Missed Opportunity in Charlottetown
Published on January 9, 2026 under Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL)
Halifax Mooseheads News Release
The Mooseheads had a chance to take advantage of a team missing some key parts on Friday night in Charlottetown but came up short in a 5-3 loss to the Islanders.
The matchup was an important meeting in terms of the Eastern Conference standings and allowed the Isles to pull four points clear of the Herd, leaving Halifax stuck in seventh place in the conference. Charlottetown were without their second leading scorer Ross Campbell who was serving a suspension while newly signed Russian forward Ivan Ryabkin did not receive clearance to play and tough veterans Dylan MacKinnon and Tyler Peddle were out with injuries.
Nathan Leek and Marcus Kearsey both scored twice for the victors who celebrated a Y2K theme night in front of 2,904 fans at the Eastlink Centre.
Halifax got off to a hot start with a goal from Shawn Carrier just 18 seconds into the game when he fired in a shot following a drop pass from Samuel Rousseau who forced a turnover deep in the Charlottetown end. The goal was Carrier's team-leading 21st of the season.
Leek tied the game late in the period when he put one over the shoulder of goalie Nick Cirka on an odd man rush. The Mooseheads regained the lead at the 8:44 mark of the season period when Captain Owen Phillips circled behind the net and roofed a nasty backhand shot for a 2-1 Halifax advantage. Unfortunately for the Moose, the Isles went on a scoring streak with three consecutive tallies. Leek and Jude Herron put the home side ahead 3-2 through 40 minutes and Kearsey got the eventual game winner early in the third period.
The Moose fired 17 shots on goal in the final stanza and had some life late thanks to a Malik L'Italien blast that made it 4-3 with 4:31 remaining but that was as close as they would get. Kearsey's second of the game was a long range empty net goal to put the game out of reach.
Newly signed defenceman Brenden Espenell made his Mooseheads debut on the blueline and was on the third pairing with Eddy Doyle. Carlos Handel returned for the first time since playing for Germany in the World Juniors and picked up an assist on the L'Italien goal. Other players to be credited with helpers were Rousseau, Quinn Kennedy and Cam Minella.
Nick Cirka made 26 saves in the game while Donald Hickey got the win with 31 saves for Charlottetown. The Mooseheads will return home for a matchup with the Gatineau Olympiques on Saturday night at 7pm at Scotiabank Centre. Tickets are on sale now at Ticketmaster.ca.
Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League Stories from January 9, 2026
- Eagles' Road Trip Continues Today in Drummondville - Cape Breton Eagles
- Missed Opportunity in Charlottetown - Halifax Mooseheads
- Regiment Stop Sea Dogs 5-4 - Newfoundland Regiment
- Weekend Preview: Sea Dogs vs Regiment - Saint John Sea Dogs
- Wildcats Defend the Den against the Regiment Saturday Afternoon - Moncton Wildcats
- Islanders Sign Forward Ryan Staples from BCHL - Charlottetown Islanders
- Islanders vs. Mooseheads - Y2K Night at the Eastlink Centre - Charlottetown Islanders
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