 3-0 lead in the championship series on Friday at the Bell Centre, defeating the Montreal Canadiens 6-3. Game 4 takes place Monday night in Montreal.

Joseph, who has appeared in two games in the series, recorded his first career NHL playoff point on Friday, assisting on Tyler Johnson's second period goal. Joseph has played in four playoff games after not dressing for any in the bubble last year.

Joseph 9 hits, one assist and a plus-2 in just over 16 minutes combined the last two games

— HockeyTampa (@Mapukalo) July 3, 2021

Joseph became the first and only Sea Dogs alumnus to win the Stanley Cup last year.

CAMP INVITE

Gatineau media is reporting that 19-year-old forward William Dagenais has been invited to Sea Dogs training camp.

Information à confirmer, mais il semblerait que l'attaquant gatinois William Dagenais @OlympiquesGAT va rejoindre les @SJSeaDogs à leur prochain camp d'entraînement. Ce club a repêché 3 joueurs en Outaouais samedi dernier: Olivier Brideau, Francis Woods et Nicolas Bilodeau.

— jf plante (@jfplante_Droit) June 29, 2021

Dagenais has spent parts of the past three seasons with the Olympiques, recording six goals and eight assists in 84 career QMJHL games. This past season he had a goal and an assist in 19 contests.

Dagenais was a fourth-round pick of the Halifax Mooseheads in the 2018 QMJHL Entry Draft. He was selected from the same Gatineau Intrepide program that the Sea Dogs picked three players from in this year's draft.

BURBIDGE PICK

Sea Dogs president and general manager Trevor Georgie spoke to the Chronicle Herald about Cole Burbidge, the Mount Academy forward the team picked with the 29th overall selection in last weekend's QMJHL Entry Draft.

“We really like Cole," Georgie said. "Our team thinks he is one of the smartest players in the draft and will be a future top centreman in the league. We have had some great conversations with him and his family about his plan for next season and we’re very supportive of it. We look forward to having him be an important part of our future.”

36 Nova Scotians were selected in this year's draft.

Murphy, Cooper win ECHL Kelly Cup title

Two former Saint John Sea Dogs are ECHL Kelly Cup champions.

The Fort Wayne Komets, featuring defenseman Matt Murphy and forward Oliver Cooper, defeated the South Carolina Stingrays 2-1 on Friday, winning the best-of-five championship series 3-1 in front of 10,477 fans.

Cooper had two shots in the game and finished the playoffs with three goals and an assist in eight games. Murphy, meanwhile, did not play in the final couple games of this series and finishes with four assists in 11 playoff contests.

The Komets are one of the oldest hockey franchises in North America and have won a number of league championships in their history -  but they had never won the Kelly Cup until Friday's victory. The team joined the ECHL in 2012.

KOMETS WIN THE KELLY CUP!!!! pic.twitter.com/tF7OGD7FWa

— x - Fort Wayne Komets (@FWKomets) July 3, 2021

This wraps up a bizarre season for the Komets. The team played a league low 51 games in the regular season and then had to play parts of their playoff run - first in Wichita and then again in South Carolina - at practice facilities due to main rinks being booked up.

Murphy and Cooper join at least three other Sea Dogs alumni as Kelly Cup champions.

2010 Cincinatti Cyclones: Robert Mayer

2011 Alaska Aces: Scott Howes

2013 Reading Royals: Stanislav Galiev

Komets closing in on Kelly Cup; Joseph plays in Lightning Game 2 win

The Fort Wayne Komets are one win away from winning the ECHL's Kelly Cup championship.

The Komets, who feature former Saint John Sea Dogs Matt Murphy and Oliver Cooper, defeated the South Carolina Stingrays 6-4 on Wednesday to take a 2-1 series lead in the best-of-five championship series. Game 4 of the series takes place tonight and Game 5, if needed, will be played on Saturday - both in Fort Wayne.

Murphy has four assists in 11 playoff games while Cooper has three goals and a helper in seven matches.

Former Sea Dogs defenseman Chase Stewart has appeared in one playoff game with the Stingrays.

The Kelly Cup has been awarded since 1997 and at least three Sea Dogs alumni have won the trophy.

2010 Cincinatti Cyclones: Robert Mayer

2011 Alaska Aces: Scott Howes

2013 Reading Royals: Stanislav Galiev

Both Mayer and Howes were named the Kelly Cup playoffs most valuable player in their respective victories. Mayer was a co-MVP winner with fellow netminder Jeremy Smith.

In the much less prestigious Stanley Cup Final, Mathieu Joseph and the Tampa Bay Lightning are now up 2-0 on the Montreal Canadiens following a 3-1 win on Wednesday. Game 3 is tonight at the Bell Centre.

Joseph and the Lightning are looking to win their second consecutive Stanley Cup championship. Joseph became the first Sea Dogs alumnus to win the trophy last year.

After not appearing in any playoff matches in the bubble, Joseph has played in three post-season games this time around - including Wednesday's Stanley Cup Final contest. The 24-year-old recorded one shot in 6:23 of ice time. Joseph's other two playoff appearances were in the first-round against Jonathan Huberdeau and the Florida Panthers.