GDT: Sea Dogs at Tigres - February 8, 2008

[springer]

I am not surprised. He ran with his horses for the first have and they just do not have it in the tank. Now is decision time you run yours stars and try to make it respectable but then you still have two games to play. I see a 8 -1 lose tonight followed up with two more loses on the road.

[major]

Loser would like a bottle of chill pills RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!!!!!

[mrlittlewolf]

Dig your head out of your ASS Springer!!! come up with something NEW for once will you

[killer]

springer said:

I am not surprised. He ran with his horses for the first have and they just do not have it in the tank. Now is decision time you run yours stars and try to make it respectable but then you still have two games to play. I see a 8 -1 lose tonight followed up with two more loses on the road.

Name one team that doesn't run with their horses, this isn;t pee wee house league here..................

[maineman]

hey, we ALL have these cheezy disgusting games during the season, yes they suck, but once you get out of that funk you're in you'll be just fine. ( see, not ALL fans here in Lewy are dicks)

[maineiacman333]

I'll be honest...I am REALLY surprised at how well the Sea Dogs have done this season, but I can't say I didn't see it coming...

That said, games like this will happen. Now, what is important, is how the team plays in its NEXT game. Even last year's mighty Maineiacs had a game or two like this...That said (and I know this is going to come off wrong), I'm kind of glad your team is losing, after Lewiston won and Halifax lost tonight...

[mrlittlewolf]

Thanks Maine fans!!! Some from this board have no clue!!1day we are great, go in a slump and we suck!!

[springer]

I said in December wait until this road trip and see what happens. Nice to see the only comebacks are childish outburst. Talk to me Monday, I hope I am wrong. Netminder still up for grabs.

[dogsno1]

I can't understand why JB has done nothing to change the powerplay. It has been brutal as of late. Personally i feel that Dido is being wasted on the powerplay. He should be playing down low on the powerplays, where he is in his element, and because of the vision he has he will find the open man 9 times out of ten. I was talking to some people who have seen Dido play in the GTHL and they totally agree. Hope this can find its way to JB and maybe he goes back to using him down low like he did the beginning of last year.
Like to know what you people think of this.

[tostitos]

JB has formed two new power play units. just give them time to get all situated.

[dogcatcher]

TIGRES HAND SEA DOGS A 7-2 DEFEAT

Four-Goal Performance by Toby Lafrance Leads Victoriaville to Victory; Saint John Remains in First Place in QMJHL East

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Friday, February 8, 2008

VICTORIAVILLE, QC --- The Saint John Sea Dogs lost just their fourth interdivisional game of the season on Friday night, falling to the Victoriaville Tigres by a score of 7-2 at Dejardins Coliseum.

The team chasing the Sea Dogs in the standings, the Halifax Mooseheads, also lost on Friday, by a score of 5-3 at home to the Rimouski Oceanic. As a result, Saint John remains alone in first place in the QMJHL East with 72 points despite losing the opening game on their three-date tour of Quebec

The Tigres scored twice on the power play and twice more at even strength during what proved to be a dominant first period for the home team as a 4-0 lead was established over the course of the opening twenty minutes of play. Victoriaville cruised to victory from there, ultimately winning by a score of 7-2 as the Sea Dogs’ offence was unable to find any discernable rhythm all night long.

Toby Lafrance (4), Alexandre Labonte (2), and Steven Cacciotti all scored for the home team on Friday, while Scott Howes and Victoriaville native Keven Charland responded for the visitors.

First-year goaltender Robert Mayer suffered the loss in net for Saint John, making 10 saves on 13 shots in just over ten minutes of action before being pulled in favour of overage goalie Travis Fulleron. Meanwhile, Kevin Poulin earned his 14th victory of the year between the pipes for the Tigres, turning aside 27 of the 29 shots sent his way by Saint John shooters.

The home team struck early on Friday, with Toby Lafrance beating Mayer with a high shot to the glove side from a dozen feet out to earn his 30th goal of the season at the 2:42 mark of the first period.

A second goal by Lafrance, who shovelled home a rebound during a Victoriaville power play, gave the Tigres a two-goal advantage five-and-a-half minutes into the game.

Victoriaville’s third goal of the first period, off the stick of Alexandre Labonte, brought an end to Mayer’s evening, as the 18-year old European was replaced by Travis Fullerton between the pipes for Saint John midway through the opening frame.

Fullerton made nine saves in his first 7:58 of action in the first, a sum which included a huge stop on Lafrance, who elected to shoot on his late-frame breakaway opportunity and was denied by the Sea Dogs’ veteran net minder in spectacular fashion.

At the 18:54 mark of the match however, the Tigres power play struck again, with Steven Cacciotti beating Fullerton to earn his 14th tally of 2007-08 as the host squad entered the first intermission with a sizeable lead on both the scoreboard (4-0) and the shot clock (23-8).

The Sea Dogs nearly scored their first goal of the game early in the second period when Chris DiDomenico stripped a Tigres defenseman of the puck and stormed into Victoriaville’s zone on a two-on-rush with Ryan Sparling. DiDomenico hit Sparling with a picture-perfect pass on the play, but the 19-year old winger’s backhand attempt was denied by Poulin as the home team’s four-goal advantage remained intact.

Another huge save by Poulin, this time off of an Alexandre Picard-Hooper shot, took place a moment later, as the visitors continued to apply heavy offensive pressure at the Tigres’ end of the ice.

Saint John’s hard work paid off at the 13:23 mark of the middle frame, as Keven Charland deflected an Alex Grant slap shot past Poulin to pull the Sea Dogs to within three of the Tigres’ lead with a power play goal. Grant’s assist, his 23rd of the 07-08 campaign, gave the Sea Dogs Captain 36 points on the year, establishing a new team record for points by a defenseman in a single season.

With just 3.3 seconds remaining in the second period, Alexandre Labonte finished off a three-on-one rush with his second goal of the game to put Victoriaville back up by four as Friday’s match reached the forty minute mark.

Toby Lafrance’s hat-trick-clinching tally put the Tigres up 6-1 twenty-seven seconds into the third period, with Jason Demers and Alexandre Monahan picking up assists on the play. The Sea Dogs responded a minute later however, with Scott Howes registering his 32nd goal of the season on a wrist shot from close range that eluded a down-and-out Poulin, who was forced out of position in stopping a booming point shot off the stick of Jeff McNeil.

The lethal Tigres power play then struck once again, with Jonathan Bonneau feeding Lafrance with a cross-ice pass down low; the 20-year old centre quickly deposited the puck to the back of the net with a tap-in one-timer, earning his fourth goal of the game in the process.

Lafrance’s second goal in regulation’s final frame, the seventh of the night for Victoriaville, proved to be the final tally of the match, as the Tigres handed Saint John a 7-2 loss on the first night of a Telus Division trek.

The Sea Dogs will next face the Shawinigan Cataractes on Saturday afternoon prior to making their national television debut versus the Drummondville Voltigeurs on Sunday night in a game that will be broadcast on Rogers Sportsnet beginning at 9:00pm.

[berner]

springer said:

I am not surprised. He ran with his horses for the first have and they just do not have it in the tank. Now is decision time you run yours stars and try to make it respectable but then you still have two games to play. I see a 8 -1 lose tonight followed up with two more loses on the road.

I think I've read this identical from springer a total of 15 times. While I'm sure it's purely a coincidence, interesting to note the Dogs have lost a total of 15 times.

littlewolf is soooo right, everyone else has to take a chill pill - even good teams have crappy nights, and this sort of thing can happen. For springer it's no use, because he's so sure he's right a whole bottle of chill pills won't help.

[canucklehead]

No need to take a chill pill because the team isn't playing good hockey right now and some people are just recognizing it. The sad part is when ya can't admit they aren't playing like a #9 team the PK has been brutal 3 more goals tonight.

I'm not saying they suck never said that at all but I do call a spade a spade and right now they are not playing like they are capable of. They have blown leads and had to hang on against Victoriaville, Moncton, Drummondville, and Val D'or and tonight they got their asses handed to them by a sub .500 team. These are the teams we should not have any trouble with.

I'm also not saying games like tonight don't happen cuz they do but it goes beyond tonight I just choose to not wear my rose coloured glasses everyday and the realize our PK is killing us.

I'm beginning to wonder if Mayer is losing confidence and this is causing the team to have less confidence as well cuz it seems like they play better when Fullerton is in net. I'm sure Mayer will be fine but he really needs to have a couple big games to get that confidence back because we all know he can play there is no question about it.

[mvp]

canucklehead said:

No need to take a chill pill because the team isn't playing good hockey right now and some people are just recognizing it. The sad part is when ya can't admit they aren't playing like a #9 team the PK has been brutal 3 more goals tonight.

I'm not saying they suck never said that at all but I do call a spade a spade and right now they are not playing like they are capable of. They have blown leads and had to hang on against Victoriaville, Moncton, Drummondville, and Val D'or and tonight they got their asses handed to them by a sub .500 team. These are the teams we should not have any trouble with.

I'm also not saying games like tonight don't happen cuz they do but it goes beyond tonight I just choose to not wear my rose coloured glasses everyday and the realize our PK is killing us.

I'm beginning to wonder if Mayer is losing confidence and this is causing the team to have less confidence as well cuz it seems like they play better when Fullerton is in net. I'm sure Mayer will be fine but he really needs to have a couple big games to get that confidence back because we all know he can play there is no question about it.

im not sure anyone else finds this funny but now that gallant unit is gone your our next closest thing to chsb that we have


as for you calling a spade a spade (lol) youve made 6 post in this thread 2 about the goaltending 2 about the ref 1 about there legs and 1 about fantasy

seems to me like always your rose color glasses are as tight as the game before

bottom line we got outplayed we deserved to lose and we did time to move on and learn from this game

[markofthebeast]

What happend to Gallant Unit??