GDT: Sea Dogs vs Wildcats - February 13, 2008

[mrlittlewolf]

Yes Cafucklehead!!!! rain usually causes wet roads!!!



Damm your special

[canucklehead]

mrlittlewolf said:

Yes Cafucklehead!!!! rain usually causes wet roads!!!



Damm your special

Ehhhh shut up your face lol

They are taking the buses off the road I guess so maybe they are worse then it looks out my window.

Our city is low on salt and dirt go figure lol. They are saying people should be staying off the roads on the radio.

[elementz]

haha. Heard some of Rothesay Ave is flooded with a few cars stalled out.

[hockeyaddict]

Buses are off at 6pm and McAllister is closing at 5pm

[canucklehead]

Ya know shit is rough when ya run low on dirt!

[tostitos]

Down by the LBR it is all flooded...and so is Courtney Bay Causeway.

[elementz]

Damn there is a lot of water on the roads, thought my car was going to sink lol. Just hope it dosent freeze.

[berner]

Way to go boys, chalk up another win for the Dogs!

3-2 final.

[elementz]

What a sick game, we had no business winning that game in regulation. Have we ever had a more crazier way to win the game.

Tying goal from center ice and 40 seconds later score the winning goal from behind the net. Insane.

5 points ahead of the moose.

[mrlittlewolf]

Well we got THE BOUNCES in spite of CARRUTHERS in the 3rd good on yas DOGS!!!

[ontariohockeyfan]

First for 2947 fans that went to the game congrats because from what I hear the weather down there is not good tonight .As for the game Moncton played a good road game and almost came out with the win but as it goes the good teams find a way to win from a shot from about centre ice to a bank shot to win.Now Saint John has a 5 point lead over Halifax and each team has 14 games left (Saint John 5 Home,9 Road, Halifax 6Home 8 Road ).Saint John you are in the drivers seat I know your schelude is tough but I think if they can play 500 hockey from here on in you have a good chance of finishing first in the East and a good shot of finishing top 3 in the Q for sure.Still think this is a team of destiny.Enjoy fans of the Seadogs.

[mrlittlewolf]

OHF lets hope so. But first things first although our PK was better tonight and Sunday it was against 2 of the worst teams. Great to see Mayer have the game he had. Stopped Eagles point blank breakaway that would have sealed the deal for Moncton. Hats off to Coach Fynn, he almost had his team upset the division leaders in their own barn with the perfect road game strategy. Big test for us Fri night. We need Fullerton at his best and Grant to snap out of it

[dogcatcher]

SEA DOGS RALLY TO BEAT WILDCATS 3-2

Two Late-Match Goals Deliver Saint John To Victory over Moncton at Harbour Station

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

SAINT JOHN, NB --- The Saint John Sea Dogs earned two points the hard way on Wednesday night, scoring two goals in the final 3:11 of play to pull out a dramatic comeback win at the expense of the Moncton Wildcats.

After the two divisional rivals skated to a 1-1 draw over the course of forty hard-fought minutes to start the match, the Wildcats took a one-goal lead early in the third period with a short-handed marker. Late in regulation’s final frame however, Saint John scored two quick goals on a pair of seemingly harmless plays, surging ahead on the scoreboard and ultimately prevailing by a score of 3-2.

The first-place Sea Dogs are now 36-16-1-3 on the season, while the last-place Wildcats are 19-29-2-8.

Yann Sauvé and Alexandre Picard-Hooper (2) provided the entirety of Saint John’s offensive production on Wednesday, with Team Captain Alex Grant assisting on all three Sea Dogs goals. Moncton’s scoring, meanwhile, was done by Randy Cameron and Zach Sill.

Rookie goaltender Robert Mayer earned the win in net for Saint John, making 25 stops on 27 shots to earn First Star of the Game honours. Mayer’s counterpart, Wildcats net minder Charles Lavigne was arguably the best player on the ice for 56 minutes and change prior to surrendering pair of wacky goals in the dying minutes that cost him and his team the victory. Lavigne finished the night with 32 saves.

The Sea Dogs dominated play in the early-going, registering eight of the game’s first ten shots on goal as the vast majority of action in the first half of the opening frame took place in the Wildcats’ zone.

In the fourteenth minute of play Chris DiDomenico very nearly tallied the first marker of the game for Saint John, ringing a snap shot off of the left post on Moncton’s net during a 5-on-4 power play session.

The home team went on a brief two-man advantage a moment later, but were unable to capitalize on the opportunity, as the early-game bounces refused to go Saint John’s way.

With 3:49 remaining in the first period, star defenseman Yann Sauvé dropped the gloves with Wildcats winger Pierre-Marc Lessard near the Sea Dogs blue line, landing a decisive late-round KO punch which delivered the former first-overall draft pick the victory.

While not called upon often, Robert Mayer stopped all seven shots sent his way during the opening twenty, sending Wednesday’s contest into the first intermission with the score tied 0-0.

At the 3:57 mark of the second period, the Wildcats scored the game’s first goal, with Detroit Red Wings prospect Randy Cameron beating Mayer from a sharp angle on a hard wrist shot. Cameron’s goal, a power play marker, gave the visitors a 1-0 lead.

Francois Gauthier was awarded a penalty shot three-and-a-half minutes later, but Lavigne was able to block the 20-year old winger’s shot, keeping Moncton up by one in the process.

The Sea Dogs were finally able to solve Lavigne with 1:17 remaining in the middle frame, as Alexandre Picard-Hooper netted his 18th goal of the season with defensemen Alex Grant and Yann Sauvé both picking up assists on the game-tying marker.

Picard-Hooper’s goal proved to be the final tally of the second period, as the intra-provincial showdown reached the forty minute mark with the score knotted at one apiece.

Moncton was awarded a double-PP early in the third period, but some impressive penalty killing from Saint John’s defensive special teams unit prevented the Wildcats from capitalizing on their two-man advantage.

The visitors were able to score during a two-on-one rush whilst short-handed however, as Zach Sill and Scott Brannon worked the give-and-go to perfection, with Sill sliding a backhand shot to the back of Saint John’s net to finish off the play and give the Wildcats a 2-1 lead with 15:14 remaining in regulation.

A few minutes later, a huge save by Robert Mayer on a Matt Eagles semi-breakaway kept the Sea Dogs within immediate striking distance of their geographical adversaries as the mid-week contest neared the fifty minute mark.

With 3:11 remaining in regulation, a highly-unusual goal by Yann Sauvé tied the score at 2-2. The 17-year old dumped the puck in from centre ice in laissez-faire fashion, and a bizarre bounce resulted in Lavigne being momentarily fooled as the seemingly harmless shot somehow found its way to the back of the net.

Sauvé’s game-tying tally, his sixth goal of the year, gave the Rigaud, QC native the first Gordie Howe Hat Trick (1G-1A-1 fight) of his career.

Another awkward goal put Saint John up 3-2 thirty-nine seconds later. A passing attempt by Alexandre Picard-Hooper from behind the Wildcats net bounced off of several skates and sticks as the puck ricocheted and deflected its way to the back of Moncton’s net, giving the 20-year old forward his second goal of the night and earning the host squad their first lead of the night.

The visitors were unable to mount an effective attack in the late-going, as Saint John refused to allow their opponents to gain any discernable scoring opportunities, thusly earning a unique one-goal victory for the nearly three thousand fans in attendance who braved the unfavourable weather conditions to make it to Wednesday’s match.

Up next for Saint John is a Friday night contest versus one of the best teams in Canada, the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies. The battle of QMJHL Heavyweights gets underway at 7:30pm as the Sea Dogs look to win their third straight game at the expense of a TELUS Division powerhouse.

[elementz]

I thought Grant played fine tonite except for one or two miscues, but I missed the first period and half of the 2nd. 3 assists, a fight and +2 seems like a good night too me.

[dogcatcher]

Late goals propel Sea Dogs to tough win over Moncton
Hockey Saint John scores twice in game's final four minutes to down Wildcats 3-2 at home

Andrew McGilligan
Telegraph-Journal
Published Thursday February 14th, 2008
Appeared on page B7

SAINT JOHN - The 3-2 score Wednesday evening at Harbour Station in the Saint John Sea Dogs' 100th home game was the same as the first time they stepped on the ice.

The only difference 99 games later was who was on the winning end. The Sea Dogs defeated the Moncton Wildcats 3-2 in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. The first game at Harbour Station was a 3-2 loss to the St. John's Fog Devils.

Alexandre Picard had a pair of goals for Saint John while Yann Sauve added a single as part of his Gordie Howe hat trick. Randy Cameron and Zach Sill replied for the Wildcats.

The Sea Dogs dominated play early and kept the Wildcats pinned in their own zone. In fact, Moncton didn't record a shot on goal until just past the six-minute mark of the first period while Saint John had six.

Late in the first, the Sea Dogs had a two-man advantage but couldn't beat Wildcats starter Charles Lavigne despite some good opportunities.

The opening frame saw two fights with captain Alex Grant dropping the gloves with Sill while Sauve battled Pierre-Marc Lessard.

Neither team broke through in the first as Lavigne made 13 stops while Saint John starter Robert Mayer blocked seven.

Moncton broke the deadlock at 3:57 of the second period on the power play. Cameron threw a shot on goal from a sharp angle that somehow squeezed by Mayer for a 1-0 Wildcats lead.

Shortly after the goal, Sea Dogs forward Francois Gauthier was hauled down on a partial break and awarded a penalty shot. Lavigne stood his ground and stopped Gauthier's shot to preserve the lead.

Sauve nearly tied the game around the 15:00 mark when he pinched in from the point to keep the puck in, swung out from the corner and put a backhand on net that was handled by Lavigne.

Saint John tied the game with less than two minutes to go in the middle frame. The puck went through the slot and towards the boards where Grant fired a slap pass in front that was redirected by Picard for a 1-1 tied.

Both clubs looked out of sync for much of the first two periods with passes just missing the mark and body checks connecting with the boards rather than opponents.

Moncton began the final frame with an extended five-on-three advantage as the Sea Dogs took two straight penalties to open the frame to go along with one taken late in the second.

What had been the team's Achilles heel, the penalty kill, looked good as Saint John killed off the penalties.

However, it was the powerplay that let them down. Up a man, the Sea Dogs surrendered an odd-man rush that was converted by Sill for a 2-1 Moncton lead at 4:46.

Saint John continued to turn the puck over in the next few minutes, forcing Mayer to bail them out with some big saves.

His counterpart was rolling along until the final minutes of the period when he allowed two soft goals in under a minute.

An innocent dump in by Sauve from outside the blue-line floated on goal and past Lavigne's glove to tie the game at 16:49. Then a centering pass from Picard behind the net hit Lavigne and trickled in for a 3-2 Saint John lead at 17:28.

The Sea Dogs hung on for the win thanks in large part to 25-save effort by Mayer. The win marked the Swiss goalie's best game after struggling for much of the second half as he earned first-star honours.

With the win, Saint John improves to 36-16-1-3 while Moncton drops to 19-29-2-8. The Sea Dogs take on the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Harbour Station.