Alumdate: It's been quite a season for Sea Dogs alumni in the AHL

AHL

It's been an eventful year for Saint John Sea Dogs alumni in the American Hockey League.

While the highlight has to be Matthew Highmore earning an invite to this week's AHL All-Star Classic in Laval, it's been an impressive year for several Sea Dogs alumni - especially those who are first-year pros.

William Dufour, who has appeared in one game with the New York Islanders this season, sits 11th in AHL rookie scoring with 28 points in 44 games with the Bridgeport Islanders. He also sits fifth in rookie goals with 15.

Offensive defenseman Jeremie Poirier, meanwhile, has carried his scoring touch to the AHL with the Calgary Wranglers. Poirier sits in a tie for the rookie defenseman scoring lead with 26 points in 41 games, which also places him 14th in overall rookie scoring. Poirier also sits third in assists by rookies with 22.

Dufour and Poirier join Yan Kuznetsov (Calgary Wranglers), Vincent Sevigny (Bridgeport Islanders), Philippe Daoust (Belleville Senators), William Villeneuve (Toronto Marlies), Riley Bezeau (Charlotte Checkers), Raivis Ansons (Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins) and Ryan Francis (Laval Rocket) as members of Saint John's 2022 Memorial Cup championship team to appear in AHL games this season.

The AHL's all-star break comes to an end on Friday. Here's a look at how Sea Dogs alumni performed in the first half.

Recap: Sea Dogs lose 4-2

FINAL: Moncton 4, Saint John 2

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

SAINT JOHN - The losing streak is over for the Moncton Wildcats.

The Wildcats ended a six-game losing skid on Wednesday night at TD Station, defeating the Saint John Sea Dogs 4-2. Moncton has been ice cold of late, entering the game with a 1-9 record over their past 10 games.

The Sea Dogs, despite outshooting the Wildcats 34-28, simply couldn't get their offense clicking quite right. Only 14 of their shots were classified as dangerous and the team went just 1/5 on the power play - with their one man advantage goal coming with 1:11 remaining in regulation time.

While the Wildcats ended their losing streak, Saint John has now dropped three straight overall and six straight on home ice.

Jonas Taibel, Oscar Plandowski, Maxim Barbashev and Yoan Loshing scored for Moncton. Jacob Steinman made 32 saves in the win.

Alex Drover and Brady Burns scored for Saint John. Olivier Brideau made 24 saves in the loss.

Game Day 49: vs Wildcats

SAINT JOHN - The struggling Moncton Wildcats make their way to TD Station tonight.

The Wildcats, who are now one-game below the .500 mark, bring a six-game losing streak to Saint John where they'll face the Sea Dogs at 7 p.m. Moncton is just 1-9-0-0 in their last 10 games, falling to fifth in the QMJHL's Eastern Conference.

The Sea Dogs have been playing well recently despite losing the final two games of their Quebec road trip, which ended in an 11-3 blowout loss to the Gatineau Olympiques.

Saint John is in the hunt for the final playoff spot(s). They enter play today three points back of the Charlottetown Islanders who currently sit 16th overall.

TV/Radio/Stream: None/93 CFBC/CHL TV

2022-23 regular season records: The Sea Dogs are 17-29-1-1 for 36 points (sixth Maritimes/10th Eastern/18th QMJHL) while the Wildcats are 22-23-0-2 for 46 points (second Maritimes/fifth Eastern/10th QMJHL).

Last games: The Sea Dogs are coming off an 11-3 loss in Gatineau on Saturday. Alex Drover scored a pair of goals for Saint John while Vince Elie added a single. Ventsislav Shingarov and Olivier Brideau took the loss in net. The Wildcats are coming off a 5-1 loss in Quebec City on Saturday. Oscar Plandowski scored Moncton's lone goal. Jacob Steinman made 31 saves in the loss.

Notebook: Sea Dogs return to home ice

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

The Saint John Sea Dogs are back home.

After playing five straight games on the road, the Sea Dogs return to TD Station ice on Wednesday night, hosting the Moncton Wildcats in an intriguing matchup. Saint John, despite losing back-to-back games, has been playing well in recent weeks while Moncton has been heading in the opposite direction, dropping six straight and going 1-9-0-0 in their last 10 games.

The Sea Dogs will quickly return to the road and travel to Charlottetown for a 7:30 p.m. matchup with the Islanders on Friday.

Following Friday's match, the Sea Dogs will play four straight at home, including a Sunday afternoon contest against the Acadie-Bathurst Titan. Note that this is the makeup game for Saint John's postponed Sept. 24 home opener. Also note that this is a 2 p.m. start on Super Bowl Sunday.

STANDINGS UPDATE

It's looking like every game will matter for the Sea Dogs down the stretch.

Heading into action Wednesday, the Sea Dogs have 36 points, placing them three points back of the final playoff spot. The top-16 teams in the QMJHL's overall standings qualify for the post-season.

As mentioned in a previous post, the Sea Dogs have plenty of matchups remaining against the Titan, Islanders and Cape Breton Eagles, so this could be a fun finish.

Alumdate: Bruins looking good

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Could not one, but two former Saint John Sea Dogs win the Stanley Cup this year? If the NHL's regular season standings are any indication, there is a real chance this could happen.

The Boston Bruins, although they've come slightly back down to earth recently, have been having a spectacular season. The Bruins, who feature former Sea Dogs forward Charlie Coyle and defenseman Jakub Zboril, sit first overall in the NHL with a 39-7-5 record for 83 points, seven points up on second-place Carolina.

While the Bruins are having a great season, the same can't be said for Jonathan Huberdeau and the Calgary Flames who had a disappointing first half. The Flames are, at this time, in a fight for the two wildcard spots in the Western Conference.

With the NHL's second half getting started Monday night, here's a quick update on how Sea Dogs alumni have performed so far this season (at the time of this posting).

Player	Team	GP	Goals	Assists	Points
Jonathan Huberdeau	CGY	47	10	23	33
Thomas Chabot	OTT	45	8	21	29
Charlie Coyle	BOS	51	11	17	27
Mike Hoffman	MTL	37	9	9	18
Joe Veleno	DET	47	6	8	14
Mathieu Joseph	OTT	31	3	9	12
Julien Gauthier	NYR	35	6	3	9
Nathan Beaulieu	ANA	24	0	4	4
Jakub Zboril	BOS	14	1	0	1
William Dufour	NYI	1	0	0	0

Matthew Highmore, who appeared in 46 games with the Vancouver Canucks last season, has spent the entire 2022-23 campaign with the St. Louis Blues' AHL affiliate in Springfield. He is taking part in the AHL all-star events this week.

Recap: Sea Dogs lose 11-3

FINAL: Saint John 3, Gatineau 11

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

GATINEAU, QC - The Saint John Sea Dogs have been on a nice little run of late, but Saturday's game was a reminder of where they are at in their rebuild.

The Gatineau Olympiques scored four times in both the second and third periods en route to a dominant 11-3 win over the Sea Dogs at Slush Puppie Centre. The Olympiques have now won five straight games as they try and keep pace with the Sherbrooke Phoenix atop the Western Conference.

Gatineau has loaded up for a big playoff run and it showed in this game. The 'Piques were in control from start to finish, outshooting Saint John 51-24.

Samuel Savoie, Zachary Dean and Olivier Boutin each scored a pair of goals for Gatineau while singles came from Alexis Gendron, Antoine Michaud, Cole Cormier, Colin Ratt and Marcel Marcel. Backup netminder Emerik Despatie made 21 saves in the win.

Saint John had a pair of goals from Alex Drover and a solo marker from Vince Elie. Ventsislav Shingarov was pulled in the second period after allowing five goals on 18 shots. Gatineau native Olivier Brideau allowed six goals on 33 shots in relief.