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QMJHL Saint John Sea Dogs

Season-High Crowd of 6,488 Witnesses Hard-Fought Home Loss

March 5, 2010 - Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL)
Saint John Sea Dogs News Release


SAINT JOHN, NB --- The Saint John Sea Dogs came out on the losing end of an incredibly-entertaining hockey game on Friday night, dropping a 4-3 decision to the Moncton Wildcats in front of 6,488 fans at Harbour Station.

In a thrilling, back-and-forth showdown between two of the top teams in the Canadian Hockey League, regulation play and overtime failed to determine a victor. Moncton was able to take the decision by way of the shootout, marking the first time this season that Saint John has been defeated in a post-OT breakaway contest.

Tomas Jurco, Zack Phillips, and Mike Hoffman all scored for the Sea Dogs in a losing effort on Friday, while Brandon Gormley, Allain Saulnier, and Mark Barberio tallied markers for the Wildcats in the dramatic road victory. Kelsey Tessier and Nicolas Deschamps both converted on their shootout attempts for Moncton, with both Saint John shooters coming up empty in the penalty shot showdown.

Both goaltenders played exceptionally well throughout Friday's game, with Wildcat Shane Owen (35 saves) capturing his 13th victory of the year after denying Mike Hoffman and Tomas Jurco in the decisive shootout segment of the contest. Marco Cousineau, meanwhile, suffered his fourth loss as a Sea Dog despite turning in a solid 22-save performance between the pipes for the home team.

Saint John got off to a great start on Friday as superstar sniper Mike Hoffman blasted an absolute howitzer of a slap shot past Owen's left skate in the second minute of play to register the 44th tally of his overage campaign. Import winger Tomas Jurco doubled the hosts' advantage a moment later, taking a pass from Zack Phillips on the fly in Wildcats territory and beating Owen on an incredible backhand shot to improve his 2009-10 goals total to 22. The visitors then responded with back-to-back power play goals, as Brandon Gormley and Mark Barberio both converted on booming point shots to tie things up at two apiece.

Moncton pulled ahead 3:52 into the second period when rookie forward Allain Saulnier buried the seventh goal of his season at the end of a lengthy scramble in Saint John's zone. The Sea Dogs outshot the Wildcats 11-8 in the middle frame, but Shane Owen was able to keep the puck out of the net during a fast-paced stanza in sending Friday's intraprovincial showdown into intermission number two with the Hub City's major junior squad clinging to a precarious one-goal lead.

The Sea Dogs tied things up midway through the third period, as Fredericton, NB native Zack Phillips fired a loose puck past a sprawling Owen to register his 16th goal of the season. Saint John's defensive special teams unit then came up with a huge five-minute penalty kill late in regulation to force overtime in the battle between elite Q-league contenders.

Five minutes of overtime solved nothing, sending Friday's contest to a shootout from which the Wildcats ultimately emerged victorious. Despite the unfavorable result, Saint John narrowed the gap in the 2009-10 Brunswick News Rivalry Cup Standings by two points on Friday, picking up three points for the sell-out and one point for the shootout loss. Moncton now leads the season-long competition 16.5 - 14.5.

Up next for the Sea Dogs is a Sunday afternoon home game versus the Mooseheads. The puck drops at 4pm as Saint John looks to clinch the first division title in franchise history with a victory over Halifax. Tickets to this match - designated Fan Appreciation Day - are available by calling the Harbour Station Box Office at (506) 657-1234 or by visiting www.tickets.harbourstation.ca.

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Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League Stories from March 5, 2010


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