Rebuilding Moose Get Home Opener Win

Photo - Ashley Hennigar

Wow what a way to begin the new home schedule. Your Halifax Mooseheads collected another two points on Friday after defeating the Quebec Remparts 4-2 in the team's home opener. The over 8,700 fans in attendance got to see the new 'improvements' to the Scotiabank Centre that included light up poles between the glass of the boards, new scoreboard graphics and a gigantic moose head below the retired number banners. After the players were announced, which was nice to see in itself following a five game road trip, the game started off well. Cade Moser got the good guys on the board first at the 4:44 mark of the opening period. Quebec tied it up about 30 seconds later and that would be the score after 20 minutes. Neither team was able to put the puck in the net during the middle frame but Halifax did have some great chances with a few power plays and outshot the Remparts 13-4 in the second. The Mooseheads started the third period on the man advantage and Shawn Carrier used it to put the home team up 2-1. After making it 3-1 late in the frame, Quebec pulled their goalie and was able to squeeze one by Mathis Rousseau with 36 seconds remaining to make it close. So far this season, this team has not looked like a rebuilding team so that is great to see the boys being competitive - I struggled to name a Top Herd tonight. 

FINAL: Remparts 2 at Mooseheads 4
Stars: 3. Patrick McNab HAL | 2. Mathis Rousseau HAL | 1. Shawn Carrier HAL
Attendance: 8,709
MC's Top Herd: Shawn Carrier

GAME LOG
First period
4:44 HAL Cade Moser (3) | A: MacPhee & Doyle
5:15 QUE Justin Cote (5) | A: Morrison & Lebel

Second period

None

Third period
1:36 HAL Shawn Carrier (4), PP | A: Crosby & Kilfoil
15:35 HAL Lou Levesque (3) | A: Handel & Martin 
19:24 QUE Nathan Quinn (4) | A: Straka & Vigneault 
19:56 HAL Braeden MacPhee (2), EN | A: Fontaine & Carrier 

Powerplay: QUE - 0-for-3; HAL 1-for-4
Shots: 29-26 in favour of Halifax

Next game
Halifax will be on home ice again Sunday afternoon welcoming the Rimouski Oceanic. Puck drops at 3:00 p.m.

Remparts Champions in Halifax

Our Halifax Mooseheads made it a series but in the end, the Quebec Remparts got a last minute goal in Game 6 and hosted the Gilles Courteau Trophy on Scotiabank Centre ice Sunday evening. It was yet another back and forth game tonight. The two teams were pretty even in the first period and after 20 minutes, the score was 0-0. Rookie Jack Martin scored the opening goal for the home team, recording his first of the playoffs, at the 2:18 mark of the second period. A little over three minutes later, overager Alexandre Doucet extended the Mooseheads lead to 2-0. Quebec got a power play opportunity late in the middle frame and they took advantage of it, making it a 3-2 Halifax game after 40 minutes. The Remparts came out in the third strong and Zachary Bolduc tied it up at the 5:18 mark. It looked like we would be going to another overtime as much didn't happen for about 10 minutes. With 3:13 left to go in regulation though, Zachary L'Heureux sent most of the 10,595 fans at the arena into a frenzy when he scored as the Mooseheads retook the lead. But the cheering didn't last long, as Quebec tied it again a minute later. 20-year-old Pier-Olivier Roy broke the hearts of the home team when he made it 5-4 for the Remparts with 59 seconds remaining. Congratulations to Quebec on winning the championship. We had a great series to witness and unfortunately for us Moose fans, it just wasn't meant to be this year. 

FINAL: Remparts 5 at Mooseheads 4
Stars: 3. Zachary Bolduc QUE | 2. Jack Martin HAL | 1. Alexandre Doucet HAL
Attendance: 10,300

GAME LOG
First period 
No scoring

Second period 
2:18 HAL Jack Martin (1) | A: Vidicek
5:38 HAL Alexandre Doucet (14) | A: Dumais & Martin
11:14 QUE Evan Nause (5) | A: Robidas & Savoie
15:24 HAL Josh Lawrence (12) | A: Dumais & Doucet
16:44 QUE James Malatesta (14), PP | A: Rochette & Bolduc

Third period
5:18 QUE Zachary Bolduc (11) | A: Rochette & Komarov
16:47 HAL Zachary L'Heureux (11) | A: Dumais
17:52 QUE Kassim Gaudet (5) | A: None
19:01 QUE Pier-Olivier Roy (6) | A: Gaudet

Powerplay: QUE - 1-for-3; HAL - 0-for-1
Shots: 36-25 in favour for Quebec

DID NOT PLAY - David Moravec and Attilio Biasca out with injuries

UP NEXT: Pre-season in August, opponent to be determined 

Schedule for Finals Released

The Halifax Mooseheads find themselves in the league finals once again and this year they will take on the Quebec Remparts. 

Halifax previously made it to the fourth round in 2003, 2005, 2013 and 2019 winning the championship once in 2013. The two teams ended the regular season with the best records in the league so it really isn't a surprise that they will determine the playoff champion. As Quebec finished with 109 points and the Mooseheads had 107 in the regular season, the Remparts will get home ice advantage in this series. The Remparts have had a pretty easy path to the upcoming series, winning the three previous rounds in sweeps while Halifax has gone 12-3 to get to this point in the post-season. Who will win the 2023 Gilles Courteau Trophy in about two weeks time? 

Find the schedule for the Mooseheads-Remparts series below: 

Game 1  Friday May 12 @ 8:00pm at Centre Videotron
Game 2  Saturday May 13 @ 8:00pm at Centre Videotron
Game 3  Tuesday May 16 @ 8:00pm at Scotiabank Centre
Game 4  Wednesday May 17 @ 8:00pm at Scotiabank Centre
*Game 5  Friday May 19 @ 8:00pm at Centre Videotron
*Game 6  Sunday May 21 @ TBD at Scotiabank Centre
*Game 7  Monday May 22 @ TBD at Centre Videotron

*If necessary 

You can watch the first two games of the series on Eastlink Community TV while TSN will broadcast the remaining matches hence the later times for our home games next week. 

Individual tickets for Games 3 and 4 in Moose Country will go on sale on Wednesday morning. 

Game Day 60: vs. Quebec

PREVIEW - Our Halifax Mooseheads host the league-leading Quebec Remparts for DND Appreciation Night this evening and will be looking for their fifth straight win. This game was supposed to be played months ago back in January but was postponed due to the pandemic. Halifax will have a pre-game ceremony and wear specially themed jerseys to honour those who are in the Canadian Armed Forces. They will have a tough test as the Remparts come to town with their QMJHL leading 85 points however the Moose haven't been slumps against top teams this season so it should be an interesting game. We'll also see three of the top 10 leading scorers during this match Theo Rochette (7th) and Zachary Bolduc (9th) of Quebec and Jordan Dumais (10th) of Halifax. Quebec is on a nine game win streak heading into tonight. 

Game coverage
TV: Webcast | Radio: News 95.7 | Live: @MC_MooseCountry | Post-game: Moose Country

Overall records
Remparts: 42-14-1-0 = 85 points (1st in East division, 1st overall)
Mooseheads: 31-26-1-1 = 64 points (4th in Maritimes division, 10th overall)

Leading scorers
HAL: Jordan Dumais 80pts (30G & 50A), Elliot Desnoyers 68pts (31G & 37A), Zachary L'Heureux 55pts (21G & 34A)
QUE: Theo Rochette 82pts (28G & 54A), Zachary Bolduc 80pts (41A& 39A), Nathan Gaucher 45pts (28G & 17A)

Head-to-head
Halifax is 0-1-0-0 against the Remparts this season while Quebec has a 1-0-0-0 versus the Mooseheads. The last game between the two clubs was on December 5 with the Remparts picking up a 3-2 victory on home ice. All five goals were scored by different players in the third period. 

Last games
Halifax is coming off a pretty dominating 5-3 victory over Moncton on last night. Jordan Dumais picked up his first career hat trick for the Mooseheads while Mathis Rousseau made 16 saves against the Wildcats.

The Remparts started their Maritime road trip with a 6-3 victory over Cape Breton on Thursday evening. Conor Frenette scored twice for Quebec who outshot the Eagles 50-25.  

Not playing - Probably a couple of healthy scratches

Out of town
Armada vs. Drakkar - 5:00 p.m.
Islanders vs. Eagles - 7:00 p.m.
Sea Dogs vs. Titan - 7:00 p.m.
Huskies vs. Foreurs - 8:00 p.m.

After the buzzer
Halifax will finish a three game home-stand when they welcome the Acadie-Bathurst Titan on Tuesday night. Puck drops at 7 p.m.

Saint John Named Memorial Cup Hosts

The Saint John Sea Dogs have been named the 2022 Memorial Cup hosts after a short bidding process. The announcement was originally supposed to be made the week of September 6 but was delayed twice, but the Canadian Hockey League came out with a video last night showing the trophy in the back of a car on the way to the host city which you can see here. 

From the CHL 
The Canadian Hockey League announced today that the Saint John Sea Dogs have been awarded the hosting rights of the 2022 Memorial Cup presented by Kia beginning June 3, 2022.

“We are extremely excited to be granting the rights to host this event to Saint John for the first time,” said CHL President Dan MacKenzie. “The bid committee did a fantastic job of outlining how Saint John will embrace the Memorial Cup with its Maritime hospitality to create an atmosphere that both celebrates the game and leaves a lasting legacy in the community.”

Founded in 2005, the Sea Dogs have participated in the Memorial Cup three times (2011, 2012, 2017) when the club finished as QMJHL President Cup titlists before claiming CHL supremacy in their first appearance. The 2022 rendition marks the first time the city of Saint John the year-end championship.

Finishing the 2020-21 season third place in the QMJHL’s Maritimes Division with a 15-14-3-1 record and 34 points, the Sea Dogs are led by general manager Trevor Georgie, head coach Gordie Dwyer, and returning leading scorer Ryan Francis. A Calgary Flames prospect, Francis is one of five NHL drafted prospects on the Sea Dogs alongside fellow forwards William Dufour (New York Islanders) and Cam MacDonald (Tampa Bay Lightning) as well as defencemen Jeremie Poirier (Calgary Flames) and William Villeneuve (Toronto Maple Leafs).

Saint John will be one of four teams to participate in the 2022 Memorial Cup presented by Kia alongside the playoff champion from each of the Western Hockey League, Ontario Hockey League, and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. All games from the 2022 Memorial Cup presented by Kia will be nationally televised by TSN and RDS.

“Like all hockey fans across the country, Kia Canada is excited to welcome the return of the Memorial Cup tournament, which honours the men and women who have and continue to serve our great country,” said Kia Canada Director of Marketing Michael Kopke. “Congratulations to the Saint John Sea Dogs on their successful bid.”

The 2022 Memorial Cup presented by Kia site selection committee consisted of Colin Campbell (Sr. Executive Vice-President of Hockey Operations, NHL), Natalie Cook (Vice-President of TSN/RDS, Bell Media), Nancy Orr (P.E.I. Chief Provincial Court Judge), Dan MacKenzie (President, Canadian Hockey League), and Sébastien Vézina (Partner, Lavery Lawyers).

The Sea Dogs were one of two clubs alongside the Quebec Remparts to submit bids to host the 2022 Memorial Cup presented by Kia. Cancelled the past two years due to the global pandemic, the Memorial Cup was last played in 2019 when it was hosted by the Halifax Mooseheads and where the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies ultimately won their first-ever CHL championship.

Congrats to GM Trevor Gregoire, the rest of the Sea Dogs organization and the city of Saint John on winning the bid and getting the tournament for the first time. Let's hope that we can get through this season without much interruption and can finally have the Memorial Cup be presented in 2022.  

Mooseheads Hold On For Series Win

Game 7 victory celebration
Photo - Ashley Hennigar

We're off to round two baby! It shouldn't have taken seven games but your Halifax Mooseheads officially eliminated the Quebec Remparts on Tuesday evening with a 3-1 victory. After losing the first two matches on home ice, the Mooseheads won 4 of the next five to get the series victory. Right from the opening puck drop, the over 8,000 fans in attendance were taunting Remparts head coach Patrick Roy, who has been very unhappy with goal calls seemingly being biased to the Herd and is just generally an interesting bench boss, with PATRICK chants. Quebec had the puck more often in the first 10 minutes and were able to get on the board first with a marker from Sam Dunn. The 20-year-old was a thorn in Arnaud Durandeau's back later in the third period, holding him and cross checking him but the referees just let the two teams play. Maxim Trepanier has been dominate since he returned from injury and he picked up his third goal of the post-season with just under 6 minutes remaining in the first to square the score. Jocktan Chainey broke the even game with a nice goal which was the second one of the match that Roy asked to be reviewed. Halifax played a pretty good defensive game in the final frame to hold the Remparts off the score sheet but there were a few minutes were the away team had some good pressure, especially during their power play in the third period. The Herd extended their lead late in the game and with 30 seconds left, the Moose Country faithful knew that it was over and stood cheering for the final moments plus the team celebration and handshakes.

FINAL: Remparts 1 at Mooseheads 3
Stars: 3. Sam Dunn QUE | 2. Jocktan Chainey HAL | 1. Alex Gravel HALAttendance: 8,168

GAME LOG
First period
8:27 QUE Sam Dunn (2) | A: Verrette & St- Laurent
14:09 HAL Maxim Trepainer (3), PP | A: Ryczek & Parent

Second period
4:41 HAL Jocktan Chainey (1) | A: Getson & Durandeau

Third period
17:13 HAL Keith Getson (3) | A: Kyte & Lavoie

Powerplay: QUE - 0-for-2; HAL - 1-for-2
Shots: 31-27 in favour of Halifax

DID NOT PLAY- Cole Stewart (injured), Sam Dube (healthy), Alexis Sansfacon (healthy), Benoit-Olivier Groulx (sick) and Marcel Barinka (healthy)

SCORES
Tigres 4 vs. Foreurs 3 OT
Drakkar 2 vs. Wildcats 3

UP NEXT- Halifax will open the second round of the playoffs where they will take on the Moncton Wildcats. Puck drops at 7pm.

Complete Game 6 Win

Photo - Myles Dennis

In what was a do or die match for our Halifax Mooseheads, the boys came out to play on Monday night in Game 6 at the Scotiabank Centre, defeating the Quebec Remparts 6-1. Halifax began the series down 0-2 going to Quebec for three road games, which the Mooseheads picked up victories in the first two before losing Game 5 4-2 on Saturday. The Herd needed a really good complete disciplined game tonight and they accomplished that goal to tie the best-of-seven series at 3 games a piece. The good guys controlled the play for the the first half of the 1st period as it took 9:31 minutes for Quebec to get a shot. A lose puck that Carmine-Anthony Pagliarulo couldn't get his glove on to get a whistle was taken by Samuel Asselin who passed it to Raphael Lavoie. Number 50 was able to put it in past Pagliarulo on the far side and give the home team a 1-0 lead 4:58 into the opening frame. Samuel Dickner tied the match for the Remparts with 9:33 remaining in the period on a weak shot that went off Alex Gravel and into the net but that would be the only rubber that would get past the home goaltender. The teams would go into the intermission with the score 1-1. The second period was a key 20 minutes for Halifax, who have been shaky in the middle frame all season, and they played their best hockey I would say. Quebec was outshot 20-7 in the 2nd while Antoine Morand and Keith Getson gave the Mooseheads some breathing room in the last two minutes. Samuel Asselin scored to make it 4-1 just twenty-six seconds into the third period which chased Pagliarulo and force Kyle Jessiman to come in for the away team. Patrick Roy has always been one to buck the trend and he did something tonight that I don't think I've ever seen before. With 9:13 to go in the final frame, down three goals, Roy sat Jessiman on the bench to get an extra player on the ice. That lasted 53 seconds before he was back in the net but with 7:06 left, the Remparts were playing with 6 players on the ice again. Lavoie got his second goal of the game in the empty net to extend the Mooseheads lead to 5-1. So with the victory, we'll have a Game 7 tomorrow night at the Scotiabank Centre.

FINAL: Remparts 1 at Mooseheads 6
Stars: 3. Alexis Gravel HAL | 2. Raphael Lavoie HAL | 1. Keith Getston HAL
Attendance: 7,623

GAME LOG
First period
4:58 HAL Raphael Lavoie (6) | A: Asselin & Chainey
10:27 QUE Samuel Dickner (1) | A: St-Laurent & Savoie

Second period
18:05 HAL Antoine Morand (3) | A: Lavoie & Ryczek
19:08 HAL Keith Getson (1) | A: Durandeau & Trepanier

Third period
0:26 HAL Samuel Asselin (2) | A: Barron
13:40 HAL Raphael Lavoie (7), EN | A: Flower
17:13 HAL Keith Getson (2), PP | A: Barron & Safin

Powerplay: QUE - 0-for-2; HAL - 1-for-4
Shots: 41-24 in favour of Halifax

DID NOT PLAY - Cole Stewart (healthy), Jared McIsaac (suspended), Alexis Sansfacon (healthy), Benoit-Olivier Groulx (sick) and Marcel Barinka (healthy)

SCORES
Huskies 8 vs. Cataractes 2
Tigres 6 vs. Foreurs 2
Drakkar 1 vs. Wildcats 3

UP NEXT - Halifax and Quebec will meet in Moose Country on Tuesday night for Game 7. Puck drops at 7pm.

PLAYOFF GAME #4: at Quebec

PREVIEW

QUEBEC REMPARTS VS HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS

Game Four of Round One

Centre Videotron (18,259) ~ Quebec City, QC

Quebec leads series 2-1

QUEBEC - We have a series! Our Halifax Mooseheads are still down but they played a better game on Tuesday night and came away with a 3-1 victory in Quebec against the Remparts, who now lead the best-of-seven series 2 games to 1. Halifax will be looking to have the same effort tonight in Game 4 as they hope to force a match back here in Moose Country. After a one game suspension for a check from behind hit, Samuel Asselin returned to the Mooseheads lineup motivated and it seemed to spark the team as well. Raphael Lavoie continued his hot hand, scoring twice on Tuesday while Arnaud Durandeau picked up his 3rd goal of the playoffs. Game 3 was as close to a full healthy line that Halifax has had all season; Benoit-Olivier Groulx is out indefinitely with mononucleosis. It should be a good match once again.

PLAYOFFS SERIES
Game 1  Mar 22  Remparts 3 at Mooseheads 2
Game 2  Mar 23  Remparts 5 at Mooseheads 4 OT
Game 3  Mar 26  Mooseheads 3 at Remparts 1
Game 4  Mar 28  Mooseheads at Remparts
Game 5  Mar 30  Mooseheads at Remparts
*Game 6  Apr 1  Remparts at Mooseheads
*Game 7  Apr 2  Remparts at Mooseheads

NOT DRESSED - Benoit-Olivier Groulx (sick)

NOTES

• Raphael Lavoie leads the team in scoring with 5 points
• The refereeing was much better on Tuesday night
• Halifax will have a number of healthy scratches 

OUT OF TOWN
None

NEXT GAME - The two teams will meet on Saturday night in Quebec for Game 5. Puck drops at 8pm.

PLAYOFF GAME #1: vs. Quebec

PREVIEW

HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS VS QUEBEC REMPARTS

Series tied 0-0

Scotiabank Centre (10,595) ~ Halifax, NS

HALIFAX - It's playoff time folks! The Halifax Mooseheads will begin this post-season on home ice after finishing first in the Eastern conference. Halifax won the Maritime division title for the first time since 2014 and will be looking to go deep into the playoffs. They'll take on the Quebec Remparts in the first round best-of-seven series. The Mooseheads will be hoping for some revenge as the Remparts won both meetings between the two clubs during the regular season including a 5-4 overtime match at the Scotiabank Centre back in early January. Halifax struggled a little bit down the stretch, losing to the 13th place Val-d'Or Foreurs after a loss to 1st overall Rouyn-Noranda and going to a shootout against the second worst team in the Q last Friday. But playoffs are a whole other beast and regular season records don't always mean much. No word on if the Herd will have a full lineup to begin the playoffs however Raphael Lavoie did skate during full practice the other day. Halifax is a dangerous team when they have their top line of Lavoie, Samuel Asselin and Antoine Morand together but if the injuries are still nagging the club, the rest of the team will have a big chance to stand up and produce. Come on down to the Scotiabank Centre and finish March break with a couple of weekend matches against former Montreal Canadiens star goaltender Patrick Roy, local boy Andrew Coxhead and the Quebec Remparts.

TALE OF THE TAPE
                              Halifax               Quebec
Record:             49-15-2-2=102   27-28-7-6=67
Standing:           1st East, 3rd       8th East, 11th
Powerplay:        28.1% 2nd         17.8% 15th
Penalty kill:       85.6% 1st          74.4% 15th
PIM:                        817                       614
Leading scorer: Asselin (86pts)   Kurashev (65pts)

NOTES

• Mikael Lalancette of TVA Sports makes his predictions and thinks Halifax will win in 6 games
• The QMJHL has a preview of the series
• Halifax and Quebec have met only once before in the playoffs, a series which the Herd came back from being down 0-3
• This series will be a 2-3-2 format
• Check out the Halifax Herdcast podcast preview here

OUT OF TOWN

Cape Breton at Charlottetown - 7:30pm

Blainville-Boisbriand at Sherbrooke - 8:00pm

Val-d'or at Victoriaville - 8:00pm

Shawinigan at Rouyn-Noranda - 8:30pm

Gatineau at Drummondville - 8:30pm

Moncton at Baie-Comeau - 8:30pm

Chicoutimi at Rimouski - 8:30pm

NEXT GAME - The two teams will meet again at the Scotiabank Centre on Saturday night. Puck drops at 7pm. 

Round One Schedule Announced.

The road to the President Cup begins on Friday around the league.

The QMJHL announced yesterday morning the full schedule for round 1 of the 2019 playoffs. Our Halifax Mooseheads will take on the Quebec Remparts after the Herd finished 1st in the Eastern conference. The best-of-seven series will be a 2-3-2 format, with the first two matches being played at the Scotiabank Centre.

Find the schedule of the Remparts-Mooseheads series below:

Game 1  Friday March 22 @ 7:00pm at Scotiabank Centre
Game 2  Saturday March 23 @ 7:00pm at Scotiabank Centre
Game 3  Tuesday March 26 @ 8:00pm at Centre Videotron
Game 4  Thursday March 28 @ 8:00pm at Centre Videotron
*Game 5  Saturday March 30 @ 8:00pm at Centre Videotron
*Game 6  Monday April 1 @ 7:00pm at Scotiabank Centre
*Game 7  Tuesday April 2 @ 7:00pm at Scotiabank Centre

*if necessary

Single game tickets for Games 1 and 2 went on sale this morning and can be purchased at select Superstore outlets, Ticket Atlantic Box Office or charge by phone 902-451-1221.

Herd To Battle Remparts

The Halifax Mooseheads will take on the Quebec Remparts in the opening series of the 2019 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League playoffs, which will be a 2-3-2 series format.

It took until the last day of the regular season for our Mooseheads to know who their first round opponent would be because the team could either finish 1st or 2nd in the Eastern conference depending on the results of Saturday's games. Despite losing in a shootout, Halifax was still able to get first place in the conference because Baie-Comeau were defeated as well but in regulation so the two teams tied in points. Halifax had the tie-breaker.

Quebec finished the regular season with a record of 27-28-7-6 for 67 points while Halifax finished with a record of 49-15-2-2 for 102 points.

The Remparts won both games during the regular season series between the two. Halifax was defeated handedly 6-2 on the road in October but picked up a point in a 4-3 overtime loss in January at the Scotiabank Centre.

Halifax will host the first two games as well as games 6 and 7, if necessary. Game 1 will be Friday March 22 with puck dropping at 7pm Atlantic time.

Single tickets for the first two home games will go on sale Tuesday morning at 11am. You can purchase them at select Superstore outlets, the Scotiabank Centre box office or by phone at (902)-451-1121. 

Stay tuned to Moose Country for more playoff details and game previews.

Moose Lose Thriller to Remparts

It was an entertaining but frustrating game on Saturday evening as your Halifax Mooseheads hosted the Quebec Remparts and were defeated 4-3 in overtime. Halifax was looking for their second win in as many days but the hockey gods weren't shinning on them tonight as the referees missed a number of penalties and the Mooseheads hit a few posts as well. Keith Getson scored his first goal in a Mooseheads uniform to put the home team up 1-0. Recently acquired Maxim Trepanier was hauled down on a semi breakaway but there was no call and the Remparts skated the other way which ended in Quebec tying the game at 1. It seemed like there was a parade to the penalty box in the first, however there were actually only three and the Herd were able to take advantage of one of them retaking the lead with just over 5 minutes left to go in the frame. The lead was short-lived as the two clubs headed to the dressing rooms tied at 2 after 20 minutes. Rookie goaltender Cole McLaren got the start this evening and played quite well, keeping his team in the match a few times but unfortunately he picked up his second loss of the season. Halifax really pushed in the late part of the third, trying to take back the lead and get the victory however some nice saves by replacement goalie Carmine-Anthony Pagliarulo in the final minutes kept it tied 3-3 and forced overtime. In 3 on 3 overtime, it was the dreaded 2 vs. 1 break that gave Quebec the edge and the victory as Etienne Verrette scored his first goal of the season.

FINAL: Remparts 4 at Mooseheads 3 OT
Stars: 3. Keith Getson HAL | 2. Brandon Frattaroli QUE | 1. Antoine Morand HAL
Attendance: 8,416
MC’s Top Herd: Keith Getson

GAME LOG
First period5:43 HAL Keith Getson (14) | A: Kyte & Morand
8:48 QUE Nicolas Savoie (1) | A: Frattaroli & Laframboise
14:58 HAL Justin Barron (4), PP | A: Lavoie & Ryczek
18:30 QUE Adam Gaudreau (2) | A: Cormier

Second period4:13 HAL Antoine Morand (14), PP | A: McIsaac & Groulx

Third period
6:06 QUE Samuel Dickner (1) | A: Frattaroli & Laframboise

Overtime
3:06 QUE Etienne Verrette (1) | A: Caron & Laframboise

Shots: 35-30 in favour of Halifax
Powerplay: QUE - 0-for-4; HAL - 2-for-4

NOT DRESSED – Ostap Safin (injured), Jocktan Chainey (injured), Kyle Petten (healthy), Marcel Barinka (injured) and Brock McLeod (healthy)

SCORESVoltigeurs 8 at Cataractes 5
Screaming Eagles 1 at Islanders 3
Oceanic 4 at Sea Dogs 3
Phoenix 6 at Foreurs 5 OT
Titan 4 at Olympique 1
Drakkar 4 at Tigres 1

UP NEXT – The Moose will travel to Bathurst on Tuesday evening to take on the Titan. Puck drops at 7pm.

Oct 3: Remparts vs. Mooseheads preview

QUEBEC REMPARTS VS HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS
October 3, 2018 at 8:00pm
TV: Webcast | Radio: News 95.7 | Live: @HFXMooseheads
Centre Videotron (18,259) ~ Quebec City, QC

As your Halifax Mooseheads continue their season opening 15 game road trip, Wednesday night will see them visit the Quebec Remparts for the first and only time this year. With almost half the team being new, going away should help the boys become close and gel together as a club. Of course, it's a little hard to in game action when 5 players are out injured to begin the season; Kyle Petten and Jared McIsaac have yet to play a regular season game while Joel Bishop and Ostap Safin played one and two games respectively before getting hurt. Fans found out this week that rookie Samuel Dube will also be out indefinitely because of a blood clot. So the injury-laden Mooseheads look to extend their current win streak and keep on making this the best start to a season in franchise history. Quebec should be a good test as the Remparts are 6th in the league right now with a 3-2-0 record. How will the number 1 ranked team in the country fare against a team that includes just two NHL drafted guys but plays in a loud building? Check out the webcast or follow along on Twitter to find out.

This is the first game between these teams this year. Last season, Halifax was 0-1-1-0 against the Remparts while Quebec had a 2-0-0-0 record versus the Mooseheads. The last matchup was on November 1 where Jocktan Chainey and BO Groulx scored for Halifax as they took a 3-2 loss in Quebec while Blade Mann-Dixon made 23 saves.

Overall Records
Mooseheads: 4-0-0-0 = 8pts (2nd overall, 1st in Maritimes division)
Remparts: 3-2-0-0 = 6pts (6th overall, 2nd in East division)

Leading Scorers
QUE: Louis-Filip Cote 4pts (3G & 1A), Philipp Kurashev 3pts (1G & 2A), Benjamin Gagne 3pts (3A)
HAL: Arnaud Durandeau 8pts (4G & 4A), Raphael Lavoie (4pts (3G & 1A), Patrick Kyte 4pts (2G & 2A)

Previous Games
Halifax is coming off a 4-2 victory on the road in Moncton on Sunday afternoon. The Mooseheads were led by Arnaud Durandeau who had a goal and 2 assists while Alexis Gravel stopped 32 of the Wildcats 34 shots.

Quebec meanwhile skated to a 3-2 victory on Saturday evening against the Tigres. Louis-Filip Cote, Pierrick Dube and Philipp Kurashev scored for the Remparts while Anthony Morrone made 31 saves to get the win in Victoriaville.

Head-To-Head
October 3  8pm  Mooseheads at Remparts
January 5  7pm  Remparts at Mooseheads

Out of Town
Acadie-Bathurst vs. Gatineau - 7:00pm
Val-d'Or vs. Rouyn-Noranda - 8:00pm
Victoriaville vs. Drummondville - 8:00pm
Chicoutimi vs. Sherbrooke - 8:30pm
Rimouski vs. Charlottetown - 8:30pm


After the Buzzer
Our Mooseheads will continue their trip through Quebec as they take on the Chicoutimi Sagueneens on Friday night. Puck drops at 8:30pm.

GAMEDAY #17: at Quebec

GAMEDAY
HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS VS QUEBEC REMPARTS
Puck drops at 8:00pm
TV: Webcast | Radio: News 95.7 | Live: @HFXMooseheads
Centre Videotron (18,259) ~ Quebec City, QC

After having just one game at home your Mooseheads head back on the road to Quebec. With all of the injuries and the two players away with Hockey Canada, the Mooseheads announced that they have recalled goaltender Raphael Blais as well as forward Cole Stewart. After the game between these two teams at the Scotiabank Centre, its expected to be a tight playoff-like game. You can expect to see some good goaltending out of veteran goalie Blade Mann-Dixon like we have seen most of the season and more so now that Alex Gravel is gone down due to injury. This is the first of three games in Quebec for the Herd. With getting 8 of a possible 10 points in the last five games, your Mooseheads look to build on the early success that they have had already this season. As the last trip to Quebec was, this is going to be a big test for the young team. They will look for the continued offence from captain Maxime Fortier, rookie Filip Zadina as well as sophomore player Benoit-Oliver Groulx as well as others to help and keep the strong play going.

OVERALL RECORDS
Remparts: 11-4-1-0 = 23 points (1st in East division, 3rd overall)
Mooseheads: 10-4-2-0 = 22 points (2nd in Maritimes division, 4th overall)

LEADING SCORERS
HAL: Filip Zadina 24pts (12G & 12A), Maxime Fortier 23pts (11G & 12A), Benoit-Olivier Groulx 14pts (8G & 6A)
QUE: Matthew Boucher 20pts (7G & 13A), Derek Gentile 17pts (5G & 12A),  Philip Kurashev 15pts (5G & 10A)

PREVIOUS GAMES
Quebec is coming off a 4-3 overtime win against the Sherbrooke Phenoix. Matthew Boucher scored the overtime winner while Derek Gentile added a goal and an assist and Dereck Barribeau made 23 saves in the win.

Halifax is coming off a 6-2 win against the Charlottetown Islanders. Xavier Parent and Justin Barron added a goal and an assist each and Blade Mann-Dixon made 27 saves in the win.

ALUM ON REMPARTS
None

MISSING IN ACTION – Jordan Lepage, Walter Flower, and Alex Gravel are out with injuries. Justin Barron and Xavier Parent are gone with Hockey Canada for the U17's

HEAD-TO-HEAD
October 6  Quebec 3 at Halifax 2 OT
November 1 Halifax at Quebec – 8pm

OUT OF TOWN
Wildcats vs Olympiques    8:30pm
Oceanic vs Foreurs    8:30 pm

AFTER THE BUZZER
Halifax will continue on their three-game road trip on Friday night as they travel to Gatineau to take on the Olympiques. Puck drop is at 8:30pm.

Moose Lose Close One to Remparts

Photo - Mooseheads website

It was t-shirt night in Moose Country where the first 3,000 fans received a commemorative shirt. Along with that, it promised to be a very good game with high intensity, it showed to be a playoff-like atmosphere with the two teams. The first period ended in a scoreless tie which saw your moose outshooting the Rempart. In the second the young moose came out and outplayed the Rempart and about midway through the second Filip Zadina puts the home team on top by one, but before the period ends Quebec storms back and ties it up to take it to intermission knotted at one. In the third captain, Max Fortier brought the 7000 plus fans to their feet as he scores to give the moose the 2-1 lead, but as happened in the second the Rempart stormed back to tie it up to take the game to overtime. In overtime, there were plenty of chances on each side but it eventually ended with 1:10 remaining in the OT period Jesse Sutton of the Rempart scored to give the visitors the win. Even in the loss the team played a really hard game and showed that they can play with the top dogs.

FINAL: Remparts 3 at Mooseheads 2
Stars: 3. Barrett Dachyshyn HAL | 2. Maxime Fortier HAL | 1. Jesse Sutton QUE
Attendance: 7,005
MC’s Top Herd: Blade Mann-Dixon 

GAME LOG
First period
None

Second period
3:38 HAL Filip Zadina (4) | A: Fortier & Durandeau
16:59 QUE Olivier Mathieu (2) | A: Coxhead

Third period
7:27 HAL Maxime Fortier (5) | A: Barbosa & Groulx
14:47 QUE Louis-Philipe Cote (1) | A: Boucher & Gagne

Overtime
3:48 QUE Jesse Sutton (1) | A: Boucher & Verrette

Powerplay: QUE – 0-for-6, HAL – 0-for-3
Shots: 33-25 in favour of Halifax

MISSING IN ACTION – Walter Flower (injured), Otto Somppi (injured), Jordan Lepage (injured)

UP NEXT: Halifax will host the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada on Sunday afternoon. Puck drops at 3pm.

 

Moose Suffer 1st Extra Time Loss

Photo - Shawn Davidson

A chance to jump over division rival Charlottetown Islanders and tie the Quebec Remparts in the standings disappeared when your Halifax Mooseheads squandered a 5-3 lead in the third period and eventually lost in a shootout. The Mooseheads welcomed the Remparts for the first Thursday night hockey game and didn't take long to get on the board as Connor Moynihan got his 15th of the season 23 seconds into the match. This matchup had a few differences in it with offense versus defense as well as disciplined vs. undisciplined. As I mentioned in my preview, the Herd were the second team to score 100 goals this season while Quebec had the 5th lowest goals against coming into this evening. The Remparts came into the match with the least amount of penalty minutes while Halifax is on the other side of the spectrum but in this game were the more undisciplined team. Halifax took a 3-1 lead in to the middle frame and another four goals were scored in the second period giving the home team a 5-3 lead to the final period. Quebec tied the game, scoring twice by the 10 minute mark of the third and forced overtime. The extra five minutes couldn't solve anything as both goaltenders stood up pretty tall in OT especially Callum Booth as the Moose seemed to be trying to do a lot of odd man rushes. Booth also stood tall during the shootout stopping all three shots he faced while Alexis Gravel could only stop one of two shots he faced. It gave the home team their first extra time loss of the year.

FINAL: Remparts6 at Mooseheads 5 SO
Stars: 3. Ross MacDougall QUE | 2. Jocktan Chainey HAL | 1. Benoit-Olivier Groulx HAL
Attendance: 6,359 
MC's Top Herd: Jocktan Chainey

GAME LOG
First period
0:23 HAL Connor Moynihan (15) | A: Fortier & Lepage
3:58 HAL Cooper Jones (5) | A: Kennedy & Groulx
7:12 QUE Jonathan Bourcier (5), PP | A: MacDougall & Kurashev
13:14 HAL Bradley Kennedy (7), PP | A: Jones & Groulx

Second period
6:11 QUE Philipp Kurashev (8) | A: MacDougall & Buynitskiy
10:12 HAL Jocktan Chainey (3) | A: Hischier & Moynihan
13:32 QUE Jonathan Bourcier (6), PP | A: MacDougall & Boucher
17:52 HAL Nico Hischier (20), PP | A: Chainey & Moynihan

Third period
6:41 QUE Matthew Boucher (11) | A: none
9:53 QUE Olivier Garneau (7) | A: Bourcier & MacDougall

Overtime
None

Shootout
Round 1 - HAL Maxime Fortier (Save)     QUE Jonathan Bourcier (Goal)
Round 2 - HAL Nico Hischier (Save)     QUE Philipp Kurashev (Save)
Round 3 - Jared McIsaac (Save)

Powerplay: QUE - 2-for-3, HAL - 2-for-6
Shots: 47-26 in favour of Halifax

MISSING IN ACTION: Walter Flower (injury), Arnaud Durandeau (injury) and Brett Crossley (injury)

SCORES
Shawinigan 5 at Moncton 1
Val-d'Or 2 at Rimouski 6

UP NEXT: Moose Country will welcome the Moncton Wildcats on Sunday afternoon. Puck drops at 3pm.

GAMEDAY #25: vs. Quebec

GAME PREVEW
HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS VS QUEBEC REMPARTS
Pucks drops at 7:00pm
TV: Webcast | Radio: News 95.7 | Live: @MC_MooseCountry
Scotiabank Centre (10,595) ~ Halifax, NS

For the first (and only) time this season the Quebec Remparts visit the Scotiabank Centre to take on your Halifax Mooseheads. This will also be the first Thursday night hockey game of the year and your Mooseheads will be looking to start another win streak after getting revenge over the Acadie-Bathurst Titan on Tuesday evening for the previous game. There will be a few extra Nova Scotians on the ice tonight as the Remparts have three NS born players on their team. Halifax is not doing that bad so far this season despite being a very young team. The Mooseheads were the second team to score 100 goals after getting five on Tuesday and are going against the third best goaltender in terms of goals against average; Callum Booth. Should be a battle of goalies tonight.

OVERALL RECORDS
Remparts: 13-9-1-1 = 28 points (2nd in East division, 5th overall)
Mooseheads: 13-11-0-0 = 26 points (3rd in Maritimes division, 7th overall)

LEADING SCORERS
HAL: Maxime Fortier 44pts (15G & 29A), Nico Hischier 41pts (19G & 22A), Connor Moynihan 24pts (14G & 10A)
QUE: Philipp Kurashev 19pts (7G & 12A), Matthew Boucher 18pts (10G & 8A), Derek Gentile 16pts (9G & 7A)

PREVIOUS GAMES
Quebec is coming off 3-2 overtime victory on Sunday evening over Chicoutimi. Matthew Boucher led the Remparts with 2 goals, including the OT winner, at home while Callum Booth made 28 saves to get the win against the visiting Sagueneens.

Halifax is coming off a 5-3 win on Tuesday in the second match of a home and home series against Acadie-Bathurst. Max Fortier streatched his point streak to 6 games after picking up another two goals to lead the Mooseheads while Alexis Gravel stopped 23 of the Titan's 26 shots to get the road win.

ALUM ON REMPARTS - none

HEAD-TO-HEAD
November 24  Remparts at Mooseheads - 7:00pm
November 30  Mooseheads at Remparts - 8:00pm

OUT OF TOWN
Wildcats vs. Cataractes   7:00pm
Oceanic vs. Foreurs   8:00pm

AFTER THE BUZZER
Halifax will stay at home and welcome divisional rival the Moncton Wildcats on Sunday afternoon. Puck drops at 3pm.

Moynihan Gives Late Game Heroics

That's how you end a homestand! Both teams looked like they wanted to put a stop to their losing streaks and for one it happened. Your Halifax Mooseheads skated away with a 2-0 victory this evening with Eric Brassard picking up the 31 save shutout. The Mooseheads have played the last five games on home ice but lost the last 3 in big ways. It was a much better game tonight for Brassard and the Herd after a disappointing one on Tuesday night where they let in 4 goals in the first 18 minutes, prompting Dom Ducharme to pull Eric. Halifax and Quebec went a period and a half without a goal or penalties happening. Max Fortier and Connor Moynihan crashed the net in a desperate move by the Moose to score on the powerplay. Moynihan received the rebound and potted it in the back of the net to give the home team a 1-0 lead with 44 seconds left. The Remparts immediately pulled their goalie to tie the game but Andrew Shewfelt shot the puck in the empty net from centre ice sending Moose Country home happy.

FINAL: Remparts 0at Mooseheads 2
Stars: 3. Connor Moynihan HAL | 2. Calum Booth QUE | 1. Eric Brassard HAL
Attendance: 6,203
MC's Top Herd: Eric Brassard

GAME LOG
First period
No scoring

Second period
No scoring

Third period
19:15 HAL Connor Moynihan (7), PP | A: Fortier & Brassard
19:41 HAL Andrew Shewfelt (9), EN

Powerplay: QUE - 0-for-3, HAL - 1-for-2
Shots: 31-24 in favour of Quebec

SCORES
Shawinigan 2 at Gatineau 1 OT
Drummondville 4 at Baie-Comeau 1

UP NEXT: Halifax now goes on the road for six games beginning with the Sea Dogs in Saint John on Saturday. Puck drops at 7pm.

Former Herd D named captain of Quebec

The Quebec Remparts have announced that 20 year old Matt Murphy will be captaining their 2015-16 squad. Murphy was traded from your Halifax Mooseheads in December to the Remparts with goaltender Zachary Fucale. In return, Halifax received Cody Donaghey.

In 31 games last season with Quebec, the Fredericton, NB native scored 3 goals and recorded 12 points.

Congratulations Matt!!

Former Moose Players on Memorial Cup Hosts

As we all know by now, three former Halifax Mooseheads players are going to be playing in their second Memorial Cup tournament.

Zach Fucale began the 2015 QMJHL playoffs as the back up to Callum Booth but took over mid way through the first round. He led his Quebec Remparts past 3 series' against teams he used to play 8 or 9 times a season. First the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles in 7 games, then sweeping the Charlottetown Islanders and Moncton Wildcats in the second and third rounds respectively. Matt Murphy might have caused the Remparts the Q championship with a bad penalty but he'll have at the very least 3 more games to redeem himself. We'll have to wait and see if Brian Lovell will play in the tournament. 

The 2015 MasterCard Memorial Cup logo on Colisee Pepsi ice
Photo - mastercardmemorialcup.ca

The Memorial Cup host Quebec Remparts are joined by the team they lost to in the President Cup finals; the Rimouski Oceanic, the OHL champion Oshawa Generals and the WHL champion Kelowna Rockets.

Rimouski ended the season atop the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League with 99 points. The Oceanic defeated the 16th place Victoriaville Tigres in 4 games, the 14th place Gatineau Olympiques in 5 games and the 6th place Val-d'Or Foreurs in 4 games. Their series against the 4th place Remparts was the most adversity that they faced during this year's playoffs, having to come from behind twice and win in double overtime in Game 7 to win the President Cup.

Oshawa finished the year first in the Eastern Conference and second overal in the Ontario Hockey League with 108 points. The Generals beat the 8th place Peterborough Petes in 5 games, the 5th place Niagara IceDogs in 5 games and the 3rd place North Bay Battalion in six games. They then went on to face Connor McDavid and the Western second place Erie Otters defeating them in 5 games to win the J. Robertson Cup. 

Kelowna ended the season first in the Western Conference and second overall in the Western Hockey League with 112 points. The Rockets defeated the eigth place Tri-City Americans in four games, the fifth place Victoria Royals in five games and the third place Portland Winterhawks in six games. They then swept the Brandon Wheat Kings to take home the Ed Chynoweth Cup. 

These 4 teams will play in the 10 day tournament, each playing one game against the other three teams with the top team advancing directly to the championship game. 

Below is the full schedule (all times Atlantic):

May 22 Kelowna vs. Quebec 8:30 p.m.

May 23 Rimiouski vs. Oshawa 5:30 p.m. 

May 24 Quebec vs. Oshawa 5:30 p.m. 

May 25 Rimouski vs. Kelona 8:30 p.m.

May 26 Oshawa vs. Kelowna 8:30 p.m.

May 27 Quebec vs. Rimouski 8:30 p.m.

May 28 Tie-breaker 8:30 p.m.

May 29 Semi-final 8:30 p.m.

May 31 Championship 8:00 p.m.

Good luck to all four teams! Who do you think will win the Memorial Cup?