Q Plan To Return Feb. 3

The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League announced today that they plan to return to play on February 3. 

According to the press release, the league's objective remains to play a full 68 game regular season schedule. The revised schedule will be released on Monday with remaining games being played between Feb. 3 and May 1. Capacity restrictions for every rink will be determined by each province's Public Health guidelines. 

Our Halifax Mooseheads tweeted that they will restart the schedule on a road trip due to the current restrictions in place in Nova Scotia until February 14. Fans will be notified of further information regarding home games as it becomes available. 

The 2022 President Cup playoffs format will be announced at a later date but they will begin on May 5 and conclude no later than June 15. With a later playoffs, a new schedule for the 2022 Memorial Cup will also be released in the upcoming weeks. 

Herd Word

Some news from the past week or so as we are in the middle of January and things keep changing. 

MIRON WAIVED

I missed this in amidst all the other news last week but forward Landon Miron was put on waivers by the Halifax Mooseheads and quickly got claimed by the Val-d'Or Foreurs on January 7. The 19-year-old from Dartmouth, NS had one goal and two assists in 18 games this season in Halifax. Since joining the Mooseheads as an undrafted free agent in 2019, Miron has produced 15 goals and eight assists for 23 points in 75 career QMJHL games. 

Good luck Landon in Val-d'Or, we'll miss you in Moose Country. 

HERD ADD FREE AGENT
This was rumoured shortly after the trade deadline passed last Thursday and it was confirmed by the club on Monday. The Herd have added 19-year-old free agent Evan Boucher who comes from Timmons, ON. He was second in the CCHL's scoring race with 22 goals and 40 points in 27 games with the Brockville Braves prior to signing with Halifax. According to the release, Boucher played 92 career CCHL games between Rockland, Nepean and Brockville, putting up a total of 78 points. "He is a big forward who plays physically and has a good scoring touch. We think he will be a nice compliment to our roster", said General Manager Cam Russell. 

Welcome to the team Evan. He will wear number 71 according to the club's Twitter account.

OLYMPICS CANCELLED
Kind of old news as it was announced before Christmas but I was still hoping some way we'd get to see NHL players in the 2022 Winter Olympics next month. The National Hockey League along with the Players Association decided that its players would not participate in the Olympics in Beijing. Many different reasons were the cause of the league making this decision like the uncertainty about how long players would have to quarantine in China should they test positive, safety concerns as well as the fact that the NHL has had to postpone multiple games this season because of government restrictions and league protocols. 

This means that we won't see Jakub Voracek, Nico Hischier, Timo Meier and Nikolaj Ehlers heading over seas to represent their countries which is really unfortunate especially as Ehlers helped Denmark qualify for the tournament. We could still see a few alumni suit up but we'll have to wait and see as it seems only the USA and Czech Republic have released their new rosters. Minor professional league players can be named and it sounds like NCAA guys can too. 

ALL-STAR SELECTIONS
One event is still going on next month for NHL players at least for now. The league announced the rosters for the 2022 All-Star game. Former Herd Nathan MacKinnon was named captain of the Central Division team via a fan vote. This is the 4th time MacKinnon has been made an all-star in his career. The 26-year-old has 6 goals and 35 points so far this season with the Colorado Avalanche. Another Moose alum Timo Meier will play for the Pacific Division in his first all-star appearance. Meier is 10th in league scoring with 39 points (15 goals+24 assists) for the San Jose Sharks. 

The 2022 Honda NHL All-Star Game will take place on February 5 in Las Vegas at the T-Mobile Arena and will feature a three-game tournament, played in a 3-on-3 format. 

Congratulations to Nathan and Timo on their all-star game nod. Good luck boys, Moose Country will be cheering you on.

DRAFT RANKINGS
3 members of our Halifax Mooseheads were listed in the NHL Central Scouting Mid-Season Rankings released on Wednesday. Defenceman Jake Furlong was ranked #53 on the most recent list which predicts he'll be a second round draft pick. Surprisingly, forward Jordan Dumais is ranked only as high as #72 which would put him in the third round. If he keeps having the season that he has been, I suspect we'll see him being higher up the list by the time the draft rolls around. Forward Markus Vidicek is the last player from the Herd on the rankings at #98. 

In total, 36 QMJHL players were among the names that ranked by the scouting services with Gatineau Olympiques defenceman Tristan Luneau the highest ranked Q player. Other projected first-round selections from the league include Maveric Lamoureux (Drummondville) and Nathan Gaucher (Quebec). Shane Wright of the Kingston Frontenacs continues to be the projected 1st overall pick. For the full list of prospects, click here. 

Talking about prospects, the Canadian Hockey League announced on Friday that the 2022 Kubota CHL/NHL Top Prospects game originally scheduled for February 2 has been postponed due to ongoing challenges caused by the pandemic. A new date will be released at a later date. 

Q SEASON POSTPONED 
From the QMJHL
With no clear timeline of COVID-19 restrictions being eased, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League today announced the postponement of its return to play plans. 

Initially scheduled for a return in the week of January 17, the regular season will resume on February 1. The league is still working on rescheduling all postponed games, with the primary objective of having all franchises play their full 68-game schedule.  

Photos - Saltwire, Herd website, Avalanche & Sharks Twitter accounts

Christmas Break Extended In QMJHL

The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League announced today that they have decided to extend the league's holiday break amid the rising cases of COVID-19 in Eastern Canada. The pause includes all activities until January 7, 2022. Players will report back to their clubs on January 3, 2022 according to the press release. 

Postponed games will be rescheduled at a later date. The QMJHL is currently working on updated protocols which will include preventative testing prior to the arrival of players and staff within the team environment. The regular season schedule will hopefully resume on January 7, 2022. 

No word from our Halifax Mooseheads yet on what this will mean for the Hurley Cup games that were supposed to be before the new year. 

This move by the league really is no surprise. The National Hockey League has changed the dates of its holiday break and it will now begin tomorrow. 

Photo - QMJHL website

QMJHL Season Begins Tonight

The 2021-22 QMJHL regular season begins this evening with the defending champion Victoriaville Tigres hosting the Shawinigan Cataractes at 8 p.m. Atlantic time. 

Some news before we get into the previews. 

Last week, the Canadian Hockey League announced that the 2021 CIBC Canada Russia Series will not be played given the ongoing challenges presented by the global pandemic. Details regarding the 2022 event will be announced at a later. This kind of sucks as it would've been nice to see if a couple of Halifax Mooseheads players were invited. We'll have to wait now most likely until December to see if Zachary L'Heureux and Elliot Desnoyers or any other guys will participate in Team Canada's world junior camp.

Three of the four current Mooseheads players that were invited to NHL main camps have been reassigned back to the junior club earlier this week. Bobby Orr and Cameron Whynot were released from the Carolina Hurricanes and Calgary Flames respectively on Saturday meanwhile Zachary L'Heureux got sent down by the Nashville Predators on Monday. From the Herd's preview for the home opener, L'Heureux is currently day-to-day with an upper body injury suffered at Predators camp last week. He is also due to serve the remaining three games of a four-game suspension to start the year after receiving the sentence on April 13th of last season. 

James Swan and Attilio Biasca will be out to start the season after both players suffered hand injuries during training camp and remain on the sideline indefinitely with a mid-to-late October return timeframe. Halifax is hopeful that they will have forwards Jordan Dumais and Vincent Gauthier in the lineup when puck drops tomorrow night after they both received injuries as well. 

Welcome back Moose Country! The Halifax Mooseheads have been permitted by the Nova Scotian government to host games at full capacity once again. Proof of full vaccination will be required meanwhile masks will still be mandatory for the immediate future. Check out the video the team put out to hype up fans. 

Even though our Halifax Mooseheads failed to make the CHL Top 10 pre-season rankings, which were released today, I thought I would share the list anyways. There are four QMJHL teams who got ranked with two of them coming from the Maritimes division. Another Maritime club is in the honourable mentions (London Knights, Charlottetown Islanders, Brandon Wheat Kings). 

Now let's get to the previews from other media personnel.

• Sportsnet has one question for every team in the Quebec league. 
• Junior hockey is finally getting back to normal after the pandemic wiped out the 2020 post-season for all 3 leagues under the CHL and the Ontario Hockey League lost it's entire 2020-21 season. 
• CBC Sports' Rob Pizzo and CHL play-by-play man Victor Findlay try to preview the season below. 
  
  
  
  
• Saltwire's Willy Palov, who has been covering the Halifax Mooseheads for years, has shared his thoughts on how good the Herd will be this year. 
• Most analysts have Halifax finishing the regular season 4th in the Maritimes division including Stephane Leroux from RDS and Palov from Saltwire

Yes it's going to be another different season but I am really excited to get back to cheering for the boys and hopefully it will be much more normal year. With a number of the Mooseheads' leading scorers returning and being a year older, Halifax should have an offensive team and could make some waves in what will be a tough Maritime division. Go Moose Go! See you Saturday Moose Country. 

Photos - QMJHL, Mooseheads & CHL websites

Herd Word

MESSAGE TO MOOSE COUNTRY
With the news on Tuesday afternoon that Nova Scotia will be delaying the start of Phase 5 of its reopening plan, questions were brought up about what restrictions will be in place for the Halifax Mooseheads home opener. According to Scotiabank Centre, the game will go on as planned but fans will be required to wear a mask at all times except for when eating or drinking and need to provide a proof of vaccination. The regulation around vaccination proof is not a surprise as it was announced that everyone attending would need it back a few weeks ago. 

See below the full message from the Herd.

INJURIES
The season hasn't even officially started and Cam Russell is already dealing with injuries. Elliot Desnoyers had surgery earlier in the summer and has been rehabilitating during the last while in Philadelphia but is expected to be in the lineup come opening night. Halifax was dealt another blow to their forward group over the weekend as two more players went down during training camp. Hand injuries will keep out sophomores James Swan and Attilio Biasca for a significant amount of time. 17-year-old Swan suffered a broken hand during practice last Thursday and is expected to be gone for 4-6 weeks. Biasca, 18, left Saturday's pre-season match early because of a thumb injury and was to undergo surgery this past Monday. How long he will be out is not clear at this time. 

PEETERS

Our Halifax Mooseheads have gotten one player back from NHL rookie camps as the Arizona Coyotes returned forward Senna Peeters to the club Wednesday. This means that the 19-year-old will not participate in the Coyotes prospect tournament like I thought he would. We may see a couple more players be sent back this weekend but hopefully one or two will make main camps later in the month. 

Here's a picture of Senna in the Coyotes uniform. The Duerne, Belgium native was a free agent invite.

MEMORIAL CUP
The announcement of who will host the 2022 Memorial Cup has been delayed again. It was originally planned to be made the week of Sept. 6 but was pushed to this week. Journalist Kevin Dube reported that the identity of the chosen team will be revealed next week now. Only two teams put their names forward for this year's tournament; the Saint John Sea Dogs and the Quebec Remparts. Saint John has never hosted the Memorial Cup while Quebec last hosted it in 2015 and in 2003 before that. 

It will be back-to-back years for the QMJHL to host the flagship tournament as the Halifax Mooseheads were the last team to host in 2019. The past two (2020 and 2021) have been cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The tournament will be held later this year from June 2-12. 

TOMILSON

20-year-old Brendan Tomilson was not without a team for long as he was acquired by the Pickering Panthers of the Ontario Junior A Hockey League the other day. Tomilson was released by the Mooseheads at the end of August despite having a stronger season in 2020-21 where he scored 3 goals and picked up 9 points in 25 games played. The Cameron, ON native had 8 points in 55 games the year before. 

Good luck Brendan with your new team in Picketing. 

Photos - Herd Twitter & Panthers Twitter

QMJHL Starting Season October 1

Photo - Herd website

There will be a 2020-21 QMJHL season. Uncertainty across all sports leagues have been prevalent the last 5 months since they all shut down mid-March because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. For one junior hockey league, that uncertainty has become a bit clearer. The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League has announced that it will begin the new season on October 1st. It will look a lot different than previous years and there are still multiple questions to be answered over the coming weeks but at least we have a concrete date now to get excited for.

The main points of the press release below are; there will be 3 divisions this year and teams will play their divisions only, a 60-game regular season schedule, Quebec teams will for sure play with no fans while it is to be determined for the Maritimes clubs and finally, 34 players will be invited to training camp instead of the normal 50ish.

Press release from August 14

"The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League today announced that it is planning to return to play on October 1, 2020 following positive dialogue with Provincial Governments and Public Health Agencies.

Since the 2019-2020 season and the President Cup playoffs were cancelled last March, the Commissioner’s office has been preparing a sustainable return to play protocol to ensure a safe environment for players, team staffs, fans and its communities. Over the past several weeks, the league has had continued dialogue with government officials and Public Health Agencies of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Quebec to propose a plan in line with Public Health directives and guidelines.

In order to begin the season on October 1^st, with training camps and return to school deadlines coming up at end of August, the league had to decide on whether or not to start the 2020-2021 season. The League’s mission is to develop players both academically and athletically while providing the safest possible environment. In view of the urgency of the situation and in line with our mission, the members voted in favour of returning to play on October 1st.

Following our conversations with both the Provincial Governments and Public Health Agencies, it has been determined that the 2020-2021 season will be played behind closed doors in Quebec, while details are currently still being discussed for the Maritimes.

Training camps will open on August 30th and teams will be limited to 34 invitees. The regular season will include a 60-game schedule and the League will be divided into three divisions. All regular season games will be played within six-team divisions while the playoff format will be announced later in December. The 102nd Memorial Cup presented by Kia is scheduled to be played from June 17-27, 2021, in Oshawa or Sault St. Marie."

QMJHL Cancels Regular Season

Photo - QMJHL website

Well, it's official. The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League announced on Tuesday afternoon that they have decided to cancel the remainder of the 2019-20 regular season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

A number of fans figured this would be the outcome eventually but it doesn't make it any easier. No word on if playoffs will go ahead or not yet. The regular season was scheduled to conclude on March 21, 2020. Final standings are below;

1. xy Sherbrooke Phoenix   63GP  51-8-3-1 record  106pts 

2. xy Moncton Wildcats   64GP  50-13-1-0 record  101pts

3. xy Chicoutimi Sagueneens   63GP  45-12-5-1 record  96pts

4. x Cape Breton Eagles   63GP  40-20-2-1 record  83pts

5. x Rimouski Oceanic   64GP  38-18-4-4 record  84pts

6. x Drummondville Voltigeurs   63GP  36-25-2-0 record  74pts

7. x Charlottetown Islanders   64GP  33-26-5-0 record  71pts

8. x Blainville-Boisbriand Armada   63GP  32-27-2-2 record  68pts

9. x Rouyn-Noranda Huskies   63GP  29-30-2-2 record  62pts

10. x Victoriaville Tigres   63GP  26-28-5-4 record  61pts

11. x Saint John Sea Dogs   64GP. 30-33-1-0 record  61pts

12. x Shawinigan Cataractes   63GP  29-32-2-0 record  60pts

13. x Val-d'Or Foreurs   63pts  26-30-5-2 record  59pts

14. x Quebec Remparts   64GP  27-32-4-1 record  59pts

15. x Baie-Comeau Drakkar   64GP  24-29-7-4 record  59pts

16. Gatineau Olympiques   64GP  22-37-5-0 record  49pts

17. Halifax Mooseheads   63GP. 20-38-3-2 record  45pts

18. Acadie-Bathurst Titan   64GP  12-40-8-4 record  36pts

The QMJHL also announced that they have cancelled four events that were supposed to take place after the regular season. The Golden Puck Awards Gala, the New England Showcase, the Gatorade Excellence Challenge and the Goaltenders Development Camp were all removed from the schedule because of the restrictions that have been put in place by the government and health authorities. 

Mooseheads Players Going Home

The Halifax Mooseheads players are returning home, a team statement announced today.

Halifax also said that their business office and the Official Mooseheads Shop in Scotia Square Mall until further notice.

Read the full statement below from the Mooseheads website.

With the current QMJHL season on pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all Mooseheads players have been returned to their families where their health and safety will continue to be a top priority.

The Mooseheads organization is following recommendations by Nova Scotia public health officials and has closed the business office along with the Official Mooseheads Shop in Scotia Square Mall until further notice. All staff members will continue to work remotely during these unprecedented times. For general inquiries please contact mooseheads@halifaxmooseheads.ca.

The Canadian Hockey League released the following statement on Friday about the 2020 Memorial Cup which is to be held in late-May.

CHL Season Suspended Until Further Notice

HALIFAX - The remainder of the 2019-20 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League season has been suspended indefinitely as of March 12.

News release:

The Canadian Hockey League and its three regional leagues the Ontario Hockey League, Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, and Western Hockey League, take the health and safety of our players, fans, volunteers, staff, and general public very seriously. CHL President Dan MacKenzie with Commissioners David Branch, Gilles Courteau, and Ron Robison have been monitoring the situation in regard to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) including what local, provincial, and federal health agencies have recommended. Following consultation with medical professionals and meetings today among the CHL Executive Council, and regional league Board of Governors, the CHL announces that the balance of the 2019-20 season and all hockey activity shall be paused immediately until further notice. 

It was announced as well that players will remain in the area with their billet families. No official word from the Halifax Mooseheads but considering there is no hockey activity for the foreseeable future, practices and team gatherings I am sure are suspended too.

This news came hours after the National Hockey League suspended their season because of the Coronavirus. It is unknown when the play will return, if it will at all for this season.

If the regular season does not resume, at least our Mooseheads went out on a high note by defeating the Charlottetown Islanders on Tuesday evening on the island by a score of 7-4.