Top Herd

Now that the regular season is over, I will be awarding my overall Top Herd player award. Now this is not an official award nor do I have a trophy but it is just something fun I have been doing this season as editor of this blog and a big fan of the Mooseheads.

And the winner is.....

Nikolaj Ehlers

Even though he was second in team scoring behind Jonathan Drouin, Ehlers has had the best rookie season in Mooseheads history since Ladislav Nagy in 1998-99 season. He ended the regular season with 104 points and was so close to getting 50 goals on the season. Three straight hat tricks in the weekend changeover of February and March helped make that record a possibility but he could not get the second goal he needed to in the last game to reach 50 goals, ending the season with 49. He's also skates fast and makes smart plays most of the time that allow the team an opportunity to score.


Here is the list of my Top Herd that I have done this season. I didn't name one every game.
Sept 1       Moncton - Nikolaj Ehlers
Sept 25     Bathurst - Trey Lewis
Sept 28     Baie-Comeau - Zach Fucale
Sept 29     Sherbrooke - Nikolaj Ehlers
Oct 11      Blainville - Ryan Falkenham
Oct 12      Saint John - Kevin Darveau
Oct 15     Cape Breton - Darcy Ashley
Oct 18     Val-d'Or - Nikolaj Ehlers
Oct 19     Rouyn-Noranda - Jonathan Drouin
Oct 23     Charlottetown - Austyn Hardie
Nov 8      Moncton - Brent Andrews
Nov 9      Saint John - Matt Murphy
Nov 14    Drummondville - Jonathan Drouin
Nov 22    Bathurst - Mac Weegar
Dec 29    Cape Breton - Kevin Darveau
Mar 6      Charlottetown - Nikolaj Ehlers
Mar 14    Saint John - Philippe Gadoury
Mar 15    Cape Breton - Jonathan Drouin



Thank you Moose Country fans for making this the most viewed page on my blog. I'm glad you enjoyed it and I look forward to doing it again next season.

It's Over.

Game Four Recap

Series: HAL wins 4-0

STARS: 3. Ehlers HAL | 2. Weegar HAL | 1. Drouin HAL

Attendance: 1,418

CHARLOTTETOWN - The Halifax Mooseheads were too much for the Charlottetown Islanders tonight. Mason McDonald couldn't keep up his strong play and despite putting more pressure on Halifax, the Islanders were killed tonight in game four. For the first 15 minutes the Islanders kept it tied at zero-zero but Nikolaj Ehlers got the ball going with his third goal of the series. The Mooseheads would go on to score 10 goals, including 5 in the second period, to have a commanding lead before rookie Daniel Sprong got the home team on the board at 15:51 of the third period. Kameron Kielly got credited for the Isles second goal as he was the last one to touch the puck before it was tipped in past Kevin Darveau off Matt Murphy's stick blade. Ehlers, Jonathan Drouin and Mackenzie Weegar had two goals each to power the road team. 

FINAL: Halifax 11 at Charlottetown 3

Point getters: HAL Drouin 4 (2G & 2A), Weegar 3 (2G & 1A), Ciampini 3 (1G & 2A), Ehlers 2 (2G), D. Moynihan 2 (1G & 1A), Meier 2 (1G & 1A), Gadoury 2 (2A), C. Moynihan & Leblanc 1G each, Lussier, Shewfelt, Murphy & Watt 1A each; CHA DiPaolo 2 (2A), Vance, Sprong & Kielly 1G each, Pelletier & Cortese 1A each

Goaltenders: McDonald & Brassard CHA | Fucale & Darveau HAL

Shots 1st: 13-12 CHA | 2md: 22-3 HAL | 3rd: 10-8 HAL

Powerplay CHA 1/3, HAL 2/7

OUT OF TOWN

Blainville 2 - 3 Moncton

Gatineau 7 - 1 Cape Breton

Val-d'Or 8 - 2 Bathurst 

PLAYOFF GAMEDAY #4: at Charlottetown

IT'S GAMEDAY

CHARLOTTETOWN ISLANDERS vs. HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS

Halifax leads 3-0

Puck drops at 7:00pm

Eastlink Centre (3,717) ~ Charlottetown, PEI

PREVIEW - After a day off on Wednesday because of a snow storm that hit the Atlantic Region that postponed last night's game four to tonight, the two teams will look to get back on the ice. The Charlottetown Islanders is once again going to have to get better defensively if they hope to extend their season. The good news is that the shots that Mason McDonald is facing are getting a little bit less and he was able to limit Halifax to 4 goals on Tuesday night. The Mooseheads will look to sweep their first round series tonight so they don't have to come back tomorrow.

NOT PLAYING - Ryan Falkenham (hips), Austyn Hardie (upper body), Darcy Ashley (injured) & Brent Andrews (upper body) will not play for Halifax

NOTES - With the injuries starting to pile up now, Halifax has recalled Cavan Fitzgerald and Max Fortier for the remainder of the playoffs.

PLAYOFF SERIES

Game 1 Mar 21 Islanders 3 at Mooseheads 6

Game 2 Mar 22 Islanders 1 at Mooseheads 7

Game 3 Mar 25 Mooseheads 4 at Islanders 1

Game 4 Mar 26 Mooseheads at Islanders

*Game 5 Mar 28 Islanders at Mooseheads

*Game 6 Mar 30 Mooseheads at Islanders

*Game 7 Apr 1 Islanders at Mooseheads

OUT OF TOWN

Armada at Wildcats - 6:00pm

Olympiques at Eagles - 7:00pm

Foreurs at Titan - 7:30pm

GAME COVERAGE

TV: Eastlink

Live: @islandersgmday

Radio: News 95.7

Webcast: TELUS

Post-game: The Chronicle Herald, Islanders Country blog

NEXT GAME

It depends on how this game ends, if Charlottetown wins then Game 5 will be Friday night at 7pm.

Game 4 Postponed

Game 4 between your Halifax Mooseheads and the Charlottetown Islanders has been postponed from tonight to tomorrow night. The league had discussions with both teams early this afternoon and decided to postpone the game as a safety caution for everyone involved. Though the storm reached PEI later than it did in Nova Scotia, it would get bad really fast and fans would not be able to get to the game.

Look for a game preview tomorrow afternoon of Game 4 when the Islanders will try to get back in the series. Puck drops at 7pm on Thursday night.

Tonight's Cape Breton Screaming Eagles/Gatineau Olympiques game is postponed as well. That game was supposed to be played in Sydney at 7pm.

PLAYOFF GAMEDAY #3: at Charlottetown

IT'S GAMEDAY

CHARLOTTETOWN ISLANDERS vs. HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS

Halifax leads 2-0
Puck drops at 7:00pm

Eastlink Centre (3,717) ~ Charlottetown, PEI

PREVIEW - Will being in front of home fans help the Islanders get back in this series or will it be too overwhelming for the team that finds themselves down 0-2 going to PEI? Halifax was able to sweep the first home portion of this first round series and will look to sweep the road part too tonight and tomorrow. Charlottetown will have to get past the defense and get more shots on Zach Fucale if they have any hope of winning a game becuase we all know that Mason MacDonald, the Haligonian Islanders goalie, can stand on his head but as we saw in the first two games he can do it for only so long. The duo of Nikolaj Ehlers and Jonathan Drouin though might just be too much to handle for this young team that started out well but slid in the latter half of the season. After the rough stuff in Halifax, it'll be interesting to see how the two teams play on the ice in Charlottetown. The Mooseheads were the only ones to get any extra discipline from the fight at 15:51 of the third period.

NOT PLAYING - Ryan Falkenham (hips), Brandon Vuic (suspended), Austyn Hardie (upper body) & Brent Andrews (upper body) will not play for Halifax

NOTES - Brandon Vuic of the Mooseheads was suspended for one game for his fight he had Saturday night against Hanley.

PLAYOFF SERIES

Game 1 Mar 21 Islanders 3 at Mooseheads 6

Game 2 Mar 22 Islanders 1 at Mooseheads 7

Game 3 Mar 25 Mooseheads at Islanders

Game 4 Mar 26 Mooseheads at Islanders

*Game 5 Mar 28 Islanders at Mooseheads

*Game 6 Mar 30 Mooseheads at Islanders

*Game 7 Apr 1 Islanders at Mooseheads 

OUT OF TOWN

Armada at Wildcats - 7:00pm

Olympiques at Eagles - 7:00pm

Foreurs at Titan - 7:30pm

Drakkar at Cataractes - 8:00pm

Oceanic at Sagueneens - 8:00pm

Voltigeurs at Tigres - 8:30pm

Remparts at Huskies - 8:30pm

GAME COVERAGE

TV: Eastlink

Live: @islandersgmday

Radio: News 95.7

Webcast: TELUS

Post-game: The Chronicle Herald, Islanders Country blog

NEXT GAME

Halifax will stay on the island for another game to play game 4 on Wednesday night versus Charlottetown. Puck drops at 7pm.

MC interviewed by TheHKYHatGuy

As most of you know or should by now if you read my blog, the Halifax Mooseheads are playing the Charlottetown Islanders in the first round of the 2014 QMJHL playoffs. I, at MooseCountry blog, am not the only fan in this series that has a fan site dedicated to one of the two teams. Herdcast has a podcast of the Mooseheads and invited a Islanders superfan named the HKYHatGuy to talk about the series on their next episode. HKYHatGuy invited me on to his show this past weekend and after having some technical issues, the YouTube video is live. We talk about the first two games between the 2 teams where Herdcast's was setting up the series.

Watch the whole video, I am about five minute mark. 

GO MOOSE GO and good luck in Charlottetown boys.

Around the CHL ~ volume #3 playoff edition #4

This is a bit late sorry. In this Around the CHL we will look at the 24 playoff series that are taking place in the Canadian Hockey League. For those of you who do not know, the teams in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League playoffs are fighting for the President's Cup, the Ontario Hockey League teams play for the J. Ross Robertson Cup while the teams in the Western Hockey League hope to win the Ed Chynoweth Cup.

President's Cup playoffs
#1 vs #16 Baie-Comeau - Shawinigan {regular season series BAC 5-1-0-0}
#2 vs #15 Halifax - Charlottetown {regular season series HAL 8-1-0-0}
#3 vs #14 Val-d'Or - Acadie-Bathurst {regular season series VAL 2-0-0-0}
#4 vs #13 Rimouski - Chicoutimi {regular season series tie 3-3-0-0}
#5 vs #12 Blainville-Boisbriand - Moncton {regular season series BLB 2-0-0-0}
#6 vs #11 Drummondville - Victoriaville {regular season series DRU 4-0-0-0}
#7 vs #10 Quebec - Rouyn-Noranda {regular season series QUE 3-1-0-0}
#8 vs #9 Gatineau - Cape Breton {regular season series tie 1-1-0-0}

J. Ross Robertson Cup playoffs
#E1 vs #E8 Oshawa - Mississauga {regular season series OSH 3-0-0-0}
#E2 vs #E7 North Bay - Niagara {regular season series NIAG 3-2-0-1}
#E3 vs #E6 Kingston - Peterborough {regular season series KGN 5-0-1-0}
#E4 vs #E5 Barrie - Sudbury {regular season series SBY 5-3-0-0}

#W1 vs #W8 Guelph - Plymouth {regular season series GUE 3-0-0-1}
#W2 vs #W7 Sault Ste. Marie - Owen Sound {regular season series SSM 2-0-0-0}
#W3 vs #W6 Erie - Saginaw {regular season series ER 3-1-0-0}
#W4 vs #W5 London - Windsor {regular season series LDN 5-1-0-0}

Ed Chynoweth Cup playoffs
#E1 vs #E8 Edmonton - Prince Albert {regular season series EDM 2-1-0-1}
#E2 vs #E7 Regina - Brandon {regular season series BDN 5-3-0-0}
#E3 vs #E6 Calgary - Kootenay {regular season series KTN 4-2-1-1}
#E4 vs #E5 Medicine Hat - Swift Current {regular season series tie 2-2-0-0}

#W1 vs #W8 Kelowna - Tri-City {regular season series KEL 4-0-0-0}
#W2 vs #W7 Portland - Vancouver {regular season series POR 4-0-0-0}
#W3 vs #W6 Victoria - Spokane {regular season series SPO 3-1-0-0}
#W4 vs #W5 Seattle - Everett {regular season series tie 5-4-1-0}

Tonight's games
Armada vs. Wildcats at 7PM
Greyhounds vs. Attack at 8PM
Otters vs. Spirit at 8:11PM
Hitmen vs. Ice at 10PM

Tuesday's games
Mooseheads vs. Islanders at 7PM
Armada vs. Wildcats at 7PM
Olympiques vs. Eagles at 7PM
Foreurs vs. Titan at 7:30PM
Battalion vs. IceDogs at 8PM
Storm vs. Whalers at 8PM
Colts vs. Wolves at 8PM
Drakkar vs. Cataractes at 8PM
Oceanic vs. Sagueneens at 8PM
Frontenacs vs. Petes at 8:05PM
Knights vs. Spitfires at 8:05PM
Generals vs. Steelheads at 8:30PM
Voltigeurs vs. Tigres at 8:30PM
Remparts vs. Huskies at 8:30PM
Tigers vs. Broncos at 10PM
Oil Kings vs. Raiders at 10PM
Hitmen vs. Frontenacs at 10PM
Winterhawks vs. Giants at 11PM
Rockets vs. Americans at 11:05PM
Silvertips vs. Thunderbirds at 11:05PM

Q Playoff Update

After three days of QMJHL playoff action, all eight series have begun and there have been surprises and some shocking story lines. So on this Sunday with no action in the Q lets check out how the other seven series are doing in the league.

#1 Baie-Comeau Drakkar vs. #16 Shawinigan Cataractes
Well no surprise here, the number one team in the league is leading the series 2-0-0-0 after 3-1 and 5-1 game scores this past weekend. Baie-Comeau scored three of there 8 goals on the powerplay at home out of 14 chances. Leading the Drakkar is Jeremy Gregoire with one goal and two assists for 3 points in two games. Alexis D'Aoust is leading the Cataractes a goal and assist. The two teams get back to the ice in Shawinigan on Tuesday night.

#3 Val-d'Or Foreurs vs. #14 Acadie-Bathurst Titan
The Titan find themselves down 0-2-0-0 in this first round series after losing two games in Val-d'Or by final scores of 3-0 and 4-1 respectively. If Bathurst has any chance of winning the series, playing the next three games at home could just help them out. Guillaume Gelinas scored a goal and assisted on three others leading the charge for the Foreurs while rookie Aaron Kerr scored the only goal for the Titan. They too get back on the ice on Tuesday in Bathurst.

#4 Rimouski Oceanic vs. #13 Chicoutimi Sagueneens
The fourth of 5 2-0-0-0 series. Rimouski won twice at home, the first game ended with a close final score of 5 to 3 and blew the Sags in the second game 6-1. Sebastien Sylvestre leads the Oceanic with 4 points (2 goals & 2 assists) while Chicoutimi is led by former Moosehead Dominic Beauchemin who has 2 goals and an assist. The series now shifts to Sagueneen territory on Tuesday.

#5 Blainville-Boisbriand Armada vs. #12 Moncton Wildcats
The one series that people think will be an upset is living up to its name. The two teams have won a game each in Blainville. The Armada squeaked out a win on Thursday night, the first game of the Q playoffs, by a score of 3-2. Despite being outshot 46-26 Moncton led most of the second game until Blainville were able to tie it up in the last 5 minutes of the game to force overtime. Game two of this series ended in a 6-5 overtime win for the Wildcats. Ryan Tesnik has scored twice and has 2 assists in two games to lead the Armada while rookie Ivan Barbashev leads the Wildcats with 5 points. Monday will see the two teams return to the ice in the only game that night.

#6 Drummondville Voltigeurs vs. #11 Victoriaville Tigres
Another series that is tied at one game each. Victoriaville stole the first game by a score of 4 to 3 but lost the next night 6-5 in Drummondville. A goal and 3 assists by Christophe Lalancette leads the Volts and Philippe Hudon leads the Tigres with 2 goals. The series now shifts to Victoriaville for game three on Tuesday night.

#7 Quebec Remparts vs. #10 Rouyn-Noranda Huskies
Well a freaky story has come out of this series. Jason Fuchs took a hard shot in to the hand and immediately dropped his gloves and skated to the bench. The shot had made him lose a finger but likely no amputation is needed however his return is not known at this time. Francis Perron leads the Huskies with 3 assists and whose team won 5-4 in overtime on Friday. Quebec had a better game the next evening winning 7-3 while being led by Nick Sorenson who has 4 goals and 2 assists in the two games. Tuesday evening will also see this series get back on the ice this time in Rouyn-Noranda.

#8 Gatineau Olympiques vs. #9 Cape Breton Screaming Eagles
This was another series that people thought the lower seeded team would come out on top however Cape Breton is getting killed. The Screaming Eagles lost both games in Gatineau by scores of 7-2 and 8-2 respectively. The Olympiques are led by Simon Tardif-Richard who has 7 points in two games while Cameron Darcy has a goal and an assist to lead Cape Breton. Gatineau will look to sweep the series on the road starting Tuesday when they are in Sydney for three straight games.


Your Mooseheads travel to the island for the next two games trying to sweep the series against the Charlottetown Islanders after winning both games at home this past weekend. Having a man advantage, or two, has played a big role in this series as the two teams are 10 for 29 over the 2 games.

PLAYOFF GAMEDAY #1: vs Charlottetown

IT'S GAMEDAY

HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS vs. CHARLOTTETOWN ISLANDERS

Series tied 0-0

Puck drops at 8:00pm

Metro Centre (10,595) ~ Halifax, NS

PREVIEW - Well what is this year going to bring. Your Halifax Mooseheads, as we all know, are starting the postseason as defending President Cup and Memorial Cup champions. This season though, the team had it's problems to start the year. They lost Nathan MacKinnon to the NHL, Jonathan Drouin was sent back to the team after spending September in Lightning camp and the Mooseheads had to battle injuries for pretty much the first half of the season. They came together though as a team and battled it out with the help of Drouin and rookie sensation Nikolaj Ehlers. Goaltender Zach Fucale even broke his own goals against average record that he had set last season, only letting in an average of 2.28 goals per game.

Charlottetown on the otherhand couldn't keep their strong start to the season going and were battling for a playoff spot in the latter part of the season with 5 other teams. The strong play of Mason MacDonald in the Islanders net was the reason why they won as much as they did. Rookie Daniel Sprong led the offense that struggled to score all year. If Charlottetown has any hope of winning a game this series, MacDonald will have to be stellar and the defense will have to shut down the duo of Ehlers and Drouin.

It's go time! We will have to wait to see what this postseason will be bring but it will no doubt bring a lot of excitment.

SEASON SERIES
Halifax went 8-1-0-0 against the Islanders this year while Charlottetown went 1-7-1-0 against the Mooseheads

September 13, 2013 - Charlottetown def. Halifax 5-2
October 23, 2013 - Halifax def. Charlottetown 4-2
November 15, 2013 - Halifax def. Charlottetown 4-3
December 8, 2013 - Halifax def. Charlottetown 4-1
January 8, 2014 - Halifax def. Charlottetown 5-2
January 15, 2014 - Halifax def. Charlottetown 5-2
February 19, 2014 - Halifax def. Charlottetown 5-1
March 6, 2014 - Halifax def. Charlottetown 7-4
March 11, 2014 - Halifax def. Charlottetown 3-2 OT

NOT PLAYING - Ryan Falkenham (hips) and Austyn Hardie (upper body injury)

NOTES

• Please be aware of the time change, this is because tonight's game will be on Sportsnet
• Willy Palov of The Chronicle Herald makes his predictions
• The Islanders mantra for this playoff series is #WhyNotUs, The Guardian has that story

TONIGHT'S GAMES
Huskies at Remparts - 8:00pm
Cataractes at Drakkar - 8:30pm
Titan at Foreurs - 8:30pm
Sagueneens at Oceanic - 8:30pm
Wildcats at Armada - 8:30pm
Tigres at Voltiguers - 8:30pm
Eagles at Olympiques - 8:30pm

GAME COVERAGE
TV: Sportsnet
Live: @MC_MooseCountry, @islandersgmday
Radio: News 95.7
Webcast: TELUS
Post-game: The Chronicle Herald

NEXT GAME
The two teams will meet again tomorrow night for game two of the playoffs series. Puck drop goes back to the normal 7pm.

Poll #4

With playoffs right around the corner I thought I would do another poll. Your Halifax Mooseheads have once again made it to the playoffs and will be looking to repeat as champions of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. They go into the playoffs as the second seed winning their last 13 games but not as dominate as they were last season. So my question is:

How far do you think the Mooseheads will go this year?
1. Gone in the first round
2. Gone in the second round
3. Gone in the third round
4. Lose in the President's Cup finals
5. Win it all again

Look to the side to place your vote or comment on the post, Facebook or Twitter.

The poll closes Saturday night at 11:52pm.

Around the CHL ~ volume #2 season edition #6

Here is the last regular season Around the CHL for this year. These are the final leaders for each of the three leagues. The 2014 Presidents Cup playoffs are just around the corner. For the first time since 2007 the Saint John Sea Dogs will miss the playoffs. GO Moose GO!

League leaders
Goals - Dane Fox 64 goals (OHL Erie Otters), Mitch Holmberg 62 goals (WHL Spokane Chiefs), Anthony Mantha 57 goals (QMJHL Val-d'Or Foreurs)
Assists - Connor Brown 83 assists (OHL Erie Otters), Jonathan Drouin 79 assists (QMJHL Halifax Mooseheads), Nicolas Petan 78 assists (WHL Portland Winterhawks)
Points - Connor Brown 128 points (OHL Erie Otters), Anthony Mantha 120 points (QMJHL Val-d'Or Foreurs), Mitch Holmberg 118 points (WHL Spokane Chiefs)
Defenceman points - Guillaume Gelinas 92 points (QMJHL Val-d'Or Foreurs), Shea Theodore 79 points (WHL Seattle Thunderbirds), Anthony DeAngelo 71 points (OHL Sarnia Sting)
Rookie points - Nikolaj Ehlers 104 points (QMJHL Halifax Mooseheads ), Nikita Scherbak 78 points (WHL Saskatoon Blades), Travis Konecny 70 points (OHL Ottawa 67's)
Goalie wins - Tristan Jarry 44 wins (WHL Edmonton Oil Kings), Justin Nichols 35 wins (OHL Guelph Storm), Zach Fucale 36 wins (QMJHL Halifax Mooseheads)
Save percentage - Coleman Vollrath 0.928 SAV% (WHL Victoria Royals), Justin Nichols 0.918 SAV% (OHL Guelph Storm), Phlippe Cadorette 0.916 SAV% (QMJHL Baie-Comeau Drakkar)
Goals against average - Tristan Jarry 2.24 GAA (WHL Edmonton Oil Kings), Zach Fucale 2.26 GAA (QMJHL Halifax Mooseheads), Oscar Dansk 2.39 GAA (OHL Erie Otters)

Division leaders
WHL - Kelowna Rockets 118 points/57 wins (B.C. division), Portland Winterhawks 113 points/54 wins (U.S. division), Edmonton Oil Kings 103 points/50 wins (Central division), Regina Pats 85 points/39 wins (East division)
OHL - Guelph Storm 108 points/52 wins (Midwest division), Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds 95 points/44 wins (West division), Oshawa Generals 90 points/42 wins (East division), North Bay Battalion 82 points/38 wins (Central division)
QMJHL - Baie-Comeau Drakkar 99 points/47 wins (TELUS East division), Halifax Mooseheads 97 points/47 wins (Maritime division), Val-d'Or Foreurs 94 points/46 wins (TELUS West division)

BMO CHL top ten ~ week 26
1. Kelowna Rockets {57-11-0-4} week 25 #1
2. Guelph Storm {52-12-2-2} week 25 #2
3. Portland Winterhawks {54-13-2-3} week 25 #3
4. Erie Otters {52-14-2-0} week 25 #5
5. Baie-Comeau Drakkar {47-16-2-3} week 25 #6
6. London Knights {49-14-1-4} week 25 #4
7. Halifax Mooseheads {47-18-0-3} week 25 #9
8. Edmonton Oil Kings {50-19-2-1} week 25 #10
9. Rimouski Oceanic {45-16-3-4} week 25 #8
10. Victoria Royals {48-20-1-3} week 25 #7
Honorable mentions: Calgary Hitmen {48-17-3-4 n/a}, Oshawa Generals {42-20-0-6 n/a}, Blainville-Boisbriand Armada {41-17-5-5 n/a}

Happenings since last edition
*Jonathan Drouin scored 7 points in one game earlier this week the most in his career
*Prince Albert & Red Deer had to play a WHL tie break game to see who would be the last team to make the playoffs with the Raiders being the victors

Golden Puck Awards Nominees Announced.

The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League announced today the nominees for the Golden Puck awards. Nikolaj Ehlers led your Mooseheads with three nominations while MacKenzie Weegar and Zach Fucale were nominated this year. I fully agree with the Halifax players nominated.

Here are the nominees for the awards that will be passed out on April 2nd:

*via the QMJHL
Michael Briere Trophy (Most Valuable Player)
Jonathan Drouin - Halifax Mooseheads
Anthony Duclair - Quebec Remparts
Anthony Mantha - Val-d'Or Foreurs

RDS Cup (Rookie of the Year)
Callum Booth - Quebec Remparts
Nikolaj Ehlers - Halifax Mooseheads
Nicolas Meloche - Baie-Comeau Drakkar
Julien Pelletier - Cape Breton Screaming Eagles
Jeremy Roy - Sherbrooke Phoenix
Daniel Sprong - Charlottetown Islanders

Emile "Butch" Bouchard Trophy (Best Defenseman)
Randy Gazzola - Val-d'Or Foreurs
Guillaume Gelinas - Val-d'Or Foreurs
Mackenzie Weegar - Halifax Mooseheads

Frank J. Selke Trophy (Sportsman of the Year)
Frederick Gaudreau - Drummondville Voltigeurs
Daniel Sprong - Charlottetown Islanders
Adam Stevens - Gatineau Olympiques

Michael Bossy Trophy (Top Professional Prospect)
Ivan Barbashev - Moncton Wildcats
Nikolaj Ehlers - Halifax Mooseheads
Alexis Vanier - Baie-Comeau Drakkar

Marcel Robert Trophy (TELUS Scholastic Player of the Year)
Dominic Talbot-Tassi - Blainville-Boisbriand Armada
Jeremy Gregoire - Baie-Comeau Drakkar
Louis-Philip Guindon - Drummondville Voltigeurs

Ron Lapointe Trophy (Coach of the Year)
Serge Beausoleil - Rimouski Oceanic
Jean-Francois Houle - Blainville-Boisbriand Armada
Eric Veilleux - Baie-Comeau Drakkar

Maurice Filion Trophy (General Manager of the Year)
Steve Ahern - Baie-Comeau Drakkar
Marc-Andre Dumont - Cape Breton Screaming Eagles
Dominic Ricard - Drummondville Voltiguers

Paul Dumont Trophy (Personality of the Year)
Zach Fucale - Halifax Mooseheads
Benoit Groulx - Gatineau Olympiques
Anthony Mantha - Val-d'Or Foreurs

Humanitarian and Community Involvement Trophy
Charles-David Beaudoin - Drummondville Voltigeurs
Brendan Duke - Halifax Mooseheads
Samuel Henley - Val-d'Or Foreurs

Raymond Lagace Trophy (Defensive Rookie of the Year)
Callum Booth - Quebec Remparts
Nicolas Meloche - Baie-Comeau Drakkar
Jeremy Roy - Sherbrooke Phoenix

Please note that the following trophies will be awarded at special pre-game ceremonies held at the beginning of the playoffs: Michel Bergeron (Offensive Rookie of the Year), Guy Carbonneau (Best Defensive Forward), Kevin Lowe (Best Defensive Defenseman), Robert Lebel (Best goals against average - team), Jean Rougeau (Regular Season Champions) and Luc Robitaille (Best Offensive Team)

Michel Bergeron Trophy
Nikolaj Ehlers - Halifax Mooseheads
Julien Pelletier - Cape Breton Screaming Eagles
Daniel Sprong - Charlottetown Islanders

Guy Carbonneau Trophy
Brent Andrews - Halfiax Mooseheads
Taylor Burke - Gatineau Olympiques
Felix Girard - Baie-Comeau Drakkar

Kevin Lowe Trophy
Justin Hache - Cape Breton Screaming Eagles
Jimmy Oligny - Rimouski Oceanic
Gabriel Verpaelst - Baie-Comeau Drakkar

The nominees for the Adminstrator of the Year, Marketing Director of the Year and Academic Consultant of the Year trophies will revealed at a later date as the actual awards will be presented at the Entry Draft in Sherbrooke.

First Round Schedule Released.

PLAYOFFS

#2 Halifax Mooseheads vs #15 Charlottetown Islanders

1st round

The Halifax Mooseheads released their first round schedule for the 2014 playoffs which they are playing against Charlottetown Islanders. 

HALIFAX - The playoffs are almost here. I can't believe it has been a little less than 7 months since the 2013-14 season began and now the regular season has wrapped up this past weekend. For the Mooseheads the playoffs will begin on Friday however the first game of the playoffs is on Thursday. For the third straight year, your Moose are playing against a Maritime team in the first round of the playoffs. This year their match up is against the first year new named Charlottetown Islanders. 

DIFFERENT SEASONS - The two Maritime rivals had different season this year. The Islanders were sold in the off season and the new management group made some changes including name, logo, colors and player dynamic. Charlottetown had one of their best starts to a season winning ten of their first thirteen contests to begin the first campaign as the Islanders. Halifax were streaky to start their 20th season having three 3 game win streaks in their first 20 games. Charlottetown only won 3 of their last 10 games to end the season while the Mooseheads won 13 straight. 

HEAD-TO-HEAD ~ all-time: 80 games 43-28-3-4-2; this season 9 games 8-1-0-0; playoffs: no games

LAST GAME - the Islanders are coming off a big 6-2 win versus the Saint John Sea Dogs to finish the season on Saturday evening while the Mooseheads once again finished at home against the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, winning a crazy game 8-6. 

Playoff tickets for game one on Friday and game two Saturday are still available at the Ticket Atlantic Box Office, select Superstores, www.ticketatlantic.com or by calling (902) 451-1121

Game #1

Friday March 21 @ 8:00pm at Halifax Metro Centre ~ Halifax, NS

Game #2 

Saturday March 22 @ 7:00pm at Halifax Metro Centre ~ Halifax, NS

Game #3

Tuesday March 25 @ 7:00pm at Eastlink Centre ~ Charlottetown, PEI

Game #4 

Wednesday March 26 @ 7:00pm at Eastlink Centre ~ Charlottetown, PEI

Game #5* 

Friday March 28 @ 7:00pm at Halifax Metro Centre ~ Halifax, NS

Game #6*

Sunday March 30 @ 3:00pm at Eastlink Centre ~ Charlottetown, PEI

Game #7*

Tuesday April 1 @ 7:00pm at Halifax Metro Centre ~ Halifax, NS

*if necessary

Halifax/Charlottetown first round matchup

It's over. The 2013-14 QMJHL regular season has come to a close and with the Baie-Comeau Drakkar winning tonight, your Halifax Mooseheads ended the season in 2nd place. The Mooseheads had to dig deep in the third period tonight to secure their 13th straight win, scoring 8 goals and allowing 6 tonight. Halifax will now play the 15th place Charlottetown Islanders in the first round of the 2014 playoffs.

The first game of the round will be this Friday night. The first game will begin at 8pm instead of the usual 7pm. This is because the game will be broadcasted on Sportnet.

Tickets to the general public will go on sale on Tuesday at 10am. You can buy tickets to game one and two at the usual places starting Tuesday morning.

Stay tuned to Moose Country for more playoff coverage.

GAMEDAY 67: vs Saint John

IT'S GAMEDAY

HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS vs. SAINT JOHN SEA DOGS

Puck drops at 7:00pm

Metro Centre (10,595) ~ Halifax, NS

PREVIEW - This is the biggest game of the season for the visiting team. The Saint John Sea Dogs are four points behind 16th place Shawinigan for the last playoff spot and if the Dogs get anything less than a win, they will find themselves out of the playoffs for the first time in seven years. They will look to end the home team's 11 game win streak.

The Halifax Mooseheads are going the opposite direction of the Sea Dogs. They are looking to end the season on a winning streak and will have a little bit tougher task this season. Halifax isn't dominating the league this season like they did last year. However they are firing on all cylinders including 11 straight wins now and their top players are scoring. Nikolaj Ehlers scored three straight hat trick 2 weekends ago and hasn't stopped his scoring touch. He has collected at least a point in each of the Mooseheads last eleven wins.


Halifax visited Saint John on Saturday night and in a physical affair won 4-0. Zach Fucale faced only 12 shots for the shutout while Philippe Gadoury powered the offense with two goals.


THE NUMBERS

Leading scorers
SNB: Oliver Cooper 57pts (28G & 29A), Matthew Highmore 50pts (19G & 31A), Nathan Noel 37pts (16G & 21A)
HAL: Nikolaj Ehlers 100pts (47G & 53A), Jonathan Drouin 98pts (26G & 72A), Darcy Ashley 76pts (29G & 47A)

HEAD-TO-HEAD
This season      6-1-0-0      31GF     14GA
October 1   Mooseheads 2 at Sea Dogs 4
October 12   Sea Dogs 0 at Mooseheads 3
November 9   Sea Dogs 5 at Mooseheads 7
November 23   Sea Dogs 0 at Mooseheads 5
January 4   Mooseheads 5 at Sea Dogs 3
January 21   Mooseheads 5 at Sea Dogs 2
March 8   Mooseheads 4 at Sea Dogs 0
March 14 @ 7pm Sea Dogs at Mooseheads
Last season   7-0-1-0   43GF   16GA
NOT PLAYING - Ryan Falkenham (hips) & Austyn Hardie

OUT OF TOWN
Eagles at Wildcats - 7:00pm
Titan at Islanders - 7:30pm
Drakkar at Sagueneens - 8:00pm
Oceanic at Remparts - 8:00pm
Foreurs at Armada - 8:30pm
Huskies at Voltigeurs - 8:30pm
Phoenix at Olympiques - 8:30pm
Tigres at Cataractes - 8:30pm

GAME COVERAGE
TV: None
Live: MC_MooseCountry, FraserTQN
Radio: News 95.7, News 88.9
Webcast: TELUS
Post-game: Station Nation blog, The Q News

AFTER THE GAME
Halifax will play its last home game of the season tomorrow night against Cape Breton. Puck drops at 7pm.

Soldout Weekend

For the second straight year, your Halifax Mooseheads final home weekend is soldout. According to the Mooseheads twitter, tickets for all 10,595 seats that are in the Metro Centre have been sold for Saturday's game. However there will probably be some empty seats as some of the tickets bought would be from scalpers who ask about $50-$100 for each ticket and thus they are not used.

It was annonced on Wednesday that Friday night's game versus the Saint John Sea Dogs had been soldout. Today the team announced that Saturday's game is also fully sold. The 10,595 fans that will be at each of the games this weekend will be in for some exciting games. The Sea Dogs are battling for their playoff lives and are looking for two points against Halifax to keep their season going. Should they loose, the 2013-14 QMJHL playoff picture will be set with just the final positions having to be decided.

The next night, your Mooseheads take on their provincials rivals which is always an entertaining game between them and the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles. Cape Breton is second in the Maritime division but do not have hope of catching up to Halifax in the standings as their is 17 points seperating the two teams. However the Eagles are still fighting for their final position with 9th to 11th are seperated by 3 points so Cape Breton will either play Quebec, Drummondville or Gatineau in the first round.

We're in for a treat this weekend. Go Moose Go!!


photo credit: activeendurance.com

Fan Appreciation Night THIS Saturday

Can you believe it? The 2013-14 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League regular season is coming to a close which means Fan Appreciation Day in Moose Country. The Halifax Mooseheads have announced how they plan to appreciate their fans on the last home game of the regular season on Saturday night.

When the Mooseheads hit the ice that evening to take on provincial rivals Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, fans will be blasted with a thing of the past. With this being their 20th season in the QMJHL, Halifax has decided to honor their first season by wearing replica jerseys of the 1994 season. These jerseys were worn by a couple of the biggest names in franchise history in Jean Sebastien Giguere and Jody Shelley. The 24 jerseys worn on Saturday night will be given to fans via lucky seat draws during the game.

The first 5,000 fans to walk through the doors that night will receive a commerative 20th annversary poster. According to the release "The in-game music and promotions will also have a 1994 theme for this event."

There will also be a special pre-game ceremony on Satuday night.

As is tradition in Moose Country, the Organization will recognize their three graduating 20 year old players, Brent Andrews, Darcy Ashley and Brendan Duke, during a pre-game ceremony.

Less than 500 tickets remain for the last home game of the season so if you want to see the provincial rivals battle it out to get ready for the playoffs you better act fast. You can purchase tickets by phoning in451-1221, going to ticketatlantic.com, visiting select Superstores or at the game.



FRIDAY SOLDOUT
The team announced today that  Friday night's game against the Saint John Sea Dogs is soldout. It is the first sellout of the season for the Moose. An 11 game win streak will definately get fans excited to see some hockey and the fact that it is March break and a Friday night helps too.

Follow me during both games on twitter at @MC_MooseCountry for live tweets and pictures. Go Moose Go.


photo credit: sportslogo.net

GAMEDAY 66: at Charlottetown

IT'S GAMEDAY

CHARLOTTETOWN ISLANDERS vs. HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS

Puck drops at 7:00pm

EastLink Centre (3,717) ~ Charlottetown, PEI

PREVIEW - It's the last road game of the season for your Halifax Mooseheads and the home team will be looking to keep their playoff hopes alive in front of a sellout crowd. The Charlottetown Islanders are going in the opposite directions they want to be going in at this point of the season, losing their last 2 games and going 3-5-1-1 in their alst 10. They started the season off quite well winning 10 of their first 13 games but lost the next 6 games which basically ruined their chances of clinching a playoff spot early. Despite the ups and downs they have had this season, the new management team has amde the town excited again about hockey as they have seen an increase in their attendance of an average of 500 per game. They will likely have good attendances in their last three games which starts tonight with their first sellout of the season.

The Mooseheads are looking like the team that won the President's Cup last season. They have won 10 straight games now and will look to close out the regular season still riding wins. With the next three games being against thier own division, they are basically gaurenteed to continue the streak. Saturday's season finale will be the toughest test however.


Charlottetown's first loss on this mini losing streak was against this very team back on Thursday in which the Mooseheads won 7-4. Seven Halifax players had multi point nights highlighted by Andrew Ryan and Darcy Ashley each getting 2 goals. Zach Fucale had to only face 25 shots in 60 minutes for the win.

THE NUMBERS

Leading scorers

HAL: Nikolaj Ehlers 98pts (47G & 51A), Jonathan Drouin 96pts (25G & 71A), Darcy Ashley 76pts (29G & 47A)

CHA: Daniel Sprong 64pts (28G & 36A), Alexandre Goulet 46pts (26G & 20A), Kameron Kielly 30pts (10G & 20A)

LAST GAMES

Charlottetown took on the Screaming Eagles in Sydney on Friday night and were defeated 5-2. Rookie Daniel Sprong scored both of the Islanders goals while Mason McDonald made 40 saves on 44 shots taking the loss.

Halifax last battled the Saint John Sea Dogs on Saturday night in Saint John. It was the Dogs last home game of the season and their were plenty of prizes given out. Phillipe Gadoury scored twice and Nikolaj Ehlers extended his point streak to 10 games. Zach Fucale made only 12 saves for his 6th shutout of the season in the Mooseheads 4-0 win.

HEAD-TO-HEAD
This season        7-1-0-0     36GF      19GA
September 13   Mooseheads 2 at Islanders 5
October 23   Islanders 2 at Mooseheads 4
November 15   Mooseheads 4 at Islanders 3
December 8   Mooseheads 4 at Islanders 1
January 3   Islanders at Mooseheads POSTPONED
January 8   Mooseheads 5 at Islanders 2
January 15  Islanders 1 at Mooseheads 5
February 19   Islanders 1 at Mooseheads 5
March 6   Islanders 4 at Mooseheads 7
March 11 @ 7pm   Mooseheads at Islanders
Last season   7-1-0-0   43GF    20GA
NOT PLAYING - Sam Leblanc (suspension), Austyn Hardie and possibly Jonathan Drouin (healthy) and Timo Meier (back); Brennan Bailey was called up for the rest of the season

OUT OF TOWN
Olympiques at Armada - 8:00pm
Foreurs at Huskies - 8:30pm

GAME COVERAGE
TV: None
Live: @islandersgmday, @CollenTQN
Radio: News 95.7
Webcast: TELUS
Post-game: The Q News

AFTER THE GAME
Your Mooseheads will finish out the 2013-14 season at home in the Metro Centre with the first tilt being against the team they played on Saturday, the Saint John Sea Dogs. As always puck drops at 7pm.

BREAKING: Ehlers ranked 7th

Halifax Mooseheads rookie Nikolaj Ehlers is ranked 7th in the March edition of Craig's 2014 NHL draft list. In the February edition he was ranked eighth. Ehlers keeps getting better as the season progresses, three straight hat tricks being one piece of evidence, and it will be interesting who actually takes him. If the draftees go where they are projected and were the season to end today, Nikolaj would become a Nashville Predator. Of course that is not how the NHL teams chose the draftees each year.

The top three stayed the same as the previous rankings with Sam Reinhart (Kooteney Ice) being raked #1 followed by Aaron Ekblad (Barrie Colts) and Sam Bennett (Kingston Frontenacs). The biggest jump into the top 10 ranked eligible players was Leon Draisaitl (Prince Albert Raiders) who is ranked 4th this month from 11th previously. Josh Ho Sang (Windsor Spitfires) jumped from 33rd to being in the top 20 at #20. 

Look back throughout the season to see what happens with these young players as they try to make their dream become reality.

For the full listing of players ranked #1 through #60 click here.

Axemen Move On

Former Halifax Moosehead captain Travis Randell and the Acadia University Axemen hockey team has booked their ticket to the University Cup which will be played in Saskatoon next week. The Axemen beat the Saint Mary`s Huskies tonight at the Halifax Forum 3-1 to take the best of five AUS final series 3 games to one game.

After five years playing for the Moose, Randell was accepted into Acadia University and joined the men`s hockey team last season and in 28 games with the team he collected a goal and an assist. In a full season this year, Travis had nine points. In 8 games during this year`s playoffs he had 3 goals and an assist to help the Axemen win the Atlantic University Sport championship. 

Congrats to Travis and Acadia on winning the AUS final. 

The Saint Mary`s Huskies have former Moosehead players on their team as well. Stephen MacAulay tied for first in playoff points with five goals and 6 assists in 11 games to help the Huskies reach the final round. MacAulay helped Halifax win the Memorial Cup last season in his fifth and final year. Stephen Gillard also played for the Mooseheads. 

Around the CHL ~ volume #2 season edition #5

We are 8 days away from the end of the regular season. I thought since I have been slacking on doing these monthly, I would do one now to let everyone know how close the race to the playoffs. GO Moose GO.

League leaders
Goals - Dane Fox 59 goals (OHL Erie Otters), Mitch Holmberg 57 goals (WHL Spokane Chiefs), Anthony Manha 53 goals (QMJHL Val-d'Or Foreurs)
Assists - Connor Brown 75 assists (OHL Erie Otters), Marcus Power 75 assists (QMJHL Rouyn-Noranda Huskies), Nicolas Petan 73 assists (WHL Portland Winterhawks)
Points - Connor Brown 118 points (OHL Erie Otters), Anthony Mantha 111 points (QMJHL Val-d'Or Foreurs), Mitch Holmberg 107 points (WHL Spokane Chiefs)
Defenceman points - Guillaume Gelinas 86 points (QMJHL Val-d'Or Foreurs), Shea Theodore 70 points (WHL Seattle Thunderbirds), Anthony DeAngelo 68 points (OHL Sarnia Sting)
Rookie points - Nikolaj Ehlers 97 points (QMJHL Halifax Mooseheads), Nikita Scherbak 73 points (WHL Saskatoon Blades), Travis Konecny 67 points (OHL Ottawa 67's)
Goalie wins - Tristan Jarry 40 wins (WHL Edmonton Oil Kings), Philippe Cadorette 34 wins (QMJHL Baie-Comeau Drakkar), Justin Nichols 34 wins (OHL Guelph Storm)
Save percentage - Coleman Vollrath 0.930 SAV% (WHL Victoria Royals), Anthony Stolarz 0.928 SAV% (OHL London Knights), Philippe Cadorette 0.918 SAV% (QMJHL Baie-Comeau Drakkar)
Goals against average - Coleman Vollrath 2.24 GAA (WHL Victoria Royals), Zachary Fucale 2.30 GAA (QMJHL Halifax Mooseheads), Oscar Dansk 2.35 GAA (OHL Erie Otters)

Division leaders
WHL - Kelowna Rockets 110  points/53 wins (B.C. division), Portland Winterhawks 101 points/48 wins (U.S. division), Edmonton Oil Kings 95 points/46 wins (Central division), Regina Pats 80 points/37 wins (East division)
OHL - Guelph Storm 101 points/49 wins (Midwest division), Oshawa Generals 88 points/41 wins (East division), Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds 86 points/40 wins (West division), Sudbury Wolves 74 points/32 wins (Central division)
QMJHL - Baie-Comeau Drakkar 94 points/45 wins (TELUS East division), Halifax Mooseheads 89 points/43 wins (Maritime division), Blainville-Boisbriand Armada 87 points/39 wins (TELUS West division)

BMO CHL top ten ~ week 24
1. Kelowna Rockets {52-10-0-4} week 23 #1
2. Guelph Storm {49-11-2-1} week 23 #2
3. Portland Winterhawks {47-13-2-3} week 23 #3
4. Baie-Comeau Drakkar {44-15-1-3} week 23 #4
5. London Knights {44-13-1-4} week 23 #6
6. Erie Otters {46-13-1-4} week 23 #5
7. Blainville-Boisbriand Armada {39-14-4-5} week 23 #8
8. Victoria Royals {45-17-1-3} week 23 #9
9. Rimouski Oceanic {40-15-3-4} week 23 #10
10. Calgary Hitmen {44-15-3-4} week 23 n/a
Honorable mentions: Edmonton Oil Kings {45-17-2-1 #7}, Halifax Mooseheads {42-18-0-3 n/a}, Oshawa Generals {41-17-0-5 n/a}


Happenings since last edition
*Kelowna was the first team to reach 50 wins on the season when they beat Tri City on February 26th
*Halifax Mooseheads were the first and only team in the QMJHL to clinch the division title so far. They did it with the help of winning their last nine games
*The Rimouski Oceanic have the longest current winning streak having not lost a game in their last 12 contests
*The playoff race in most of the country for those last few spots are tight and will likely come down to the last day of the season

Note: the last day of the regular season for the QMJHL will be March 15 while the WHL and OHL will finish up their season the next day

How Great is Nate?

Well in one sense he is greater then "The Great One". Just a few months after being drafted first overall, Nathan MacKinnon collected 2 assists in his first ever National Hockey League game with the Colorado Avalanche. The Avs would go on to win 6-1 against the Anaheim Ducks in that opening game of their 2013-14 NHL season. With those 2 helpers, Nathan became the youngest player since 1944 to record two or more points in a game. (source)

10 days later in the nation's capital, MacKinnon scored on the left side of Michal Neuvirth to get his first professional goal. It was one of five goals that the Avs scored that night against the Washington Capitals in a 5-1 win, also Colorado's 5th striaght win.

Now 6 months later, Nathan has broken Wayne Gretzky's record of longest point streak by an 18 year old when MacKinnon assisted on the overtime winner in last night's 3-2 OT win versus the Detroit Red Wings. It was the thirteenth straight game that #29 had collected at least a point in the Avalanche uniform. Mr. Gretzky had recorded at least a point in 12 straight games back when he was 18 in the 1979-80 NHL season playing with the Edmonton Oilers. During the streak, Nate scored 5 goals and helped on 13 others for 18 points, a 1.38 points per game average.

Congratulations Nathan. Keep doing an awesome job in the NHL and I hope you get the Calder Trophy you deserve it.

GAMEDAY 64: vs Charlottetown

IT'S GAMEDAY

HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS vs. CHARLOTTETWON ISLANDERS 

Puck drops at 7:00pm

Metro Centre (10,595) ~ Halifax, NS

PREVIEW - What is tonight going to bring? Your Halifax Mooseheads are on a roll and are one of the hottest teams right now. Despite winning all three games this past week, the Moose find themselves still in the honorable mentions in the BMO chl top 10 rankings last night. Halifax has already clinched the division title for the second straight season. Nikolaj Ehlers will try to make history tonight and continue his point streak as will JONATHAN Drouin. Ehlers had hat tricks in each of the games this past week with the first two being natural hattie's. He also collected an assist in each of those 2 games. He comes into tonight's game on a 8 game point streak. Jonathan takes a 4 goal 9 game point streak into tonight's tilt versus the Islanders. 

Charlottetown on the other hand is battling for their lives trying to stay in the hunt for one of the last 3 playoff spots. They're doing a good job of late, collecting at least a point in their last three games. The last 2 games were against a team they are trying to push down the leaderboard, the Acadie-Bathurst Titan. The Oslanders will have to dig deep to defeat the home team tonight and not relay on a couple of their rookies who are leading the charge.


These two teams met on February 19 at the Metro Centre with the home team scoring 3 goals in the first period on route to a 5-1 victory. Nikolaj Ehlers had yet another 2 goal game and added 2 assists for a four point night to help the home team win.

THE NUMBERS

Leading scorers
CHA: Daniel Sprong 59pts (25G & 34A), Alexandre Goulet 43pts (25G & 18A), Kameron Kielly 30pts (10G & 20A)
HAL: Jonathan Drouin 95pts (25G & 70A), Nikolaj Ehlers 94pts (46G & 48A), Darcy Ashley 72pts (26G & 46A)

LAST GAMES
Halifax visited provincial rivals Cape Breton on Tuesday and scored 5 goals in each of the first 2 period en route to a 10-1 beating of the Screaming Eagles. Nikolaj Ehlers scored his third straight hat trick and Jonathan Drouin had 6 points  while Zach Fucale made 30 saves for the almost shutout.

Charlottetown is coming off a win against the Acadie-Bathurst Titan at home, coming from behind to win 3-1. Daniel Sprong and Kameron Kielly scored a goal each to add to their point totals and Mason McDonald stopped 23 shots for the victory.

HEAD-TO-HEAD
This season       6-1-0-0     29GF      15GA
September 13   Mooseheads 2 at Islanders 5
October 23   Islanders 2 at Mooseheads 4
November 15   Mooseheads 4 at Islanders 3
December 8  Mooseheads 4 at Islanders 1
January 3   Islanders at Mooseheads POSTPONED
January 8   Mooseheads 5 at Islanders 2
January 15  Islanders 1 at Mooseheads 5
February 19  Islanders 1 at Mooseheads 5
March 6 @ 7pm Islanders at Mooseheads
March 11 @ 7pm Mooseheads at Islanders
Last season   7-1-0-0   43GF   20GA

GAME COVERAGE
Live: @MC_MooseCountry, @islandersgmday
TV: None
Radio: News 95.7
Webcast: TELUS
Post-game: The Chronicle Herald

AFTER THE GAME
Halifax will travel to Saint John to take on the Sea Dogs at Harbour Station at 7pm. Join me for live in game tweeting as I will be joining the Mooster Club on this road trip.

BREAKING: Live Tweet in SJ

I know people are getting ready for the big tilt against the Moncton Wildcats but I wanted to mention something.

One week from today I will be live tweeting a road game!! 

Finally after joining the Mooster Club at the beginning of the season and getting emails upon emails of road trips that they were having, I am able to say I can join them for the last one of the 2013-14 season. Can you believe it's already March? We're getting down to the intensity of the season as teams fight for playoff positions. See my previous post for that story. 

As you all know I try my hardest to bring you in game live tweets from the Mooseheads home games as much as I can. Well now I can bring you tweets from a road game. On March 8 I will be hopping on a bus with a bunch of other Club members and travelling to Saint John as our boys take on the Sea Dogs. 

So follow me on Twitter at @MC_MooseCountry and check the Facebook page during the game for updates. 

Go Moose Go!!