QMJHL Saint John Sea Dogs

Saint John Earns a Hard-Fought 4-3 Victory

Published on April 4, 2008 under Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL)
Saint John Sea Dogs News Release


SAINT JOHN, NB --- The Saint John Sea Dogs improved their 2008 post-season record to 5-0 on Friday night, defeating the Acadie-Bathurst Titan by a score of 4-3 in Game One of their hotly-anticipated second round playoff series to take a 1-0 lead in the Battle of New Brunswick.

In an incredibly intense, back-and-forth battle between two evenly-matched combatants, the Sea Dogs were able to build a 4-2 lead over the course of the opening forty minutes of play prior to holding off a late surge by the Titan in laying claim to a dramatic one-goal victory.

Chris DiDomenico, Scott Howes, Michael Kirkpatrick, and Payton Liske all scored for Saint John in Friday's win while Tomas Svoboda (2) and Eric Faille responded for Acadie-Bathurst.

New Brunswick native Travis Fullerton earned the win between the pipes for the Sea Dogs, turning aside 28 of the 31 shots sent his way to capture First Star of the Game honours. At the other end of the ice, Nicolas Champion suffered the loss in goal for the Titan, surrendering four goals on 23 shots faced to fall to 4-3 in the 2008 President's Cup Playoffs.

The visitors were awarded the game's first power play on Friday, with the regular season's best man-up squadron earning the chance to flaunt their prowess 3:49 into the first period. Some impressive work by Fullerton, particularly during a pair of lengthy scrambles in Saint John's zone, propelled the Sea Dogs' penalty killing unit to a key special teams victory in the initial numerical discrepancy of the evening.

The league's best post-season power play unit was then given an opportunity to shine at the 5:52 mark of the opening frame when Maxime Renaud was assessed a two minute minor for high sticking. Seventy-four seconds into their first five-on-four opportunity of the night, overage winger Scott Howes took a pass from Alex Grant near the Acadie-Bathurst blue line and danced into the Titan zone with tremendous aplomb, outmanoeuvring a pair of defenders prior to ripping a wrist shot over Champion's glove in registering his sixth marker of the playoffs.

The Titan replied six-and-a-half minutes later, as Tomas Svoboda was able to pounce on a rebound produced by a Remi Blanchard wrist shot and muscle the puck across the Saint John goal line to improve his post-season goals total to three.

Saint John very nearly retook the lead in the 18th minute of play, as Chris DiDomenico set Scott Howes up for a close-range one-timer on a nifty backhand pass. The star forward's snap shot was stopped by Champion's right pad however, as the 17-year old goalie came up with his biggest save of the game in stoning Howes.

Another successful penalty kill by the Sea Dogs' defensive special teams unit late in the opening frame ensured that Friday night's contest entered the first intermission with the score knotted at one apiece.

The home team took a 2-1 lead early in the second period when Payton Liske beat Champion from just inside the Titan blue line with a high wrist shot that fooled the rookie net minder. David Stich drew the lone assist on Liske's power play marker, which came just 1:49 into the middle frame.

Midway through the second, speedy Francois Gauthier broke in all alone on Champion, electing to shoot on his breakaway attempt. The Titan goaltender made a blocker save on the 20-year old winger's wrist shot, keeping his team within immediate striking distance of the Sea Dogs in the process.

A moment later Eric Faille tied things up 2-2 when he beat Fullerton through the five-hole on a semi-breakaway to tally his first goal of the playoffs at the 10:51 mark of period number two.

During a four-on-four session, Saint John retook the lead when, after stoning a charging Francois Gauthier, Champion surrendered a sizeable rebound that Michael Kirkpatrick was able to bang home, putting the host squad up 3-2 on his second goal of the post-season.

For the duration of the second, several penalties were handed out by officials as play took a turn for the physical.

Another exceptional play by Francois Gauthier then led to the Sea Dogs fourth goal of the night. The veteran forward circled Acadie-Bathurst's zone in dynamic fashion, eluding several would-be checkers prior to spotting Chris DiDomenico dying of loneliness in the Titan slot. Gauthier slid the puck over to DiDomenico and the accomplished sniper made no mistake on his shot, burying his fourth playoff goal on a rocket of a one-timer.

DiDomenico's tally proved to be the final marker of the second period, as Friday's match reached the forty minute mark with the Sea Dogs leading 4-2.

Five minutes into the third period, Travis Fullerton robbed Washington Capitals prospect Mathieu Perreault from point-blank range, preserving his team's two-goal advantage in doing so. Fullerton robbed Perreault again two minutes later, denying the QMJHL's top scorer on a breakaway to

The Titan pulled to within one of Saint John at the 11:14 mark of regulation's final frame when Tomas Svoboda netted his second goal of the evening with Perreault and Tomy Joly picking up helpers on the successful scoring play which made things extremely interesting in the late-going.

That would be as close as the visitors would get however, as Fullerton and the Sea Dogs' stellar defensive core were able to thwart Acadie-Bathurst's best scoring attempts in the closing minutes of play, providing the 5,363 fans in attendance with a huge victory as Port City's major junior squad earned their fifth straight playoff win at the expense of one of their biggest rivals in what promises to be a grit-filled series filled with excitement galore.

These two teams will meet for Game Two of their intra-provincial series Saturday night at Harbour Station. The puck drops at 7:30pm as Saint John looks to take a 2-0 lead in the Battle of New Brunswick.

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Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League Stories from April 4, 2008


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