Sea Dogs Earn Electrifying 9-7 Road Win Over Wildcats
November 21, 2010 - Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL)
Saint John Sea Dogs News Release
MONCTON, NB --- Another chapter was added to the epic saga chronicling the intense rivalry between the Saint John Sea Dogs and Moncton Wildcats on Sunday afternoon, as the Port City's major junior squad earned an incredible comeback victory over their regional adversaries in their first visit of the season to the Moncton Coliseum.
After incurring an early 4-0 deficit the Sea Dogs stormed back with a vengeance, scoring six unanswered goals to take a 6-4 lead into the second intermission. Sunday's third period saw Saint John and Moncton each striking thrice as the furious back-and-forth action continued unabated, with the visitors ultimately taking the decision by a 9-7 final. By virtue of Sunday's result the Sea Dogs now lead the Wildcats 8-2 in the 2010-11 Brunswick News Rivalry Cup standings.
Stanislav Galiev, Jonathan Huberdeau, Zack Phillips, Guillaume Cloutier, Mike Thomas, Steven Anthony, Ryan Tesink, Stephen MacAulay, and Simon Desprs all scored for Saint John in their dramatic come-from-behind road victory, while overage goaltender Jacob DeSerres made 22 saves in picking up the 72nd win of his CHL career.
At the other end of the ice, Daniel Milan (2), Alex Saulnier (2), Allain Saulnier, Daniel Pettersson, and Marek Hrivik all tallied markers in a losing effort for Moncton, while Shane Owen allowed eight goals on 37 shots faced in suffering his seventh regulation defeat of the year.
Moncton took an quick 2-0 lead on Sunday, with Daniel Pettersson and Marek Hrivik both finding the back of the net in the opening 4:12 to prompt an early goaltending change for the visitors as Jacob DeSerres replaced Frdric Pich between the pipes for Saint John in the fifth minute of play. The Saulnier twins (Alex and Allain) then tallied back-to-back power play goals to put the home team up by four.
Rookie defenseman Guillaume Cloutier reduced Saint John's deficit to three in the final minute of the opening frame, beating Owen on a long-range wrist shot to both improve his 2010-11 goals total to two and sew the seeds of a soon-to-be-flourishing comeback as Sunday's intraprovincial showdown reached the twenty minute mark.
St. Louis Blues prospect Stephen MacAulay pulled the Sea Dogs to within two of their opponents one minute into the second period, banging home a rebound produced by a Simon Desprs backhander that concluded a brilliant one-on-three rush into Wildcats territory by the superstar blue-liner. An absolute howitzer of a one-timer off the stick of Team Captain Mike Thomas then brought Saint John to within one of the reigning league champs at the 4:15 mark of the middle frame. Danick Gauthier and Simon Desprs both picked up assists on Thomas' even-strength marker.
Desprs tied the match up at four apiece 3:44 later, recording his fifth of the year on a well-placed shot that Owen was unable to prevent from hitting pay dirt. Freshman forward Ryan Tesink then gave the Sea Dogs their first lead of the afternoon in the 33rd minute of play, exhibiting top-notch dexterity in redirecting a feed from fellow Saint Johner Aidan Kelly to the back of Moncton's net.
Jacob DeSerres came up with a big save for the visitors a moment later, thwarting a three-on-one Wildcats rush by stopping a hard Devon MacAusland shot to keep his team's one-goal lead in tact. With 0.7 seconds remaining in the second period, Saint John added an insurance goal when Vancouver Canucks prospect Steven Anthony deflected a Kevin Gagn shot past Owen to improve his career goals total to 51.
The Sea Dogs' tsunami-like momentum carried over into period number three, as sophomore sniper Zack Phillips finished off a picture-perfect tic-tac-toe passing play with linemates Tomas Jurco and Jonathan Huberdeau in the opening minute of the stanza to give the division leaders a 7-4 advantage. Daniel Milan then scored two quick power play goals for the Wildcats to make the score 7-6 in Saint John's favour midway through the third.
Sophomore scoring sensation Jonathan Huberdeau gave the Sea Dogs their eighth tally of the match 28 seconds after Milan's second man-up marker, jamming a loose puck across the Moncton goal line to register the 16th offensive strike of his season. The Wildcats struck again with the man advantage seven minutes later, as Alex Saulnier pulled the hosts back to within immediate striking distance of their archrivals with his second PPG of the afternoon. That would be as close as Moncton would get however, as import winger Stanislav Galiev scored into an empty net at the 19:14 mark of the third to seal the deal for Saint John and put an end to an incredibly-entertaining afternoon of fast-paced QMJHL hockey.
Up next for the Sea Dogs (19-3-0-2) is a Friday night showdown with the Acadie-Bathurst Titan at Harbour Station (puck drop - 7:30pm). Tickets to this November 26 tilt can be obtained by calling the arena box office at (506) 657-1234, or by visiting www.tickets.harbourstation.ca .
Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League Stories from November 21, 2010
- Sea Dogs Win a Crazy One - Moncton Wildcats
- Foreurs vs. Rocket remake set for Monday - QMJHL
- Sea Dogs Earn Electrifying 9-7 Road Win Over Wildcats - Saint John Sea Dogs
- Rocket Game Vs. Val-D'Or Rescheduled to Tomorrow - P.E.I. Rocket
- Winning Streak Ends in 4-2 Loss at Quebec - Lewiston MAINEiacs
- Game Between Foreurs And Rocket Postponed - QMJHL
- PEI Rocket Forced to Postpone Game - P.E.I. Rocket
- Game Between Foreurs And Rocket Delayed - QMJHL
- Today's Game Delayed Until 7:00 pm - P.E.I. Rocket
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