Screaming Eagles Visit Mooseheads In Afternoon Encounter
The longest break of the season comes to an end today for the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles as they venture to the Nova Scotia capital to take on the arch-rival Halifax Mooseheads.
The QMJHL season resumed last night after a break for the annual Super Series, and the Mooseheads were rudely welcomed back to league action in a 7-2 home ice loss to the Saint John Sea Dogs. It’s a quick turn around for Halifax as they take on Cape Breton in a rare 2 PM start today.
There was no shortage of representation of the two Nova Scotian clubs at the Super Series. Halifax sent four players to the event- forwards Benoit-Olivier Groulx and Arnaud Durandeau along with defensemen Jocktan Chainey and Jared McIssac. Carrying the flag for Cape Breton was QMJHL leading scorer Drake Batherson, who had three assists last Friday against Charlottetown and scored the game winner against the Russians in Tuesday night’s Super Series affair.
Hot on the tail of Batherson in the scoring race is Halifax rookie import Filip Zadina, who has 32 points this season (as opposed to Batherson’s 34.) Overager Maxime Fortier of the Mooseheads is also in the top five in league scoring, with 28 points to this point. Cape Breton is getting some big production from one of their overagers as well, as after a slow start Eagles captain Phélix Martineau has twelve points in his last eight games, including two goals in each of his last two contests.
Saturday’s matchup marks the fourth meeting this season between the Nova Scotian foes. Thus far Halifax was won two of three meetings, including the only one at the Scotiabank Centre. Halifax has played 6-1-2 at home this season, while Cape Breton is 5-6 away from Centre 200.
Both teams find themselves in a tight race in the Maritime Division. Just four points separate the Mooseheads (27 points with a record of 12-7-3) and the Screaming Eagles (23 points, 11-9-1). Halifax is tied for seventh in the league with Bathurst, but both clubs trail division leading Moncton by just one point. Cape Breteon is knotted in ninth place with the Charlottetown Islanders.
You can catch all of today’s action starting with the pre-game show with Patrick McNeil on 1270 CJCB (www.cjcbradio.com) at 1:30 PM. Go Eagles Go!
