MAINEiacs Vs Rocket-Wednesday

[Score]

Rocket faces 'must-win' game tonight
The Guardian

After a lackluster defeat to the Saint John Sea Dogs on Sunday, P.E.I. Rocket defenceman Pierre-Luc Lessard thinks winning tonight’s Quebec Major Junior Hockey League game versus the Lewiston Maineiacs is paramount.

Game time is 7 p.m. at the Civic Centre. It’s P.E.I.’s last home game this month.

After tonight, the Rocket plays its next four games on the road, including two contests in St. John’s where the Fog Devils are 43-23-2-2 over its first two seasons.

“It was a must-win on Sunday so obviously it’s a must-win (tonight),’’ said Lessard after Rocket practice Tuesday. “(The) Newfoundland (games) are going to be big games. It’s always tough to play there.’’

But beating Lewiston, the defending President’s Cup champs, won’t be easy. In P.E.I.’s home opener last season, it rolled over the Rocket 7-1 in the teams first meeting at the CCC and tallied a 6-0 overall record against the Island squad.

However, en route to a Memorial Cup berth, the Maineiacs juggernaut finished first overall in the Q with 50 wins, 106 points and a 16-1 playoff record so it beat a lot of good teams.

The Rocket is 0-2 to start the season. Lewiston is 1-1, including a 4-1 win over Saint John in the Maineiacs home opener last Thursday.

The 19-year-old Lessard said P.E.I.’s start and different results against a common opponent have more to do with its preparation than talent.

“We came out flat, (but) we’ll be ready for (tonight) that’s for sure. We didn’t work at all, both games, and that killed us. Everybody knows we played bad,’’ said the Rocket captain. “We (wasted) our energy on PK (penalty killing) both second periods in the two games, but that’s not going to happen again.’’

So far, the Rocket has given up 11 goals, but scored just five. Lessard said to change that, defensively the team must be disciplined and avoid the PK. “Take a guy down low. We’re running everywhere. Five-on-five we play well,’’ he said.

Tonight, Lewiston begins a five-game road stretch. Three are immediate — P.E.I. followed by Acadie-Bathurst on Friday and Saint John on Sunday. Then it’s a Halifax double shot to end September. The Maineiacs posted a league-best 21-11-1-2 touring mark last season.

But it’s had its share of changes.
On May 29, Clément Jodoin, head coach and general manager, announced he was leaving after three seasons. He cited family reasons, then took the vacant Rimouski position the next day.
So Ed Harding, both assistant head coach and general manager last season, stepped into the breach to handle the two-pronged job.
“I’ve run this team at times in the past when the other coach has been away so the players know me. It’s been a pretty smooth transition. We’ve changed a few things up, but I haven’t even had a chance to work with our whole team yet,’’ said Harding on Tuesday from a cellphone on the team bus in New Brunswick.

Harding has had turnover — former captain Marc-Andre Cliche (Los Angeles) and defenceman Chad Denny (Atlanta) are gone to the pros — and he’s got players like goalie Jonathan Bernier (Los Angeles) and centreman David Perron (St. Louis) still at pro camps.

Still, Lewiston boasts four other NHL draftees — Michael Ward (Tampa Bay), Denis Reul (Boston), Stefan Chaput (Carolina) and Kevin Marshall (Philadelphia).

Depending on travel plans, said Harding, some of those missing players may join the club on the road trip.

Lewiston’s facing a P.E.I. club it’s handled over the last four seasons, going 14-5 with one tie. P.E.I. forward Martin Latal returned from Phoenix’s training camp Tuesday and will be in the lineup tonight.

[wingman]

Why was it a must-win on Sunday? Only second game of the season and it's a must-win game, sounds like someone is putting the wrong kind of pressure on them at this stage of the season. You always play to win, but if you have your players wound up tighter than a clock, that's not going to work either. If it's Jean doing this, he must be running out of ways to get the team motivated for the games by saying that the second game of the season is a must-win situation.

[Krang7]

Maybe that's just the way that Lessard feels... why is Jean being blamed for everything? Believe it or not, the players have some resposibility over how they feel or how they play..

[fireside]

nice to see a player step up and actually say they came out flat and played badly and that everyone knows it. captain calling everyone including himself out.....

hoping to see a much better game tonight, an effort would be good to see!

[dogpound]

fireside said:

nice to see a player step up and actually say they came out flat and played badly and that everyone knows it. captain calling everyone including himself out.....

hoping to see a much better game tonight, an effort would be good to see!

Well, that's all well and good, to admit that the players "didn't work at all" during the last game.

But what I'd like to know is.......WHY?

Not enough to recognize the fact - you have to actually FIX the underlying reason for the lack of effort.

[psMAINEiac]

admin said:

What line combo's should we expect in this game psMAINEiac?

Hard to tell. Giliati is on his way to Albany, and Harding has juggled his lines every game with guys coming and going.

To be honest, if the Rocket don't win tonight, there are MAJOR issues on the Island, and Jean should be fired immediately after the game. In fact, Savard should greet him with all of the contents of his office in a box as he comes off the bench.

If there was a night for a guaranteed win promo, this is it.

[stang07]

This should be an interesting night for the Rocket. The boys have got to come out flying tonight. I know this is only the third game of the season but I really feel that they have something to prove here. Walker HAS to stay out of the box. He is of no use to the team watching from there. Doyle has to STOP taking penalties that cost his team and start playing some hockey. If you have an opportunity for another 3 on 1 pass the puck bud and make a play. We all know you have a wicked shot but just don't use it on 3 on 1 situations. The boys seemed confused the last 2 games so coach Jean has to get his lines straight and leave them the hell alone so the boys can get something going on the ice. The D have to get it together and not leave Antoine hanging. I'd say the boys will pull out the win tonight.

[1barney22]

Not making excuses for the players on Sunday, but Jean worked them so hard for the previous 10 days, I think they were tired and afraid to make mistakes. Apparently they were having 3 1/2 hour practices and being worked like never before.

Also, there has been a lot of talk about the poor play of the rookies. I think thats unfair. Most of them are getting limited ice time. Perhaps by using them more, we might get a better result. Overusing the 7-8 guys is bad for morale and no-one can play that much and be effective.

[mboyan]

krang7 said:

Maybe that's just the way that Lessard feels... why is Jean being blamed for everything? Believe it or not, the players have some resposibility over how they feel or how they play..

While I agree with what you are saying about the players owning some of the responsibility, the fact remains that Jean has to take most of the blame. It's his job to motivate. He failed to make any in-game adjustments against the Sea Dogs. He plays the snot out of some players. He doesn't seem to have the knack for making the right move, at the right time, to try and shift momentum (or at least, he didn't Sunday).

As much as people ask how many chances does Locke, or Cliche, or Lachaine get, the same can be said for Jean. How long does it take for Savard to figure out that Yanick Jean isn't getting the job done?

[spanz]

I do not buy any "rookie" b.s. All the teams have rookies. It is how you use them. Do you just throw them out to the wolves, or do you pair them with a veteran to show them the ropes and back them up when they make rookie mistakes.

Q is a development league. How the coach develops these guys and how quickly is a key to winning.

[bois]

1barney22 said:

Also, there has been a lot of talk about the poor play of the rookies. I think thats unfair. Most of them are getting limited ice time. Perhaps by using them more, we might get a better result. Overusing the 7-8 guys is bad for morale and no-one can play that much and be effective.

where is there alot of talk about poor play of rookies?

[lordstanley]

Lewiston 2-1

[IslandersHKY]

A very well written blog by psMaineiac introducing tonight's game that I thought people might find of interest.

www.lewistonhockey.com/blog/


Specifically this stat.

Both teams have one thing in common, slow starts

Lewiston in September has 8 wins, 8 losses, 2 ties, and 1 shoot-out loss. The best starting month for the MAINEiacs was last year, when the team went 4-2. The worst start goes back to year one, where Lewiston was 1-4-1 .

PEI is 12-12-1 all time in September, with 2004-05 their best start at 4-1-1. Their poorest begining was in 2005-06, where the Rocket went 2-4.

[bois]

I don't think past stats mean much at all to be honest.. in junior hockey especially.. every team is vastly changed from one year to the next.. because a team has had poor septembers in the past shouldn't necessarily have any bearing on the future

what I find most interesting (and most alarming) is that 3 players have accounted for all the offense

[Krang7]

That'll change with Marty back tonight, but it's not all that shocking that our top line guys are the only ones scoring so far. They're the only ones playing, really.

It'd be nice to get some offence from the backend, but that'll come. I have faith in Lessard and Southorn. We still need an offensive stud back there though.