Sea Dogs Annihilate Foreurs 11-0 At Harbour Station
Published on January 30, 2010 under Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL)
Saint John Sea Dogs News Release
SAINT JOHN, NB --- The 2009-10 edition of the Saint John Sea Dogs officially became the winningest incarnation of the five-year-old team on Saturday night, as the Port City's major junior squad demolished the Val-d'Or Foreurs by a score of 11-0 at Harbour Station to earn their franchise-record 42nd victory of the season.
Saint John thoroughly dominated all aspects of play on Saturday, scoring early and often en route to registering a dramatically one-sided home victory. Jonathan Huberdeau (3), Gabriel Bourret, Stanislav Galiev, Tomas Jurco, Mike Hoffman, Zack Phillips, Danick Gauthier, Michael Kirkpatrick, and Nicholas Pard all contributed goals in the lopsided affair, with overage goalie Marco Cousineau making 26 saves in recording his second shutout as a Sea Dog.
At the other end of the ice, Foreurs net minder Jacob Gervais-Chouinard fell to 4-3 on the season after allowing eleven goals on 42 shots faced in what was assuredly a long night between the pipes for the 17-year old native of Sherbrooke, QC.
The game's opening shift proved to offer much in the way of foreshadowing, as sophomore winger Danick Gauthier shoveled a backhand shot to the back of Val-d'Or's net in giving the Sea Dogs a 1-0 lead just 14 seconds into the match. Superstar sniper Mike Hoffman doubled the hosts' advantage just a minute-and-change later, blasting a snap shot past Gervais-Couinard to tally his league-leading 33rd goal of the season.
Import winger Tomas Jurco then tipped home a Yann Sauvé point shot in the ninth minute of play, with a net-lurking Jonathan Huberdeau knocking a loose puck into an open 4' x 6' cage late in the first period to send Saturday's showdown into intermission number one with Saint John fully in command of the proceedings with a 4-0 advantage on the scoreboard.
Some remarkable puck movement by the Sea Dogs' #1 offensive line made the score 5-0 in the opening minute of the second period, with Stanislav Galiev finishing off an incredibly-fluid passing play by firing his 13th goal of the season into a wide open net. Mike Hoffman and Nick Petersen both picked up well-earned assists on the even-strength marker.
Nicholas Pard got in on the action a moment later, sneaking a close-range shot past Gervais-Couinard from a tough angle to improve his 2009-10 goals total to 12 and put his team up by an unconverted touchdown.
Freshman forward Zack Phillips made the score 7-0 at the 17:19 mark of the middle frame on a clear-cut breakaway, beating Gervais-Couinard high on a nifty backhand shot to register the ninth goal of his rookie season. Jonathan Huberdeau also got a backhander by Gervais-Couinard a moment later, sliding a low shot through the rookie goalie's pads to pick up his second goal of the night.
Michael Kirkpatrick opened the third period by wiring a snap shot past Gervais-Couinard following a successful face-off win by Huberdeau in the Foreurs' zone. Kirkpatrick's 21st of the year made the score 9-0 in Saint John's favour. Huberdeau then put the finishing touches on his first career hat trick, streaking down the wing and firing the tenth goal of the game past a beleaguered Jacob Gervais-Couinard at the 13:56 mark of regulation's final frame.
A goal by Gabriel Bourret late in the stanza further added to the shellacking. The scoreboard ultimately read Sea Dogs 11 - Foreurs 0 as Saturday's match eventually came to a mercy-laden end. Saint John came up just one goal short of their single-game record of 12, a mark set on January 18, 2008 versus the P.E.I. Rocket.
Up next for the Sea Dogs is a Friday night match versus the Halifax Mooseheads in Nova Scotia's capital city. The puck drops at 7pm as the top-ranked team in the CHL looks to kick off their February schedule with a road win at the expense of their divisional adversaries.
Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League Stories from January 30, 2010
- Sea Dogs Annihilate Foreurs 11-0 At Harbour Station - Saint John Sea Dogs
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