POSTSCRIPT: Rocket 2, Sea Dogs 7

FINAL: Rocket 2, Sea Dogs 7

FULL RECAP

DOGS CLOSE OUT SEASON IN STYLE
SAINT JOHN – On the final day of the Quebec Major Junior hockey League season, the Saint John Sea Dogs delivered just like they have all year long.

The Sea Dogs thumped Evan Mosher and the Prince Edward Island Rocket 7-2 at Harbour Station. The Rocket opened the year up in Saint John back in September and closed it down yesterday afternoon.

It was a solid victory for Saint John.

"The guys played pretty well today,'' Sea Dogs head coach Gerard Gallant said to the Telegraph-Journal. "We haven't played great lately, but that's a good way to finish. The guys were jumping today and they felt good about their game.''

Michael Kirkpatrick opened the scoring at 7:45 on the power play, ripping a wrist shot five-hole and past PEI goaltender Evan Mosher. Stanislav Galiev gave Saint John a 2-0 lead at 14:14 when he came out from the backboards and sent a low wide range shot that got past the Rocket netminder. The Dogs led 2-0 after one frame.

PEI made it a one-goal affair at 1:06 of the second period with Gabriel Bourret in the box. A cross crease pass found Adam Polsek in front who banged one home to make it a 2-1 game. But at 5:16 on yet another man advantage, Jonathan Huberdeau restored the Sea Dogs’ two-goal lead after a great pass from Zack Phillips found him open in front.

The Rocket would not go away though. Samuel Morneau scored at 10:51 to make it 3-2. After the goal, PEI had some good pressure on and was buzzing a bit in an effort to tie the game. But their efforts would be for nothing as the Ryan Tesink show started up at 18:34. Tesink roofed the puck up and over Mosher to make it 4-2 Saint John and then scored again 37 seconds later to give the Dogs a commanding 5-2 advantage after two periods.

Kirkpatrick scored his second of the game at 16:10 of the third period and then Simon Despres connected 21 seconds later to make it a 7-2 final.

THE NUMBERS

PEI, Rocket 2 at Saint John, Sea Dogs 7 - Status Final
Sunday, March 20, 2011 - Harbour Station

PEI 0 2 0 - 2
Saint John 2 3 2 - 7

1st Game Period-1, Saint John, Kirkpatrick 30 (Huberdeau), 7:45 (pp). 2, Saint John, Galiev 37 (Gagné, Huberdeau), 14:14. Penalties-Durepos Snb (high-sticking), 1:30; McIsaac Pei (hooking), 6:46; served by Snb (too many men on the ice), 9:46; Bourret Snb (roughing), 19:26.

2nd Game Period-3, PEI, Polasek 7 (Nestrasil, Morneau), 1:06 (pp). 4, Saint John, Huberdeau 43 (Phillips, Kirkpatrick), 5:16 (pp). 5, PEI, Morneau 30 (Noël, Croteau), 10:51. 6, Saint John, Tesink 7 (Després), 18:34. 7, Saint John, Tesink 8 (Gauthier, Després), 19:11. Penalties-MacIntyre Pei (high-sticking), 4:04.

3rd Game Period-8, Saint John, Kirkpatrick 31 (Galiev, Després), 16:10 (pp). 9, Saint John, Després 13 (Beauregard, Anthony), 16:31. Penalties-Bourret Snb (interference of a player or a goaltender), 0:43; MacIntyre Pei (slashing), 3:58; Anthony Snb (slashing), 7:53; Noël Pei (kneeing), 14:31.

Shots on Goal-PEI 29. Saint John 44.
Power Play Opportunities-PEI 1 of 5; Saint John 3 of 4.
Goalies-PEI, Mosher 25-22-3-6 (44 shots-37 saves). Saint John, Corbeil-Thériault 20-16-1-1 (29 shots-27 saves).
A-6,488
Referees-André Dupuis (16), Tom Clarkson (11).
Linesmen-Andrew Connors (66), Justin Burchell (49).

SAINT JOHN SCRATCHES
Captain Mike Thomas missed his second straight game with a lower body injury. He stood watching warm-up from the Sea Dogs’ bench and then gave a speech after the game over the PA system, thanking fans for their support this season.

Forward Jason Cameron and defenseman Jason Seed were healthy scratches while forward Marshall Worden, who made his Saint John debut Friday against Cape Breton, is not currently with the club according to News 88.9.

SETTING THE RECORD STRIAGHT
It was one for the record books at Harbour Station Sunday as the Sea Dogs tied the all-time QMJHL record for wins in a single season with their 58th victory of the year. The club tied the Sorel Eperviers who reached the mark in 70 games in 1973-74 and the Trois-Rivieres Draveurs who tied the record in 72 games in 1978-79.

The win also made Saint John 32-0-1-1 on home ice, making them the first Quebec League club to ever go an entire season without losing a regulation game at home.

The Sea Dogs set a boat load of franchise records as well, including most goals scored in a season and fewest goals against.

FEELING THE LOVE
It was Fan Appreciation Night and the fans were appreciated nicely. There was a massive 50/50 pot to go along with a bunch of stuff being thrown into the crowd. During intermission, several contestants had an opportunity to win a car by sliding a puck through a hole that may not have been as big as a puck. None could, though.

It was the Sea Dogs’ second straight sell-out crowd and the fourth straight home game that had over 5,000 fans in house.

After Mike Thomas gave his speech, an impromptu ‘we want the cup’ chant started up.

MOSHER THE GREAT
Evan Mosher made some great saves last night but could not wear his Superman cape enough to give the Rocket a chance to win this game. After stoning the Sea Dogs Wednesday in Charlottetown, Mosher looked a little human on Sunday and allowed seven goals on 44 shots.

Saint John finishes the season with a 7-1-0-0 record against PEI. The Rocket gave the Dogs a few tough games and would make for an an interesting playoff matchup if the two meet at sometime.

PEI will face the Shawinigan Cataractes in Round One.

TESINK’S BIG NIGHT
It was a huge night for Ryan Tesink who scored for the first time in 37 games.

"It felt good to get that monkey off my back,'' Tesink said about his drought to the Telegraph-Journal. "Scoring another felt great too and I think that kind of turned the game around. They were getting close and putting some pressure on.''

Tesink scored on a partial break at 18:34, going snipe job on Evan Mosher. 37 seconds later, Tesink had a yawning cage at the side of goal and slid home his eighth of the season. That made it 5-2 Saint John going into the third period.

Strangely enough, Tesink scored twice in the Sea Dogs’ first match of the season – against who other than the PEI Rocket. It has been a weird campaign for the Saint John native who had three two-goal games in the regular season and two one-goal affairs.

Tesink hadn’t scored since the ‘Wild One in Wildtown’ on November 21.

ALL DONE
Jonathan Huberdeau’s magical 2010-11 season came to an end Sunday. He finished it off in appropriate fashion, dishing out a goal and an assist. He finishes the season with 105 points and third in league scoring. He is one of only three players to crack 100 points this season.

Huberdeau’s line-mate Zack Phillips had a big assist in the game. He finishes the season with 95 points, tying Chris DiDomenico for second most points in a single season in franchise history. The Fredericton native finishes seventh in league scoring, just one-point back of superstar Sean Couturier.

There is a bunch of other stuff that was broken, tied, or just bizarre that probably requires its own post.

PEACE OUT
For three Sea Dogs, this was definitely their final regular season game in junior hockey. Although they aren’t league superstars like Mike Hoffman, Nick Petersen, and Marco Cousineau were last year, this year’s trio of 20-year olds was still one of, if not the best group the team has ever had.

Mike Thomas is the longest serving Sea Dog in franchise history and has been the captain of the club in their two best seasons. Michael Kirkpatrick is the all-team leading scorer in team history and goaltender Jacob DeSerres has some of the best of numbers.

It was likely also the final regular season game for defensemen Eric Gelinas and Simon Despres as well.

All will be missed, but their career isn't over yet. Their impact on the club will be needed even more over the next two months.

QUICK HITS
Saint John went 3-for-4 on the power play… Jonathan Huberdeau had a Sea Dogs high seven shots on goal… Samuel Morneau was an animal, firing a team high six shots on net for PEI… Alex Noel had two hits for the Rocket… Eric Gelinas had four hits for Saint John… three assists for Simon Despres… The ‘Big Horse’ was a team best plus-three… for pictures from the game, check out Marc Henwood’s album… to relive the game, check out the SN Live Blog Replay.

NEXT GAME
It’s Game One of the First Round as the Sea Dogs host the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles Friday at 7:30 pm at Harbour Station.

Photo Credit: Marc Henwood/Station Nation

DOGS BLAST INTO HISTORY BOOKS

SN RECAP
FINAL: Rocket 2, Sea Dogs 7

By Station Nation Staff

SAINT JOHN – A tremendous regular season came to a close Sunday afternoon at Harbour Station as the Saint John Sea Dogs hit the ice to take on the Prince Edward Island Rocket.

Like they had 31 times before, Saint John won their home game, defeating the Rocket 7-2 in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League play. The win gave the Sea Dogs a final home record of 32-0-1-1, making them the first team in QMJHL history to go undefeated in regulation at home.

The records didn’t stop there as the win also gave Saint John 58 on the year, tying them for the most wins in a single season. Two other clubs have equalled the mark with both playing longer schedules.

After a loss to the Rocket on Wednesday night in Charlottetown, the Sea Dogs could no longer break the wins record. But Saint John would get their revenge on Sunday, beating up PEI and finally solving how break down the brick wall that is Evan Mosher.

The Dogs had a pair of goals from Michael Kirkpatrick and Ryan Tesink. Solo markers came courtesy from Stanislav Galiev, Jonathan Huberdeau, and Simon Despres. Goaltender Mathieu Corbeil let out rebounds larger than the Tim Horton’s line-up at times but was good enough to make 29 stops for the win.

It was a pretty solid game from the Sea Dogs who didn’t show any a whole lot of “flatness” with this being the final game of the regular season and played a pretty fast and intense match. None of the big guns were given the day off, either, except for captain Mike Thomas who was recuperating from an injury.

Mosher made some big saves as usual for the Rocket but couldn’t bail his team out this time around. The goaltender made 37 saves in the net in the loss. Adam Polasek and Samuel Morneau scored for PEI.

FIRST PERIOD
1:30 into the game, Pierre Durepos took a high sticking call and gave the Rocket a power play. But the league’s best penalty kill went to work and killed off the penalty rather easily.

With the penalty over, Jonathan Huberdeau tried to chase down a loose puck but just couldn’t grab a hold of it. He managed to get a decent backhand shot off that rolled through the crease, though.

PEI then had a good opportunity following a Saint John turnover. Rocket leading scorer Ben Duffy had the disc and tried the centre it but had his pass blocked by a Sea Dogs stick.

The Sea Dogs went to a man advantage at 6:46. On the ensuing power play at 7:45, Michael Kirkpatrick had the puck at the dot and wired a wrist shot that beat Rocket netminder Evan Mosher five-hole.

PEI had another power play at 9:46 as the Sea Dogs put too many on the ice. But the Rocket couldn’t get anything going again, failing to score or get any decent opportunites.

With the penalty over, Saint John would strike again. At 14:14, Stanislav Galiev had the back along the backboards and walked out in front. He beat Mosher with a wide range low shot to give the Dogs a 2-0 advantage.

After a turnover at the blue line, Ryan Tesink came in and had a clear lane but was stopped by the pad of Mosher. Then the Rocket got some things going as Mathieu Corbeil made a big glove stop on Olivier Croteau following a rebound.

After a Rocket faceoff, Samuel Morneau was at the top of the crease but was denied by Corbeil. On that scrum, Gabriel Bourret headed to the box at 19:26 to give the Rocket a man advantage to open the second period.

Shots in the opening frame were 14-8 Saint John.

SECOND PERIOD
The Rocket started the second period on a power play and they would get on the board. A pass from Andrej Nestrasil went through the blue paint and found Adam Polasek in front who banged one home to make it a 2-1 game at 1:06.

The Sea Dogs started rolling again after that. The puck was in front for Galiev but was stopped by Mosher. Then, Alexandre Beauregard was at the dot but drifted a floater high and wide.

On a power play at 5:16, Saint John made it a 3-1 affair. Zack Phillips threaded a perfect cross crease pass to Huberdeau but was robbed. Mosher couldn’t handle the rebound though as Huberdeau scored to give the Dogs a two-goal lead.

Saint John had a three-on-two moments later. Galiev dropped the puck for Pierre Durepos but was denied by Mosher. PEI then had a good opportunity as Ben Duffy out waited a Saint John defenseman but was stopped by Corbeil.

The Rocket made it a one-goal game again at 10:51. Corbeil made a stop with his blocker bet let a huge rebound, allowing Samuel Morneau to cash in and make it a 3-2 game.

After some PEI pressure, the Sea Dogs started up again. Mosher stopped a point shot but let out a rebound. Beauregard had a yawning cage but was somehow stopped by a diving Rocket netminder.

Morneau then tried to go in on a break, but Durepos dove and made a nice play to chop the puck off his stick. Saint John then had a couple of good chances as Kirkpatrick was left alone in front but was poke checked nicely by Mosher. Then, Aidan Kelly was at the side but was robbed by Mosher once again.

The Dogs finally got on the board again at 18:34. A turnover at the line by the Rocket was picked up by Simon Despres who fed Ryan Tesink. The Saint John snipped a shot it over the shoulder of Mosher to make it a 4-2 game.

Tesink wasn’t done there. At 19:11, Danick Gauthier came out from behind the goal and threw it in front while Tesink was at the side and had an open cage to make it a 5-2 game.

Shots on goal in the second period were 20-11 Sea Dogs.

THIRD PERIOD
Gabriel Bourret was called for interference 43 seconds into the third frame. The Rocket actually had some puck control this time around and Corbeil was forced to make a nice stop in close off Morneau.

Saint John went to a man advantage at 3:58. On the ensuing power play, Tesink was left alone in front and was in the clear to score his hat trick goal but dinged a shot off the bottom of the post. Then shortly after the penalty expired, the puck was sent on net for Jurco and tipped the flying disc just wide.

Saint John gave PEI another power play at 7:53 with Steven Anthony in the sin bin but it was shut down city for the Dogs and kept their three-goal lead intact.

Alex Noel headed off for kneeing at 14:31 to give the Dogs yet another two minutes or less with an extra man on the ice. Tesink had a great chance early on, just firing the puck wide. Soon after that opportunity at 16:10, Kirkpatrick fired a bullet backhand shot past Mosher to give Saint John a commanding 6-2 lead.

The Sea Dogs would not stop there. Just 21 seconds later, Despres was given the puck and sent a backhand shot on goal that was just out of the reach of Moshe,r hitting his tie and dribbling across the line. That made it a 7-2 final.

Shots in the final stanza were 11-10 Saint John.

NOTES: See Sea Dogs Postscript tomorrow on SN.

NEXT GAME: The Sea Dogs host the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles next Friday at 7:30 pm at Harbour Station is Game One of the first round of the 2011 post-season.

Photo Credit: Marc Henwood/Station Nation

SEA DOGS MAKE HISTORY

SAINT JOHN – The Saint John Sea Dogs made history on Sunday afternoon at Harbour Station.

A 7-2 win over the Prince Edward Island Rocket gave the Sea Dogs their 58th victory of the year on the final day of the regular season, tying the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League record for wins in a single season.

Two other teams have achieved the mark in the 1973-74 Sorel Eperviers and the 1978-79 Tois-Rivieres Draveurs. The Sea Dogs got 58 wins in a 68 game schedule while the Eperviers reached the mark in a 70 game campaign and the Draveurs in 72 games.

With an unreal record of 58-7-1-2, the Dogs fell one win short of breaking the record.

The win also gave Saint John a record of 32-0-1-1 at home, making them the first team in QMJHL history to go an entire season without losing a match on home ice.

It certainly was quite a regular season for a franchise only in its sixth year of operation. The team won the Maritimes Division, the Brunswick News Rivalry Cup, and the Jean Rougeau Trophy as well.

With this being the final day of the regular season, the team is also on pace to win the Luc Robitaille Trophy for most goals scored during the regular season and the Robert Lebel Trophy for allowing the fewest goals against.

The race for the big trophy, the President’s Cup, begins next Friday against the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles.

LIVE BLOG: Rocket vs Sea Dogs

PRE-GAME: vs PEI Rocket

GAME DAY

PEI Rocket vs Saint John Sea Dogs

Today, March 20, 2011 at 4:00 pm

Harbour Station

PREVIEW

SAINT JOHN – One of greatest regular seasons in Canadian Hockey League history comes to a close this afternoon as the Saint John Sea Dogs put a wrap on their campaign against the Prince Edward Island Rocket. Game time is 4:00 pm at Harbour Station.

Going into the season, everyone projected the Sea Dogs to be a pretty good hockey club. With their young core already having a full year of experience behind them and coming off a trip to the President’s Cup final, Saint John was in good position to be a strong contender again this season.

In September, if there was anybody who said the Sea Dogs would be in the position they are in tonight, they’d more than likely be lying.

A win this evening would make Saint John just the third team in QMJHL history to win 58 games in a regular season, tying the all-time mark for wins in a season. A victory would also make the Sea Dogs the first team in league history to go an entire season without losing a regulation game on home ice.

It will be a party like atmosphere this afternoon on fan appreciation day at Harbour Station. They’ve been given a lot to cheer for this season - and cheering they have done. They’ve seen several franchise records broken, seen some dominating performances, watched hockey’s future grow in front of them, and seen a certain 17-year old forward turn into one of the best junior hockey players in the country.

But this is only the end of part of the journey as the real season, the post-season, starts next Friday.

But in the present, this afternoon’s tilt will be the focus. In terms of standings and playoff positioning, the game is meaningless for Saint John. But it will allow the Sea Dogs to work and try a few things before the playoffs begin next week.

The Rocket will have a lot of confidence coming into this game having gone 7-2-1-0 in their last 10 games and have won three straight. PEI has given the Sea Dogs fits at times this season – especially last Wednesday in Charlottetown. The Rocket defeated Saint John 5-2, ending the Dogs’ hopes of breaking the all-time wins record.

After an up-and-down season, PEI would like nothing better than to end the Sea Dogs’ record hopes.

THE NUMBERS

	PEI	Saint John
Record	33-25-3-6 (4th Maritimes)	57-7-1-2 (1st Maritimes)
Home Record	- - -	31-0-1-1
Road Record	16-12-1-4	- - -
Streak	3-0-0-0	1-0-0-0
Last 10	7-2-1-0	8-2-0-0
Goals For	215	317
Goals Against	213	163
Overall PP	19.4% (12th)	24.4% (6th)
Home PP	- - -	23.1% (8th)
Road PP	19.1% (11th)	- - -
Overall PK	82.3% (3rd)	83.8% (1st)
Home PK	- - -	86.3% (1st)
Road PK	83.1% (2nd)	- - -
PIM/GAME	13.0 (14th)	13.2 (13th)

VISITING TEAM: PEI Rocket

NOTES: The Rocket are led offensively by Ben Duffy who has 81 points in 67 games this season. Andrej Nestrasil is second on the team with 69 points… Duffy leads the team in goals with 37. Sanuek Morneau is second with 29…. Nestrasil leads the club in helpers with 50 in 57 games. Duffy is second with 44… Duffy is 12th in the league in power play goals with 12… Philippe Paradis is ninth in the league in shorthanded goals with three… Paradis is sixth in first goals with seven… Adam Polasek leads the league in shorthanded assists with five… Morneau is sixth in the league in dangerous shots with 152… Morneau is sixth in total shots with 236… 24-5-1-1 when scoring first… 20-15-1-3 against their own division… 1-5-0-1 against Saint John this season with their only win coming last Wednesday in Charlottetown. 0-2-0-1 at Harbour Station… 12th in the league in goals per game with an average of 3.21… eighth in the QMJHL with an average of 3.18 goals against… averaging 30.06 shots for per game… averaging 33.81 shots against per game, the second highest total in the league… Nestrasil has gotten an assist in five straight road games.

PROBABLE STARTER: Given that he is a machine, the Rocket may decide to give No. 1 ‘tender Evan Mosher the final game of the regular season off. Mosher has a record of 25-21-3-6, a goals against average of 2.71, and a save percentage of 0.920. If he doesn’t start, Maxime Legace will start. The rookie has a record of 8-4-0-0, a GAA of 3.59, and a SV% of 0.884.

LAST GAME: PEI is coming off a big 4-2 win against the Wildcats in Moncton on Friday night. Matthew Hobbs scored twice while Josh Currie and Samuel Morneau added singles for the winners who were outshot 50-28. Not surprisingly, it was just another night for Evan Mosher who made 48 saves for the win.

SEEDING: This is a fairly large game for the Rocket depending on who they want to face in the first round. They currently sit 10th overall in the league but are just one point back of the Moncton Wildcats for ninth-place. At the same time, the Victoriaville Tigres are just one point back of the Rocket for 10th.

SUSPENDED: Philippe Paradis will serve the third and final game of his suspension after he hit Wildcats forward Alex Saulnier from behind last week.

BEST ROCKET VIDEO WE COULD FIND: The Charlottetown Civic Centre sure looks nicer in the virtual world.

HOME TEAM: Saint John Sea Dogs

NOTES: Saint John is led by Jonathan Huberdeau who has 102 points in 66 games. Zack Phillips is second with 94 points… Huberdeau has a team high 42 goals while Phillips is second with 38… Huberdeau also leads the club in helpers with 60 while Phillips has 56 and Michael Kirkpatrick has 50… Phillips is sixth in the league in power play goals with 15… Mike Thomas, Alexandre Beauregard, and Huberdeau are tied for eighth in shorthanded goals with three… Stanislav Galiev is second in game winning goals with nine… Phillips is 11th in first goals with seven… Tomas Jurco is second in insurance goals with seven… Huberdeau is a league best plus-58… Kirkpatrick is second in dangerous shots with 179. Huberdeau is third with 159… Kirkpatrick is eighth in total shots with 233… 40-2-0-1 when scoring first… 35-4-0-0 against their own division. They have two loses against Bathurst and one against both PEI and Cape Breton… averaging a league high 4.73 goals per game… averaging a league low 2.43 goals against per game… averaging a league high 36.70 shots per game… averaging 26.93 shots against per game, the fifth lowest total in the league… Huberdeau has a point in eight straight games… Galiev has scored in seven straight home games… Huberdeau has an assist in six straight home games… Galiev has a point in eight straight home games.

PROBABLE STARTER: With it being the final game of the regular season and Jacob DeSerres starting two straight, we’ll guess Mathieu Corbeil will get the start in goal. Overall, Corbeil has a record of 19-16-1-1, a goals against average of 3.13, and a save percentage of 0.881. The Columbus Blue Jackets prospect is 12-1-1-0 with Saint John and has a GAA of 2.18 and a SV% of 0.906.

LAST GAME: Saint John is coming off a dominating 8-1 win over the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles on Friday night. Stanislav Galiev had two goals while Stephen MacAulay, Steven Anthony, Danick Gauthier, Aidan Kelly, Pierre Durepos, and Alexandre Beauregard notched solo goals. Jacob DeSerres made 24 saves in net.

TROPHY WATCH: The Dogs have already won the Maritimes Division, the Brunswick News Rivalry Cup, and the Jean Rougeau Trophy. But there are still two trophies the team could claim. With 317 goals, the Sea Dogs will likely take the Luc Robitaille Trophy for the highest amount of goals scored by a team this season. The next closest club is the Quebec Remparts with 274.

Unless Saint John gives up 17 goals tonight, they will also win the Robert Lebel Trophy for fewest goals allowed by a team. They have allowed a league low 163 goals against this season while two other clubs have allowed 180.

PROMOTIONS
Today is Fan Appreciation Day at Harbour Station. The match will feature a guaranteed 50/50 jackpot of $10,000.

The game has been sold-out since Friday evening.

OTHER GAMES
Cape Breton at Halifax - 2:00 PM ADT
Acadie-Bathurst at Moncton - 4:00 PM ADT
Québec at Baie-Comeau - 4:00 PM EDT
Lewiston at Chicoutimi - 4:00 PM EDT
Montréal at Gatineau - 4:00 PM EDT
Shawinigan at Rouyn-Noranda - 4:00 PM EDT
Drummondville at Val-d'Or - 4:00 PM EDT
Rimouski at Victoriaville - 4:00 PM EDT

THE RINK
Venue: Harbour Station
Capacity: 6,297
Average Attendance: 4,417
QMJHL Arena Guide

MEDIA GUIDE
Radio (Sea Dogs): News 88.9 FM
Live Web Feed: Telus
Television: None
Post-Game Coverage: Station Nation, Telegraph-Journal, The Guardian
Live Coverage: Follow Station Nation on Twitter (www.twitter.com/station_nation) for live in game coverage. All tweets will also appear in the SN Live Blog that is posted on this site.

AFTER THE BUZZER
The Sea Dogs host the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles Friday at 7:30 pm at Harbour Station in Game One of the first round of the President’s Cup Playoffs.

Photo Credits: Halifax Mooseheads, PEI Rocket, Marc Henwood/Station Nation

POSTSCRIPT: Sea Dogs 2, Rocket 5

FINAL: Sea Dogs 2, Rocket 5

By Station Nation Staff

FULL RECAP

ROCKET BLAST DOGS
CHARLOTTETOWN, PE – The Prince Edward Island took the lead and then went into shutdown mode Wednesday night in Charlottetown, handing the Saint John Sea Dogs a 5-2 loss in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action.

"It's a rewarding win obviously,” said Travis McIsaac to our boy Nolan Reid of the PEI Rocket Twitter account. “Everyone showed up and everyone emptied the tank tonight.

"You know beating a team like that feels good. Really, really good win for the guys."

The Rocket led 1-0 after one and 3-0 after two periods. The Sea Dogs’ powerful offense started to come to life in the third period, but by then, it was too late. Even when Saint John did apply some pressure, the Rocket would jump right back in and squash any chance of a comeback attempt.

PEI has been close to beating the Dogs at times this season and finally were able to put all together on Wednesday to pick up the win.

It certainly wasn’t the best game of the season for Saint John. The team looked flat at times and were not the dominant team that we have watched all season. The offense had a hard time generating anything, mostly because of Rocket netminder Evan Mosher who is not really human.

PEI opened the scoring at 17:33 of the first period as Olivier Croteau scored his eighth of the year to make it 1-0. Shots after 20 minutes were 9-8 in favour of the home side.

At 13:50 of the second frame, Ben Duffy netted his team-leading 36th marker of the year on backhand shot in close to give PEI a 2-0 advantage. 26 seconds later, Travis McIsaac scored to give the Rocket a stunning 3-0 lead halfway through the match. Shots in the middle session were 14-12 Saint John.

Who else other than Jonathan Huberdeau finally got the Dogs on the board in the third period after some hard work in the crease area. But the momentum created from the marker was quickly driven away by Duffy’s second of the match at 4:27 to give the Rocket back their three-goal lead.

On a power play at 16:26, Tomas Jurco scored to put the Dogs within two. But Alex Noel put the butter on the toast at 18:20 with an empty netter to give PEI a 5-2 victory.

THE NUMBERS

Saint John, Sea Dogs 2 at PEI, Rocket 5 - Status Final
Wednesday, March 16, 2011 - Charlottetown Civic Centre

Saint John 0 0 2 - 2
PEI 1 2 2 - 5

1st Game Period-1, PEI, Croteau 8 (Noël, Fournier), 17:33. Penalties-Huberdeau Snb (hooking), 0:26.

2nd Game Period-2, PEI, Duffy 36 (Nestrasil, Capstick), 13:50. 3, PEI, McIsaac 15 (Duffy, Capstick), 14:16. Penalties-Beaulieu Snb (high-sticking), 4:45; Oligny Pei (cross-checking), 11:14; Provencher Pei (high-sticking), 14:56.

3rd Game Period-4, Saint John, Huberdeau 42 (Phillips, Gagné), 4:07. 5, PEI, Duffy 37 (Nestrasil, Polasek), 4:27. 6, Saint John, Jurco 31 (Anthony, Gélinas), 16:26 (pp). 7, PEI, Noël 14 (Croteau), 18:20 (en). Penalties-Polasek Pei (interference of a player or a goaltender), 0:26; Galiev Snb (slashing), 10:36; Fournier Pei (tripping), 14:52.

Shots on Goal-Saint John 39. PEI 29.
Power Play Opportunities-Saint John 1 of 4; PEI 0 of 3.
Goalies-Saint John, DeSerres 26-3-0-0 (28 shots-24 saves). PEI, Mosher 24-21-3-6 (39 shots-37 saves).
A-2,109
Referees-Jeff Hopkins (20).
Linesmen-Wayne Doyle (43), Rory Faulkner (68).

SAINT JOHN SCRATCHES
Forwards Danick Gauthier and Aidan Kelly were both sick and did not play. 20-year old forward Michael Kirkpatrick was a late scratch for an undetermined reason. Defenseman Jason Seed, who just returned to the team after suffering a death in his family, was inserted into the lineup.

NOT READY TO GO
It seems the Sea Dogs just were not prepared for this game.

"There was no groove and there was no commitment when we left the rink in Saint John,'' Sea Dogs head coach Gerard Gallant said after Wednesday's loss to the Telegraph-Journal. "I haven't seen us play a game like that in quite a while. We've had four games in a row on the road and there was probably a little fatigue, but definitely the mental part wasn't there tonight.''

Jonathan Huberdeau agreed.

“We have to be more prepared,” said Huberdeau to the Charlottetown Guardian. “Not disappointed. We want to win these last two games and be ready for the playoffs.”

The Sea Dogs are coming off a three game road swing that saw them play in Rimouski, Bathurst, and Cape Breton in just four games.

THE MACHINE
It’s becoming a recurring them when these two teams play each other: Evan Mosher is a beast.

The man who put on one of the best goaltending performances in league history earlier this season at Harbour Station was back at it again last night. Although he didn’t need to make as many stops, Mosher made 37 saves - many if them unreal - to earn the win.

A lot of his stops were huge, especially in the third period when the Dogs came out buzzing.

“Thank God. We finally got that win against them,” said Mosher to The Guardian. “Certainly a memorable one, last game at home.”

With Mosher putting on clinics in net and the Rocket actually starting to produce some stretches of wins, could the team pull off a first-round playoff upset? We shall see.

DeSERRES RETURNS
As other players were hit with the flu, goaltender Jacob DeSerres made his return to the crease after fighting illness on the clubs road trip last week.

DeSerres looked a little rusty at times but played decent, making 24 saves in goal.

The netminder picked up his first loss in 14 games and hadn’t lost a match since December 30 in Bathurst. It was only his third loss of the season.

NO HISTORY
Saint John can tie history but they can no longer break it.

With the loss, the Sea Dogs can now only reach the 58-win mark which would tie them for the league record for wins in a single season. Saint John will have to win their games Friday against the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles and Sunday against the Rocket in order to meet the mark.

It’s too bad that the Dogs won’t have a chance to break the record, but, the fact that the Sea Dogs are even in this conversation is quite incredible.

The QMJHL website has an epic rundown of some of records, comparing the Sea Dogs to some of the greatest QMJHL teams of all-time.

By winning their two games at home this weekend, Saint John can become the first team to ever go an entire regular season without a regulation loss on home ice.

REDEMPTION
According to the Guardian, the Sea Dogs had won nine straight over the Rocket going into this contest. That includes last year’s first-round playoff series.

Saint John is now 6-1-0-0 against PEI this season with the last meeting coming this Sunday at Harbour Station.

HIGHLIGHTS
The Rocket website provides some highlights from last night’s game.

QUICK HITS
This game was supposed to be played on December 28, 2010. Due to a snowstorm, this game was postponed to March 16, 2011… this was only Saint John’s fourth divisional loss of the year… Jonathan Huberdeau has now scored in six straight games. He has 101 points on the season… Stephen MacAulay and Alexandre Beauregard were both a minus-3… Tomas Jurco was literally firing on all cylinders, leading the team with 10 shots on goal… Samuel Morneau had five shots for the Rocket… Stanislav Galiev had three hits for Saint John… Adam Polasek had four hits… this ended Saint John’s six-game winning streak… the Rocket are 7-2-1-0 in their last 10… to relive the match, check out the SN Live Blog Replay.

NEXT GAME
The Sea Dogs host the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles tomorrow night at 7:30 pm at Harbour Station.

Photo Credit: The Guardian

SHUTDOWN IN CHARLOTTETOWN

SN RECAP
FINAL: Sea Dogs 2, Rocket 5

By Station Nation Staff

CHARLOTTETOWN, PE – Simply put, it was a rough night in Prince Edward Island for the Saint John Sea Dogs.

For only the seventh time this season, the Sea Dogs dropped a regulation Quebec Major Junior Hockey League contest. The PEI Rocket jumped out to a 3-0 lead and never looked back, going on to defeat Canada’s top-ranked junior team 5-2.

PEI had come close to beating the Dogs a few times this season and were finally rewarded for their efforts at the Charlottetown Civic Centre Wednesday. As usual, netminder Evan Mosher was a main reason as to why the Rocket were able to hang with and take down the Sea Dogs. Mosher made 37 saves in net – many of them in incredible fashion - and was third star of the game.

Scoring for the winners were Ben Duffy with two, Olivier Croteau, Travis McIsaac, and Alex Noel.

From a Sea Dogs perspective, this was just an ugly game. Were they tired from all the travelling last week? Were they sick and beat up? Or were they just not prepared for the contest since, in terms of standings and playoff positioning, had no meaning? Who knows, but the Saint John just didn’t have it tonight.

The offense had trouble getting any momentum going and the defense was a bit sloppy and unorganized all night long. But give the Rocket credit, they were able to shutdown the most offensively gifted team in the league for over two periods.

Jonathan Huberdeau and Tomas Jurco scored the lone goals for the Dogs. Jacob DeSerres, making his first start in over a week, made 24 saves in the loss. It was DeSerres’ first loss of 2011.

The game did have some meaning though as the loss means the Sea Dogs will not be able to break the all-time QMJHL single-season wins record. They can, however, still tie the mark if they can win their final two games of the season.

FIRST PERIOD
Jonathan Huberdeau took a hooking penalty 26 seconds into the match to give the Rocket a power play. But it was the Sea Dogs having the better of the chances as Alexandre Beuregard threaded a pass to Steven Anthony who just shot the puck wide. Saint John would keep applying some pressure and had a solid penalty kill.

Anthony had another chance moments later back at even strength as he was stopped by Rocket netminder Evan Mosher on the rebound.

The Rocket then had a few minutes of applied pressure. Ben Duffy had a good opportunity as he crept off the boards and cut in front, forcing Sea Dogs goaltender Jacob DeSerres to make a nice pad stop.

Saint John then started to get things going again. Zack Phillips was in the slot and had nothing but a Rocket defenseman between him and the net but sent a shot off the players stick.

Not long after, Eric Gelinas created a great scoring opportunity off a big shot from inside the line. The rebound was there in front for Ryan Tesink but was absolutely robbed by the leather of Mosher. Then Mosher made another incredible stop, denying Huberdeau with a diving paddle stop to keep the match scoreless.

It wouldn’t remain scoreless for long as PEI opened up the scoring at 17:33. A long shot went off the boards and bounced in front of DeSerres but out of his reach. Olivier Croteau was able to beat DeSerres high blocker with a wrist shot thanks to the bounce, giving the Rocket a 1-0 lead heading into the intermission.

Shots in the first period were 9-8 in favour of PEI.

SECOND PERIOD
Beauregard had a good opportunity early on his nailed the crossbar with a blast. The shot went under a brief review to see if it snuck in but it did not. The Dogs kept the pressure on though as a pass from down low found Stephen MacAulay in front who beat a down Mosher but not the post.

At 4:45, Beaulieu was sent to the box for high sticking. The Rocket had some okay pressure but nothing great and exited the man advantage still up just one goal.

Saint John then almost took the head off Mosher as a Tomas Jurco wrister from the dot hit the goaltender in the mask. The Rocket then almost scored again but Beaulieu took the net off as the puck floated into the crease, creating a whistle and fortunately no other penalties.

MacAulay had another good opportunity moments later as a pass found him as he streaked to the net but was stopped.

The Sea Dogs went to a power play at 11:14 but couldn’t get anything going and remained down a goal.

The Rocket found the back-of-the-net again at 13:50. A shot from along the boards was stopped by the toe of DeSerres but the puck rolled to the stick of Ben Duffy who backhanded the puck in to make it 2-0 for the home side.

Saint John was stunned to shock at 14:16. Two Sea Dogs defenseman dropped like flies, allowing Duffy to skate around the fallen soldiers and dish a pass to Travis McIsaac who tipped it into the empty cage to give the Rocket a 3-0 advantage.

The Dogs had a chance to get things back on track at 14:56 as they went to a man advantage. Jurco had a great chance as he backhanded the puck straight through the crease but nobody was there to bang it home. It was a good power play, but the Dogs had nothing to show for it.

Shots in the middle stanza were 14-12 Saint John.

THIRD PERIOD
Things got off to a good start in the third period for the Sea Dogs. Just 26 seconds in, Adam Polasek took an interference call and gave the Sea Dogs a man advantage. On the ensuing power play, Nathan Beaulieu ripped a shot wide with the puck bouncing off the backboards and finding its way in front. Stanislav Galiev couldn’t hammer one past Mosher and then Huberdeau was robbed as well. Saint John had some great power play pressure but just couldn’t get a key goal.

Finally, at 4:07, Huberdeau was able to bang home his 42nd of the season as the puck lay in the crease, cutting the Rocket’s to just two goals.

But all that momentum was quickly put on shelf again as PEI made it a three goal game again 20 seconds later. A pass from between the circles found Duffy at the side of the goal who had an easy tap in to make it 4-1 PEI.

Soon after Phillips was denied by the glove of Mosher, Galiev took a slashing penalty at 10:36. The Sea Dogs once again had a solid penalty kill and some shorthanded pressure.

The Dogs were awarded a power play of their own at 14:52. Saint John would find the back-of-the-net on the ensuing man advantage at 16:26. After Mosher let a rebound go, Jurco was at the top of the crease and was in good position to pot his 31st of the season to make it a 4-2 game.

Saint John pulled DeSerres with a ridiculous amount of time left. They were able to mount some pressure until Alex Noel crushed any dreams of a comeback bid at 18:20 with an empty net mark.

Tesink and Scott Oke both had some decent scoring chances in the final minute but it would not matter as the Rocket shot down the Dogs 5-2.

Shots in the third period were 17-8 Saint John.

NOTES: See Sea Dogs Postscript tomorrow on SN.

NEXT GAME: The Sea Dogs host the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles Friday at 7:30 pm at Harbour Station. Ticket availability is limited.

LIVE BLOG: Sea Dogs vs Rocket

PRE-GAME: at PEI Rocket

GAME DAY

Saint John Sea Dogs vs PEI Rocket

Tonight, March 16, 2011, at 7:00 pm

Charlottetown Civic Centre

PREVIEW
CHARLOTTETOWN, PE – On the road for the final time this regular season, the Saint John Sea Dogs’ quest for Quebec Major Junior Hockey League history makes a stop in Prince Edward Island to take on the Rocket at 7:00 pm.

This contest was originally scheduled for Tuesday, December 28 but was postponed “due to hazardous weather conditions and the accumulation of snow in eastern New Brunswick.”

This is the final week of the 2010-11 QMJHL campaign and the Sea Dogs are in select company when it comes to their impressive record of 56-6-1-2. The top-ranked team in Canada is two wins away from tying the all-time league record for wins in a single season. With three games left on their schedule, Saint John can break the mark.

After tonight's game, the Dogs head back home to play the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles on Friday and Harbour Station and then host these same Rocket Sunday afternoon.

But in order for the Dogs to break the record, they must buckle up for a match against the pesky PEI Rocket this evening at the Charlottetown Civic Centre.

Saint John is 6-0-0-0 against PEI this season but that doesn’t mean there haven’t been some close moments. Most notably was the game on January 11 at Harbour Station when Rocket netminder Evan Mosher was in full-out beast mode, making 67 saves through 65 minutes of action. Luckily for the Dogs their sharpshooters came through in the breakaway contest and earned the team a 3-2 victory.

With a respectable record of 31-25-3-6, the Rocket sit fourth in the Maritimes Division and are three points back of the Moncton Wildcats for third-place with three games remaining. If the playoffs started today, the Rocket would play the Acadie-Bathurst Titan.

PEI has been playing pretty well of late and are 6-2-1-1 in their last 10 games.

THE NUMBERS

	Saint John	PEI
Record	56-6-1-2 (1st Maritimes)	31-25-3-6 (4th Maritimes)
Home Record	- - -	16-13-2-2
Road Record	26-6-0-1	- - -
Streak	6-0-0-0	1-0-0-0
Last 10	9-1-0-0	6-2-1-1
Goals For	307	206
Goals Against	157	209
Overall PP	24.5% (5th)	19.0% (12th)
Home PP	- - -	20.2% (11th)
Road PP	26.0% (4th)	- - -
Overall PK	83.4% (1st)	82.3% (3rd)
Home PK	- - -	81.7% (6th)
Road PK	80.2% (5th)	- - -
PIM/GAME	13.0 (14th)	13.1 (13th)

VISITING TEAM: Saint John Sea Dogs

NOTES: The Sea Dogs are led by Jonathan Huberdeau who reached the 100-point mark last Sunday in Cape Breton. Zack Phillips is second on the team with 92 points. Both players have suited up for 64 games… Huberdeau leads the squad in goals with 41 while Phillips is second with 38… Huberdeau also leads the club in assists with 59. Phillips is second with 54 while Michael Kirkpatrick has 50… Phillips is sixth in the league in power play goals with 15… Mike Thomas, Alexandre Beauregard, and Huberdeau are tied for seventh in shorthanded goals scored with three each… Stanislav Galiev is third in game winning goals with eight… Phillips is 11th in first goals with seven… Jurco is second in insurance goals with seven… Huberdeau is a league best plus-58… Kirkpatrick is second in the league in dangerous shots with 179… Kirkpatrick is sixth in total shots with 233… 39-2-0-1 when scoring first… 34-3-0-0 against their own division… averaging a league high 4.72 goals per game… averaging a league low 2.42 goals against per game… averaging 36.63 shots per game, a league high… averaging 26.92 shots against per game, the fifth lowest total in the QMJHL… Huberdeau has scored in five straight games… Jason Seed’s status for this game is unknown. He left the team last week after a death in his family and is expected to return sometime this week.

PROBABLE STARTER: Jacob DeSerres was not in net for any of the Sea Dogs’ last three games due to illness. But News 88.9 stated on Sunday that the netminder was feeling much better and should be ready to go. DeSerres has a record of 26-2-0-0, a goals against average of 2.20, and a save percentage of 0.917. His GAA is tops in the league and his SV% is good for third.

LAST GAME: The Sea Dogs are coming off a 4-1 victory in Cape Breton on Sunday afternoon over the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles. Aidan Kelly, Alexandre Beauregard, Stanislav Galiev and Jonathan Huberdeau all scored for the winners. Mathieu Corbeil made 19 saves in net to pick-up the victory.

HOME TEAM: PEI Rocket

NOTES: The Rocket are led by Ben Duffy who has 77 points in 65 games. Andrej Nestrasil has 64 points, good for second on the team, in ten fewer games… Duffy leads the team in goals with 35 on the season… Nestrasil has a team high 45 assists. Duffy is a close second with 42… the suspended Philippe Paradis is a Rocket best plus-19… Duffy is 11th in the league in power play goals with 12… Paradis is ninth in shorthanded goals with three… Paradis is seventh in first goals with seven… Adam Polasek leads the QMJHL in shorthanded assists with five… Samuel Morneau is sixth in the league in dangerous shots with 145… Morneau is seventh in total shots with 232… goaltender Evan Mosher has played the most minutes of any netminder this year with 3087:38 minutes played… Mosher has made a league high 1,572 saves… Matthew Hobbs is third in power play goals amongst defenseman with nine… 23-5-1-1 when scoring first… 18-15-1-3 against the Maritimes Division… averaging 3.17 goals per game… averaging 3.22 goals against per game… averaging 30.11 shots for per game… allowing 33.48 shots against per game on average… Duffy has scored in four straight home games… Duffy has gotten a point in nine straight home games.

PROBABLE STARTER: 20-year old Evan Mosher will likely get the start between the pipes this evening for the home team. He has a record of 23-21-3-6 with a goals against average of 2.74 and a save percentage of 0.918. Mosher faces a lot of shots and has the second best save percentage on the QMJHL this season. When he is on, he can be the best goaltender in the league.

LAST GAME: The Rocket are coming off a 5-3 victory over the Moncton Wildcats Sunday afternoon at the CCC. PEI had goals from Andrej Nestrasil, Ben Duffy, a pair from Josh Currie, and Samuel Morneau to erase a two-goal Wildcats lead and earn the win. Evan Mosher made 28 stops in net.

BEST ROCKET VIDEO WE COULD FIND: To make it a fair fight, the Rocket had two players fighting former Sea Dogs enforcer Brett Gallant.



SUSPENDED
The Rocket will be without one of their best forwards this evening in Philippe Paradis. The Chicago Blackhawks prospect was given a three-game suspension by the QMJHL yesterday after he gave Wildcats forward Alex Saulnier a concussion with a hit to the head.

Paradis will miss the Rocket’s final three regular season games but will return for the post-season.

ON PLAYING THE DOGS
Rocket goaltender Evan Mosher on playing Saint John tonight to The Guardian:

“They’re skilled up front but also have some good grinders up front. They can get those dirty goals,” said Mosher after Rocket practice Tuesday. “When we’ve kept their shots outside we’ve actually had close games. We’ve gotten in trouble when we let them in close.”

OTHER GAMES TONIGHT
Moncton at Halifax - 7:00 PM ADT

THE RINK
Venue: Charlottetown Civic Centre
Capacity: 3,718
Average Attendance: 1,810
QMJHL Arena Guide

MEDIA GUIDE
Radio (Sea Dogs): News 88.9 FM
Live Web Feed: Telus
Television: None
Post-Game Coverage: Station Nation, Telegraph-Journal, The Guardian
Live Coverage: Follow Station Nation on Twitter (www.twitter.com/station_nation) for live in game coverage. All tweets will also appear in the SN Live Blog that is posted on this site.

AFTER THE BUZZER
Friday at 7:30 pm at Harbour Station, the Sea Dogs host their first round playoff opponent – the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles. It is the second-to-last game of the regular season for both teams.

Photo Credits: PEI Tourism, Marc Henwood/Station Nation, PEI Rocket Facebook, CCC Facebook

PARADIS SUSPENDED THREE GAMES

The Prince Edward Island Rocket have three games remaining on their schedule with two of them being against the Saint John Sea Dogs. Unfortunately for the Rocket, they will be without one of their best forwards for both of those contests.

The prefect of discipline for the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, Raymond Bolduc, announced today that Philippe Paradis has been suspended for three games for a head shot he made in Sunday’s game against the Moncton Wildcats.

Paradis nailed Wildcats forward Alex Saulnier into the Charlottetown Civic Centre boards, making contact with his head.



The Rocket winger was tossed from the match while Saulnier is now out indefinitely with a concussion.

"I want to see the video of the hit to see what happened," said Saulnier to the Times & Transcript after the match. "If it was a bad hit, we'll see what the league does about it. It's in the league's hands now. Hopefully, they look at this closely and make the right decision.

"I'm feeling better now and pretty much back to normal. I don't even have a headache. I'm lucky."

Paradis is third on the Rocket in scoring with 23 goals and 30 assists in 59 games. Known for his physical play, the Chicago Blackhawks prospect leads the team in penalty minutes with 85.

The Rocket host the Sea Dogs tomorrow night in their final home game of the regular season. The team travels to Moncton Friday to play the Wildcats and then go to Saint John to close out the season on Sunday afternoon.

The hit came at a sensitive time for the Wildcats as Ted Stephens suffered a concussion in Bathurst after he was hit by Christophe Losier last week. Unlike Paradis, Losier was not suspended for actions and caused some outrage in the Moncton media.

Also suspended today was Konrad Abeltshauser and Antoine Houde-Caron. From a QMJHL press release:

Last Saturday, during a matchup between Halifax and Acadie-Bathurst, Mooseheads defensive player Konrad Abeltshauser, received a penalty for a checking from behind. He has a two game suspension.

Sunday, during the Gatineau vs Lewiston game, Lewiston left-winger Antoine Houde-Caron received a penalty for elbowing. He received a two game suspension.

HOTTEST TICKET IN TOWN

SAINT JOHN – Tickets are selling fast for what could be a historic weekend at Harbour Station.

The Harbour Station website lists ticket availability for Friday’s Saint John Sea Dogs game against the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles and Sunday’s matchup against the PEI Rocket as “limited.” The two contests are the Sea Dogs’ final two games of the 2010-11 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League regular season.

Tickets are still available at this time, though. Seats to both Friday’s 7:30 pm contest and Sunday’s 4:00 pm contest can be purchased at the Harbour Station box office, by phone, or online.

Flex pass holders are reminded that these are the final two games of the year that they can redeem their vouchers to purchase tickets.
The Sea Dogs travel to Prince Edward Island tomorrow night to face the Rocket in what will be the final regular season road game of the year for Canada’s top-ranked team. This game was originally scheduled for December but was postponed.

With a record of 56-6-1-2, Saint John is two wins away from tying the all-time QMJHL record for wins in a single season and three wins away from breaking the mark. Also this weekend, the Sea Dogs will look to complete their home schedule without a loss in regulation time.

POSTSCRIPT: Sea Dogs 4, Rocket 1

SEA DOGS –ROCKET GAME AT A GLANCE
Final Score: Saint John 4, PEI 1
Saint John Goals: Jason Cameron (3), Steven Anthony (21), Michael Kirkpatrick (25), and Jonathan Huberdeau (35)
PEI Goals: Alex Noel (10)
Winning Goaltender: SNB – Mathieu Corbeil
Losing Goaltender: PEI – Evan Mosher
News 88.9 Top Dog: Jason Cameron

THE NUMBERS
Power Play: Rocket: 0/5, Sea Dogs: 0/3
Shots on Goal: Rocket: 4+11+6=21, Sea Dogs: 15+6+12=33
Length: 2:20
Attendance: 2,135

SAINT JOHN SCRATCHES
Defenseman Jason Seed and forward Aidan Kelly were both healthy scratches for Saint John. Alexandre Beauregard missed his third straight game with what the Telegraph-Journal is reporting as a knee injury.

DOGS WIN 4-1
A strong first period helped guide the Saint John Sea Dogs to their tenth straight win. Saint John scored twice in the first period en route to a 4-1 victory over the Prince Edward Island Rocket Friday night at the Charlottetown Civic Centre.

PEI native Jason Cameron scored his third goal of the season in the first period while Steven Anthony also scored in the frame to give the Sea Dogs a 2-0 lead. PEI would play much better in the second period and got on the board thanks to Alex Noel. But in the third, the Sea Dogs would turn it on again and score twice in the frame.

“The first period was real good,'' Sea Dogs head coach Gerard Gallant said to the Telegraph-Journal. "We skated and moved the puck real well and we were ready to play. The second was an ugly period and then we picked it up again in the third and played well.''

“A bad start in the first period. We just didn’t score on our chances,’’ said Rocket forward Alex Noël to The Guardian. “A good first period would have put them on their heels.’’

Cameron opened the scoring at 11:26 of the opening frame as he jammed the disc past Rocket netminder Evan Mosher. The Sea Dogs doubled their lead at 16:34 after Tomas Jurco’s shot found its way behind the net. Michael Kirkpatrick picked it up and put in front where Steven Anthony had a wide open cage to give the visitors a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes.

Noel scored the lone goal in the second period to put the Rocket on the board as he managed to get the puck past Saint John goaltender Mathieu Corbeil.

In the third, the Sea Dogs got back on track as Kirkpatrick scored to give Saint John a two-goal lead once again. Then, at 16:57, the Dogs put the game away as Jurco sent a tremendous spinning backhand pass to an open Jonathan Huberdeau at the side of goal. Huberdeau registered his team leading 35th marker of the year to make it a 4-1 final on the Island.

STREAKING
With the win, the Sea Dogs have tied their season high for consecutive wins with 10. Saint John won 10 straight earlier this season from November 13 to December 8. A win tomorrow against Moncton will give the team the largest winning streak in the QMJHL this season.

Saint John has been on quite of tear of late and have not lost in regulation in the new year. They are 16-0-1-0 in their past 17 games.

GAGNE LEAVES
Sea Dogs defenseman Kevin Gagne took a hit into the end boards by Philippe Paradis in the first period and left the game. He did not return.

His status at the moment is unknown, but Sea Dogs equipment manager David Kelly posted on Twitter that “he is alive.” That is always a positive thing.

It’s a tough break for Gagne and hopefully it is not too serious. The veteran battled a knee injury through Saint John’s playoff run last year.

SOLID CORBEIL
Sea Dogs goaltender Mathieu Corbeil played one of his better games with the team last night, making 20 saves in the win.

Corbeil made some big stops at key moments to keep the momentum going in Saint John’s favour. With the score 2-1 in the final minute of the second period, Corbeil made a flurry of stops to keep his team in the lead.

The Guardian newspaper says the Rocket hit four posts on the night.

This was the first time that Corbeil made back-to-back starts for the Dogs since being traded to Saint John. Jacob DeSerres made back-to-back starts last week so Corbeil could start against his old team in Halifax. If the rotation continues, Corbeil will start against the Mooseheads again on February 22 at Harbour Station.

JURCO KEEPS ROLLING
Tomas Jurco’s hot streak continued last night as he recorded three assists for the Dogs. His pass to Jonathan Huberdeau in the third period was definitely his best on the night.

The three assists give Jurco seven goals and seven assists in his past six games.

FOURTH LINE STRIKES
It was a great game by the fourth line of Ryan Tesink, Scott Oke, and Jason Cameron. The trio connected to give the Dogs a 1-0 lead in the first period, a goal that really seemed to spark the entire team after a bit of a blah start.

Tesink got in a scrap with Victor Provencher at 9:36 of the middle stanza after a scrum in the corner. Kind of a weird fight as the two were going at it for a brief moment, then things died down entirely, and then Provencher started up again and got the best of Tesink.

Cameron has been a bit of tear of late, scoring two goals and adding an assist in his last two games. He has six points on the year.

QUICK HITS
Good crowd at the Civic Centre as 2,135 were on hand for the contest… this was the Rocket’s final home game until March 2 due to the Civic Centre playing host to the Scotties Tournament of Hearts beginning next week. PEI will play four road games over that stretch… the Sea Dogs now the lead overall QMJHL standings by nine points over the Montreal Juniors and have two games in hand… the 50/50 draw was $2,170… Pierre Durepos was a team best +4. Tomas Jurco was a +3… Jimmy Oligny was a team worst -3 for the Rocket… Jonathan Huberdeau, Jurco, Ryan Tesink, and Nathan Beaulieu all led the way for Saint John in shots with four… there was some confusion to start the second period and there was a bit of a delay that caused both coaches to get upset. No clue what was going on… to relive the match, check out the SN Live Blog Replay.

HIGHLIGHTS…
… are posted here.

ALSO LAST NIGHT
Acadie-Bathurst 2 at Cape Breton 1 (SO)
Québec 7 at Lewiston 1
Val-d'Or 3 at Drummondville 4 (SO)
Halifax 2 at Gatineau 4
Baie-Comeau 0 at Rimouski 3
Chicoutimi 4 at Rouyn-Noranda 2
Montréal 2 at Shawinigan 3 (SO)

NEXT GAME
The Sea Dogs host the Moncton Wildcats on tomorrow afternoon at 4:00 pm at Harbour Station. The game is sold out but a limited amount of standing room tickets are available.

Photo Credits: Marc Henwood/Station Nation

KEEP ON ROLLIN'

SN RECAP
FINAL: Sea Dogs 4, Rocket 1

CHARLOTTETOWN, PEI – The Saint John Sea Dogs are on a serious roll at the moment.

The top-ranked team in the Canadian Hockey League has now won 10 straight games and have earned at least a point in 17 consecutive contests. Their latest victory came Friday night at the Charlottetown Civic Centre as the Sea Dogs defeated the Prince Edward Island Rocket 4-1 in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action.

For the most part, the Sea Dogs played well and earned a hard fought win. It was certainly a better result than the last time these two teams met where Evan Mosher played the role of a brick wall in the PEI crease.

Mosher looked a lot more human on this night and even showed some frustration in the third period by slapping the puck into the boards with his stick after a whistle. The Rocket goaltender made 29 saves in the loss. Scoring the lone Rocket goal was Alex Noel.

The Sea Dogs had goals courtesy of Jason Cameron, Steven Anthony, Michael Kirkpatrick, and Jonathan Huberdeau. Tomas Jurco had three assists. Goaltender Mathieu Corbeil played his most solid game as a member of the club, making 20 saves for the win.

Saint John gave the Rocket the opportunity to get back into this game in the second period as the squad got into some penalty trouble. Luckily for the Sea Dogs, the Rocket could not connect.

"We played good and we didn't score on the PP which killed us," said Rocket forward Victor Provencher after the game to the Rocket’s official Twitter page (operated by our boy Nolan Reid).

PEI went 0-for-5 on the man advantage.

FIRST PERIOD
Josh Currie had the first good scoring chance as he stood in front with the puck but ripped it wide of the Saint John goal. Shortly after, Stanislav Galiev came down the wing and sent a shot right on but it was deflected away by Rocket netminder Evan Mosher.

It was a pretty good pace in the first half of the first period as both teams were skating hard. But despite some solid back-and-forth action, neither team was doing much offensively.

Finally, Tomas Jurco got some pressure going as he sent a shot just wide of some deep amounts of traffic.

Saint John made it a 1-0 game at 11:26. Ryan Tesink was in the corner and sent a pass in front to Jason Cameron. The PEI native was there to bang the puck home and give the Dogs a 1-0 lead.

Saint John started to pick things up after the goal. Jurco sniped a shot in the high slot but was quickly blockered away by Mosher. Then Nathan Beaulieu ripped a shot from along the goal line but was denied by Mosher’s pad.

The Sea Dogs jumped out to a 2-0 lead at 16:34. Jurco was stopped in close but the puck rebounded behind the net for Michael Kirkpatrick. The 20-year old tossed it in front where Steven Anthony was able to tap it over the line to double Saint John’s lead.

Beaulieu had the last good chance of the period as he riffled a shot from long range that was stopped nicely by the shoulder of Mosher.

Shots in the opening frame were 15-4 Sea Dogs.

SECOND PERIOD
There was a long delay to start the second period as the Rocket were late coming out, then given a penalty, then the penalty was removed, then both coaches were upset. It was mess that resulted in opening the frame as it should have at five-on-five.

Sea Dogs goaltender Mathieu Corbeil came up big in the early parts of the period as he robbed Alex Noel with the pad in close.

Saint John started to get in some penalty trouble in the second as Jonathan Huberdeau, who was trying to spring in on a breakaway, got tangled up with a Rocket defenseman in the offensive zone and was called for holding. On the ensuing the power play, the Rocket couldn’t get much going. Their best chance came when Travis McIsaac was denied in front.

PEI got on the board at 5:43. After Corbeil made the first stop, a huge scramble ensued in the Saint John crease. Corbeil was down and out while Noel was able to jam the disc in to make it a 2-1 game.

Not long after the goal at 5:57, the Dogs went to the power play as Andrej Nestrasil threw the puck out of play. Huberdeau had the best power play opportunity for Saint John as he tipped a shot on goal at the side of net but was robbed by the pad of Mosher.

After Victor Provencher was hooked up by Simon Despres, a big scrum went down in the corner at 9:36. Ryan Tesink and Provencher dropped the gloves in choppy tilt that featured the Rocket winger getting the best of Tesink. The Rocket got a power play out of it but had nothing to show for it.

A loose puck at the side of the net later in frame was picked up and then performed a wraparound but was stopped nicely by Sea Dogs keeper Corbeil. At the other end, Pierre Durepos let a point shot go that was tipped wide.

Galiev was called for rouging at 15:35 but the PEI man advantage quickly ended at 15:42 as McIsaac headed to the sin bin. With the players out of the box and late in the period, Corbeil was forced to make a couple nice saves as the buzzer sounded to keep Saint John in the lead.

Shots in the middle stanza were 11-6 in favour of the home side.

THIRD PERIOD
Philippe Paradis and Jean-Sebastien Fournier entered the zone on a two-on-one in the early stages of the third period but couldn’t get a shot off as the pass was deflected away. Soon after, Pierre Durepos gave Pelipe Corbo a big hit in the neutral zone.

As the frame grew on, Huberdeau nearly scored a beauty as he danced Jimmy Oligny with the puck but couldn’t beat Mosher’s wall in the PEI crease.

The Sea Dogs made it a 3-1 game at 6:55. The puck was centered down low and then given off to Kirkpatrick at the side of net who had a wide open net to extend Saint John’s lead and give them a big insurance marker. The goal came with some controversy as Fournier was injured prior to the goal but the Dogs were not given a penalty nor did the whistle blow.

Not long after, Olivier Croteau entered the zone and made a nice move to the backhand but was denied by Corbeil. At 9:01 the Rocket had yet another power play. But despite some decent pressure this time around, the home squad still couldn’t score.

Ryan Tesink then had a good chance for the Sea Dogs in front but was denied by the pad of Mosher. Then, after a scramble, the puck came out to Beaulieu who wristed a backhand shot on net but was also stopped by the Rocket ‘tender.

Saint John put it away at 16:57. Jurco sent a beautiful backhand spin-pass to a wide open Huberdeau who was parked at the side of the cage to give the Dogs a 4-1 lead.

Shots in the third period were 12-6 Saint John.

PEI went 0-for-5 on the man advantage while Saint John went 0-for-3.

NOTES: See Sea Dogs Postscript tomorrow.

NEXT GAME: The Sea Dogs host the Moncton Wildcats on Sunday at 4:00 pm at Harbour Station. There are only a few standing room tickets remaining for this Rivalry Cup contest.

Photo Credit: The Guardian

LIVE BLOG: Sea Dogs vs Rocket

PRE-GAME: Saint John Sea Dogs vs PEI Rocket

By Station Nation Staff

GAME DAY
WHO: Saint John Sea Dogs vs PEI Rocket
WHEN: Tonight, 7:00 pm
WHERE: Charlottetown Civic Centre

VISITING TEAM: Saint John Sea Dogs
Record: 44-5-1-2 (1st in Maritimes Division)
Last Game: 4-3 win at Halifax Saturday
Leading Scorer: Jonathan Huberdeau (51GP-34G-46A-80Pts)
Notes: The Saint John Sea Dogs enter action this evening with a record of 44-5-1-2 which is good for first in the Maritimes Division and first overall in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The Sea Dogs have all but locked up the division as they have a 21-point lead over the second-place Acadie-Bathurst Titan. Saint John has an eight-point lead over the Montreal Juniors in the overall standings… for the ninth straight week, the Sea Dogs are the top-ranked junior hockey team in the BMO CHL MasterCard Top 10 Rankings… the Dogs are coming off a close call against the Halifax Mooseheads Saturday at the Metro Centre. A four-goal second period by Saint John propelled the Sea Dogs past the Herd in a penalty filled affair for Halifax. The Sea Dogs had a pair of goals from Michael Kirkpatrick while the dynamic duo of Jonathan Huberdeau and Zack Phillips each scored singles. Mathieu Corbeil got the win in goal, making 21 stops to beat his former team… Saint John has been on a tear of late, picking up at least a point in their past 16-games. They have not lost a regulation match in the year 2011… 9-0-1-0 in their past 10 games and have won nine straight. They are on a 15-0-1-0 run… 20-5-0-1 when playing away from Harbour Station. The Sea Dogs have outscored their opponents 120-76 on the road in 26 games. They are averaging 4.6 goals per road contest… 9-1-0-0 in their last 10 road games. Their last road loss was January 30 in Bathurst… Saint John has the seventh best power play with a rating of 24.9%. On the road they are operating at 28.8%, which is second best amongst road teams in the QMJHL… on the penalty kill side, the Sea Dogs come in ranked fifth with a rating of 81.2%. On the road, they are running at 76.6%, which places them all the way down in the 13th spot among road penalty kill… Saint John is averaging the 14th most penalty minutes per game in the 18-team QMJHL with an average of 12.8… Jonathan Huberdeau continues to lead the Sea Dogs in scoring with 80 points in 51 contests. Huberdeau is now third in league scoring, one-point back of the second place Gabriel Levesque and seven-points back of point leader and overall beast Philip-Michael Devos… Huberdeau has now taken a good sized lead over Phillips for the team lead in goal scoring. Huberdeau currently has 34 on the year to Phillips’ 30… Huberdeau also leads the Dogs in assists this year with 46. Phillips is a close second with 45 while Michael Kirkpatrick is third with 40… Phillips is third in power play goals with 13… Phillips is tied for second in game winning goals with seven… Huberdeau is a league best +47… Jacob DeSerres will likely get the start in goal tonight. He has a record of 21-2-0-0, a goals against average of 2.21, and a save percentage of 0.918. He sits second in the league in both save percentage and goals against average… Simon Despres sits third amongst defenseman in shorthanded points with three… Nathan Beaulieu has the fourth best plus/minus rating amongst defenseman with a rating of +38. Kevin Gagne is fifth at +34… 31-2-0-1 when scoring first… Saint John is averaging a league high 4.85 goals per game and allowing a league low of 2.52 goals against per game… Michael Kirkpatrick is on an eight-game point streak… Zack Phillips is on a nine-game road point scoring streak.

HOME TEAM: PEI Rocket
Record: 25-22-2-5 (4th in Maritimes Division)
Last Game: 2-1 win vs Bathurst Wednesday
Leading Scorer: Ben Duffy (54GP-27G-30A-57Pts)
Notes: The Prince Edward Island Rocket enter action today with a record of 25-22-2-5 which is good for fourth in the Maritimes Division and 11th overall in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The Rocket have closed the gap between them and the Moncton Wildcats over the past few weeks and are only three points back for the No. 3 slot in the division. It’s a typical year of PEI Rocket hockey… PEI is coming off a 2-1 win at home over the Acadie-Bathurst Titan on Wednesday. Alex Noel and Ben Duffy each scored for the Rocket. Evan Mosher made 22 stops in the win… the Rocket are 13-11-2-2 at the Charlottetown Civic Centre this season. They have scored 81 while allowing 81 against… 4-4-0-2 in their last 10 home games… 4-4-0-2 in their last 10 games and have won two straight. They have won three of their past four games… PEI has the 12th best power play in the QMJHL with a rating of 18.5%. At home, they are operating at 20.4%... on the penalty kill, the Rocket are in the upper tier of the league. They have seventh best penalty kill in the league with a rating of 80.6%. At home, they are running at 79.6%... the Rocket do not take a whole lot of penalties. They are averaging 12.3 penalty minutes per game which is the third lowest amount in the league this season… Ben Duffy leads the Rocket in scoring this season with 57 points in 54 games… Duffy leads the team in goals with 27 on the year… Andrej Nestrasil leads the Rocket in assists on the year with 37… Philippe Paradis is a team best +16 this season… Paradis is sixth in the league in shorthanded goals with three… Paradis is third in the league in first goals with seven… Adam Polasek leads the league in shorthanded assists with five… Evan Mosher will likely get the start in goal this evening. He has a record of 17-19-2-5, a goals against average of 2.81, and a save percentage of 0.916… PEI is allowing the second most shots on goal in the league with a per game average of 33.61.

MOSHER THE GREAT
Rocket goaltender Evan Mosher made 65 saves in his last game versus Saint John. Video evidence:



ON PLAYING THE DOGS
“We don’t have to change much,” said Rocket forward Ben Duffy after Wednesday's 2-1 victory over the Acadie-Bathurst Titan at the CCC to The Guardian. “Play (hard), play 60 minutes.”

“‘I think they play solid defensively,” said Duffy, who leads the Rocket is scoring with 57 points. “Offensively, they're hard to contain.”

NOTES

• Both defenseman Simon Despres and forward Alexandre Beauregard missed last weekend’s games with minor lower body injuries.
• Jason Cameron is the Sea Dogs’ lone PEI native.
• Tonight’s contest is the Rocket’s last home game this month as the team makes way for the Scotties Tournament of Hearts national women’s curling championship, Feb. 19 to 27, at the Civic Centre.
• Mike Thomas was booed when he touched the puck the last time the Sea Dogs played in Charlottetown.
• The Civic Centre sucks.

ARENA INFO
Venue: Charlottetown Civic Centre
Seating Capacity: 3,690
Average Attendance: 1,741
Year Built: 1990
QMJHL Arena Guide

MEDIA GUIDE
Radio (Sea Dogs): News 88.9 FM
Live Web Feed: Telus
Television: None
Live Blog: Station Nation
Post-Game Coverage: Station Nation, Telegraph-Journal, The Guardian

TWITTER
Follow Station Nation on Twitter at www.twitter.com/station_nation for in-game updates, scores, stats, and live coverage during tonight’s game.

AFTER THE BUZZER
The Sea Dogs host the Moncton Wildcats on Sunday afternoon at 4pm at Harbour Station.

'Q' TEAMS STAYING PUT

It looks as though all 18-teams making up the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League this season will be around this time next year.

The QMJHL announced today in a release that no teams had submitted to move or sell their franchise prior to yesterday's deadline. There had been lots of rumors floating around for over a month with the biggest of them being the Lewiston MAINEiacs departing for Summerside, Prince Edward Island. Another rumor had the PEI Rocket moving to Sherbrook, Quebec. Then, of course, there were the age old thought of whether a team would return to St. John’s, Newfoundland for the 2011-12 campaign. None of that will happening this year, at least.

Here is the QMJHL release:

The Commissioner of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, Gilles Courteau, today announced that no official request for sale or relocation has been sent to his attention at the League office.

"Although a number of reports have been published over the past few weeks, not a single Quebec Major Junior Hockey League team submitted a request to sell or relocate on January 31st," said the Commissioner. "Guidelines are outlined in our Constitution and our members are well-aware of the process regarding these types of requests."

In essence, the Commissioner is responsible for evaluating any request and making recommendations to the League’s members, if deemed necessary.

"It is a long process without any guarantee of success since a sale or a request for relocation must be approved by our members," added the Commissioner.

The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League is responsible for ensuring that its franchises operate within the rules outlined by the League while respecting the guidelines set forth in the Constitution.

Probably the best part about teams staying put is that the divisions won’t have to be realigned for millionth time.