STATS SUNDAY: December

Games played: 11
Record: 8-2-0-1, 17pts
Goals for/against:39/26
Powerplay*: 17.5%
Penalty kill*: 84.1%
Shutouts: none

Top 5 leading scorers
Points: Otto Somppi 14, Raphael Lavoie 10, Xavier Parent 10, Filip Zadina 8, Benoit-Olivier Groulx 7
Goals: Filip Zadina 5, Xavier Parent 5, Arnaud Durandeau 4, Raphael Lavoie 4, Connor Moynihan 4
Assists: Otto Somppi 12, Raphael Lavoie 6, Xavier Parent 5, Benoit-Olivier Groulx 5, Filip Zadina 3
Penalty minutes: Jordan Lepage 24, Benoit-Olivier Groulx 18, Connor Moynan 18, Arnaud Durandeau 14, Joel Bishop 13
Plus/minus: Jared McIsaac +8, Walter Flower +6, Otto Somppi +6, Benoit-Olivier Groulx +4, Justin Barron +4
Rookie scoring: Xavier Parent 10pts, Filip Zadina 8pts, Patrick Kyte 5pts, Justin Barron 2pts, Jake Ryczek 2pts

Goaltending stats*
Blade Mann-Dixon: 13-4-2-0    2.67 GAA     0.908 SAV%
Alexis Gravel: 10-6-2-1    2.92 GAA     0.905 SAV%



*overall

Blue Moose Pick Up Win At Home

The Halifax Mooseheads wore blue on Saturday but saw lots of red during the afternoon as the home team collected a 5-2 victory over the visiting Cape Breton Screaming Eagles. Halifax got off to a slow start but Alexis Gravel stood fairly strong in the first period, letting in just one goal on 13 shots in the opening 20. The Mooseheads played much better in the middle frame and scored three goals in less than six minutes to lead the game 3-1 after 40 minutes. Newly acquired Jake Ryczek picked up his first Q career point this afternoon after passing the puck to Connor Moynihan who scored his 12th goal of the season. In the third period Cape Breton had the upper hand for most of the frame and were able to close the gap to a goal on Leon Gawanke's 3rd of the year but the tides turned towards the Herd once again in the final 5 minutes. Rookie Xavier Parent recorded his first career two goal game, including the insurance marker at the 15:10 point of the final frame. It was a physical game, however the referees decided to mostly let the boys play the game out and only handed out 5 penalties the whole match.

FINAL: Screaming Eagles 2 at Mooseheads 5
Stars: 3. Alexis Gravel HAL | 2. Jake Ryczek HAL | 1. Xavier Parent HAL
Attendance: 8,902
MC's Top Herd: Xavier Parent

GAME LOG
First period
19:02 CAP Brooklyn Kalmikov (11) | A: Martineau & Proulx

Second period
8:45 HAL Xavier Parent (9) | A: Bishop
10:38 HAL Otto Somppi (12), PP | A: Chainey
14:04 HAL Connor Moynihan (12) | A: Ryczek

Third period
11:23 CAP Leon Gawanke (3), PP | A: Martineau & Smith
15:10 HAL Xavier Parent (10) | A: Higgins & Kyte
16:24 HAL Benoit-Olivier Groulx (16), PP | A: Durandeau & Somppi

Shots: 31-27 in favour of Cape Breton
Powerplay: CAP - 1-for-2; HAL - 2-for-3

NOT DRESSED - Cooper Jones (healthy), Jared McIsaac (suspended), Filip Zadina (world juniors) and Barrett Dachyshyn (healthy)

UP NEXT - Game 2 of the Hurley Cup series will go tomorrow in Sydney between your Mooseheads and the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles. Puck drops at 2pm.

GAMEDAY #37: vs. Cape Breton

GAMEDAY

HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS VS CAPE BRETON SCREAMING EAGLES
Puck drops at 2pm
TV: Eastlink | Radio: News 95.7 | Live: @MC_MooseCountry
Scotiabank Centre (10,595) ~ Halifax, NS

Battle of Nova Scotia. The games between these two provincial rivals are always entertaining and the home and home series on New Year's Eve weekend have a special place in each of the players hearts. Beginning with last season, the year end matches received a boost of significance as the teams now play for the Hurley Cup. Halifax will be looking to get the trophy to Moose Country after Cape Breton won both games in 2016 to claim the first Hurley Cup. This also happens to be the last home game of 2017 for your Mooseheads so come out and support the boys as they sport blue jerseys to raise money for a good cause. The Herd will try to stay on top of the division so there's a little extra pressure on this afternoon's home team as they take on the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles at 2pm. Cape Breton is looking to right the ship a little bit as they are 4-5-1 in their last 10 games and are now 5th in the Maritimes division. Both teams will be without their leading scorer this weekend as Filip Zadina (Halifax) and Drake Batherson (Cape Breton) are trying to help their respective countries in the World Juniors.

This is the seventh game this season between these two teams. Halifax is 5-1-0-0 against the Screaming Eagles while Cape Breton has a 1-4-0-1 record versus the Mooseheads. The last matchup was just before the Christmas break on December 16 as Xavier Parent led the home Herd team to a 4-2 win with a goal and an assist while Alexis Gravel made 27 saves.

OVERALL RECORDS
Eagles: 16-16-2-1 = 35 points (5th in Maritimes division, 13th overall)
Mooseheads: 21-10-4-1 = 47 points (1st in Maritimes division, 3rd overall)

LEADING SCORERS
HFX: Filip Zadina 46pts (24G & 22A), Maxime Fortier 41pts (18G & 23A), Otto Somppi 36pts (11G & 25A)
CAP: Drake Batherson 39pts (17G & 22A), Phelix Martineau 34pts (18G & 16A), Egor Sokolov 28pts (13G & 15A)

PREVIOUS GAMES
Cape Breton is coming off a tight 2-1 overtime win on Thursday night in Saint John. Phelix Martineau had both goals for the Screaming Eagles while Kevin Mandolese stopped 20 of the Sea Dogs' 21 shots to get the victory.

Halifax is coming off a unfortunate 2-0 loss on Thursday at home where the Mooseheads outshot the Charlottetown Islanders 36-23. Blade Mann-Dixon faced his former team once again and made 21 saves.

HEAD-TO-HEAD
October 13  Halifax 3 at Cape Breton 4
October 14  Cape Breton 5 at Halifax 9
October 28  Halifax 4 at Cape Breton 3
November 18  Cape Breton 5 at Halifax 6 SO
December 13  Halifax 5 at Cape Breton 2
December 16  Cape Breton 2 at Halifax 4
December 30  Cape Breton at Halifax - 2pm
December 31  Halifax at Cape Breton - 2pm
January 19  Cape Breton at Halifax - 7pm

OUT OF TOWN
Voltigeurs vs. Sagueneens     4:00pm
Remparts vs. Drakkar     4:00pm

AFTER THE BUZZER
Halifax will travel to Cape Breton tomorrow to take on the Eagles again for their Battle of NS event. Puck drops at 2pm.

GAMEDAY #36: vs. Charlottetown

GAMEDAY
HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS VS CHARLOTTETOWN ISLANDERS
Puck drops at 7:00pm
TV: Webcast | Radio: News 95.7 | Live: @MC_MooseCountry
Scotiabank Centre (10,595) ~ Halifax, NS

Welcome back boys. The Halifax Mooseheads are back after their holiday break and are looking to start the second half of the season off right. It's a battle of two teams who are in the midst of good runs with Halifax winning 3 straight and Charlottetown picking up points in their last three games, going 2-0-1. The first 17 games of the second half will be important for the Herd as they are all against Maritime clubs and the team will be trying to stay on top of the division. Halifax will be without leading scorer Filip Zadina who is in Buffalo participating in the World Juniors but that just gives other guys a chance to step up and produce. Charlottetown was I think one of the biggest surprises in the first half of the season, the Islanders are 3rd in the Maritimes division and have 20 wins in 33 games. Going into 2017-18 many felt like the Islanders would be near the bottom of standings after losing about half of their team from last season, however they have had strong goaltending and defence leading them to a pretty good record.

This is fifth game this season between these two teams. Halifax is 3-0-1-0 against the Islanders while Charlottetown has a 1-3-0-0 record versus the Mooseheads. The last matchup was November 24 on the island where the Isles won 3-2 in overtime. Otto Somppi and Maxime Fortier each had a goal and an assist to lead the Herd while Alexis Gravel made 31 saves to take the loss.

OVERALL RECORDS
Islanders: 20-11-2-0 = 42 points (3rd in Maritimes division, 9th overall)
Mooseheads: 21-9-4-1 = 47 points (1st in Maritimes division, 3rd overall)

LEADING SCORERS
HAL: Filip Zadina 46pts (24G & 22A), Maxime Fortier 41pts (18G & 23A), Otto Somppi 36pts (11G & 25A)
CHA: Keith Getson 26pts (12G & 14A), Matthew Grouchy 24pts (11G & 13A), Pierre-Olivier Joseph 24pts (4G & 20A)

PREVIOUS GAMES
Charlottetown is coming off a 4-3 overtime loss to Saint John on December 16. The Islanders were led by d-man Pierre-Olivier Joseph who had a goal and an assist on the road and despite outshooting the Sea Dogs 58-28, they couldn't get the victory.

Halifax is coming off a 4-2 home win on December 16 against the Screaming Eagles. Xavier Parent had a goal and an assist while Max Fortier had 2 helpers to lead the Mooseheads. Alexis Gravel made his third straight start and stopped 27 of Cape Breton's 29 shots to take the win.

MISSING IN ACTION - Filip Zadina (world juniors)

HEAD-TO-HEAD
September 23  Halifax 3 at Charlottetown 2
October 1  Charlottetown 0 at Halifax 3
October 29  Charlottetown 2 at Halifax 6
November 24  Halifax 2 at Charlottetown 3 OT
December 28  Charlottetown at Halifax - 7pm
January 11  Charlottetown at Halifax - 7pm
January 12  Halifax at Charlottetown - 7pm
February 6  Halifax at Charlottetown - 7pm
February 21  Halifax at Charlottetown - 7pm

OUT OF TOWN
Titan vs. Wildcats     7:00pm
Sea Dogs vs. Screaming Eagles     7:00pm
Huskies vs. Armada     8:00pm
Cataractes vs. Oceanic     8:00pm
Tigres vs. Remparts     8:00pm
Drakkar vs. Sagueneens     8:30pm
Olympiques vs. Voltigeurs     8:30pm
Foreurs vs. Phoenix     8:30pm

AFTER THE BUZZER
Halifax will welcome the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles on Saturday for the annual Battle of Nova Scotia game. Puck drops at 2pm.

Trade Acquisition To Report

Photo - ushl.com

Last week, the Halifax Mooseheads announced their first trade of the winter trade period. The team traded a 1st round draft pick in 2018 to the Acadie-Bathurst Titan for the rights of American defenceman Jake Ryczek and a 2018 3rd rounder.

Rycek was drafted by the Titan in the 6th round of the 2015 QMJHL draft from the Sioux City Musketeers of the USHL but decided not to report. He instead stayed in his home country and played another two seasons in the USHL before joining the Providence College Friars this season. IN his three seasons in the USHL playing for the Musketeers and the Waterloo Black Hawks, the 19 year old had 21 goals and 81 points in 152 games played. The Ludlow, MA native has had limited playing time for the Friars this year only suiting up for 5 games.

Originally, Cam Russell and the Mooseheads brass were unsure if Ryczek was going to report to the team but I guess he thought about it and Russell was able to convince the young man that this would be a smart decision to come to Atlantic Canada. Jake, who was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2016 NHL draft, is already in Moose Country and participated in his first practice this morning. It is yet to be determined if he will make his debut tonight but if he plays this week, he will wear #8 before switching to number 16 in the new year.

Welcome to the team Jake!

Herd Finish 1st Half of Season

Photo - Shawn Davidson

And it's the end of the first half of the 2017-18 season already. Your Halifax Mooseheads go into the holiday break with three consecutive wins with two being over provincial rivals Cape Breton. Rookie Xavier Parent had a goal and an assist to lead the Herd in the game on Saturday night where Halifax defeated the Screaming Eagles 4-2. Blade Mann-Dixon was back for the last couple of games after being out with an injury but clearly did not feel good enough to be put in game action as Alexis Gravel started all 3 matches. The 3 victories led to the CHL giving the Moose an honourable mention on the BMO Top-10 rankings that were released on Wednesday.

The game against Cape Breton on December 13 began a streak of 20 matches that the Mooseheads will play against Maritime division rivals. It will be interesting to see how the standings are like when this string of games end in February. When teams come back on December 28, some will look different but is yet to be seen if Halifax will as they have only done one trade so far and the player they received from Acadie-Bathurst is not guaranteed to report. The Herd will start with a game at home against the Charlottetown Islanders before playing a home and home with CB on the weekend.

First half stats
Record - 21-9-4-1 = 47 points   35GP (3rd overall, 1st Maritimes division)
Goals for - 131
Goals against - 104
Penalties -  507
Powerplay - 17.2%
Penalty kill - 83.7%
Streak - 3-0-0-0
Past 10 - 7-2-0-1

Top 5 scorers: Filip Zadina (24-22-46), Maxime Fortier (18-23-41), Otto Somppi (11-25-36), Benoit-Olivier Groulx (15-14-29) & Arnaud Durandeau (13-14-27)
Goalies: Blade Mann-Dixon 13-3-2-0 record, 1 shutout, 2.70 GAA, 0.908 SV%; Alexis Gravel 8-6-2-1 record, 0 shutouts, 3.09 GAA, 0.899 SV%



Have a happy holiday break Moose Country, see you back at the Scotiabank Centre on December 28. Thank you for reading my blog, I hope you enjoy it.

Moose End the First Half on a High Note

Tonight was a big win for your Halifax Mooseheads as they finish the first half of the season on a winning note as they cruise to a 4-2 victory over their provincial rivals the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles after a very hard fought battle by both teams. This is the second victory Halifax has had over the Eagles this week where they took the game in Sydney by a score of 5-2. The Eagles did come out strong but after taking consecutive penalties it saw Jared McIssac draw first blood notching a power-play goal. After that, it saw Peyton Hoyt score to even things up, the first period would end in a one to one tie with shots 12-8 in favour of Cape Breton. In the second it saw your Mooseheads going ahead 2-1 with Patty Kyte scoring his second in as many nights, but about five minutes later Jordan Ty Fournier tied things up once again, just over halfway through the second just as a power play expired Xavier Parent scored to regain the lead that would remain going into the intermission. after two periods of play, it saw Halifax with a lead in shots 21-20. In the third Connor Moynihan would seal the deal and score into the empty net to secure the win for the home team. With a lot of the jump that Cape Breton did have it saw Alex Gravel play a very solid game and make some timely saves to help the team to victory. This game sets up the Hurley Cup that takes place at the end of the month, Halifax will look to take revenge after the loss last year.

FINAL: Screaming Eagles 2 at Mooseheads 4
Stars: 3. Alex Gravel HAL | 2. Peyton Hoyt CAP | 1. Xavier Parent HAL
Attendance: 7,153
MC’s Top Herd: Alex Gravel

GAME LOG
First period
4:10 HAL Jared McIssac (4), PP | A: Parent & Fortier
6:28 CAP Peyton Hoyt (10) | A: MacLellan & Proulx

Second period
3:19 HAL Patty Kyte (2) | A: Flower & Somppi
7:46 CAP Jordan Ty Fournier (9) | A: Hoyt & Lauuon
12:05 HAL Xavier Parent (8) | A: Higgins & Bishop

Third period
19:16 HAL Connor Moynihan (11) | A: Fortier & Groulx

Powerplay: CAP – 0-for-3, HAL – 1-for-6
Shots: 29-29

MISSING IN ACTION – Ryan Barbosa, Jocktan Chainey and Filip Zadina

SCORES
Sherbrooke 2 at Blainville 5
Victoriaville 3 at Drummondville 5
Bathurst 3 at Moncton 2 SO
Rimouski 3 at Baie Comeau 2 OT
Chicoutimi 3 at Shawinigan 7
Saint John 4 at Charlottetown 3 OT
Val D'or 2 at Rouyn Noranda 4

UP NEXT: Halifax will welcome the Islanders to town to open up the second half of the season. Puck drops at 7pm.