QMJHL Saint John Sea Dogs

Saint John Completes Winning Weekend

Published on November 13, 2011 under Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL)
Saint John Sea Dogs News Release


SAINT JOHN - A tired Saint John Sea Dogs team found a way to win Sunday, coming up with a 5-3 victory after letting a two-goal lead get away.

Nathan Beaulieu had a goal and an assist for the Sea Dogs, and Stephen MacAulay, Jason Cameron, Tomas Jurco and Charles Roussel scored the other Saint John goals. Sebastien Auger made 23 saves for the win as the Sea Dogs won their 11th straight at home and improved to 19-6, the best record in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

Lukas Cingel had two goals for Baie-Comeau, J-P Caron added a single and Antonio Mastropietro made 11 saves in the loss. Baie-Comeau fell to 12-10.

The annual Support Our Troops game was preceded by an emotional Remembrance Day ceremony. In honour of the 158 Canadian Forces personnel who have been killed in the war in Afghanistan since 2002, 158 seats were set aside and marked with white crosses bearing each of the 158 names. The ceremony also included a performance by Terry Kelly of his well-known song Pittance of Time, and a military band performed O Canada.

Beaulieu opened the scoring at 6:25 of the first period. After Sea Dogs blueliners repeatedly kept the puck in the offensive zone, Oliver Cooper got the puck in the right-wing corner and fed Beaulieu sneaking in from the right point. The Montreal Canadiens prospect one-timed a shot from just inside the right-wing faceoff dot high to Mastropietro's glove side. Grant West got the other assist on the goal, Beaulieu's sixth of the season. West, picked up on waivers from the Moncton Wildcats, has seven points in eight games as a Sea Dog, including four on the modest three-game point streak he's riding.

MacAulay extended the lead to 2-0 at 11:07 of the opening frame. Jason Seed fired a shot from the right point that broke the stick of Carl Gelinas, and the Dogs were able to keep the puck in the zone. Seed got the puck back at the right point and slid it across to defensive partner Ian Saab. Saab fired a shot off the back boards that deflected to MacAulay driving to the other side of the net, and the St. Louis Blues draft pick made no mistake, depositing his sixth of the year.

Cingel, however, cut the lead in half at 14:45, firing a shot through Auger's five-hole to make it 2-1.

Cameron extended the lead with a beautiful goal midway through the second period. The sophomore centre skated down the right wing on a 2-on-1 with Scott Oke, then snapped a shot high to Mastropietro's glove side. The goal came at 8:49, leaving the appropriate time of 11:11 on the clock, a fitting tribute for Support Our Troops Day.

The Dogs couldn't hold the two-goal cushion, however, as Caron went the other way and beat Auger at 9:00 with a rocket high to the blocker side as Cameron's goal was still being announced.

Girard then equalized with a power-play marker at 1:52 of the third. But the Dogs pulled in front once again on a power play of their own, thanks to a Jurco rifle from the right-wing faceoff circle. Thirteen was a lucky number on the goal: It was the 13th of the season for No. 13 Jurco, and Beaulieu and Zack Phillips collected the assists - extending Phillips' league-best point streak to 13 games.

The Dogs faced some adversity midway through the final frame, as Beaulieu and Roussel were whistled for back-to-back slashing calls, giving Baie-Comeau a 5-on-3 power play for more than a minute. But Saint John survived with some great penalty-killing work, highlighted by Auger's glove save on a Tomas Filippi one-timer from low in the right-wing circle just after the first penalty expired.

Then, with Roussel jumping out of the box to join the rush and create a 3-on-1, he took a backhand feed from Danick Gauthier and knocked in a one-timer as he fell to the ice. The goal, Roussel's fifth, came at 8:34 and stood as the final mark in the scoring summary.

Auger continued to be sharp in preserving the lead. The rookie netminder showed off his reflexes with a nice save on Caron with about three minutes to go, as he kicked out his right pad to rob the 19-year-old from point-blank range.

Saint John's next home game is the best deal of the season - upper bowl tickets are just $6 for Wednesday's game against the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies. Tickets are available at the Harbour Station box office, by calling 506-657-1234 or online at www.tickets.harbourstation.ca.

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Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League Stories from November 13, 2011


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