First Quebec Road Trip On Tap
2024-10-24
It’s time to take the show on the road for the Halifax Mooseheads as they embark on their first trip through the province of Quebec this weekend.
The Herd have enjoyed a relatively surprising 7-3-2-0 start to the season under the guidance of new Head Coach Andrew Lord and are eager to make their mark against some Western Conference opponents. Halifax ventured out following Wednesday’s practice and will face Shawinigan on Friday night before heading to Victoriaville for an afternoon battle on Saturday and will finish up on Sunday afternoon in Sherbrooke. The Moose find themselves in fourth place in the Eastern Conference and fifth in the overall QMJHL standings out of 18 teams.
The Mooseheads have been dealing with a few injuries to key players of late, including Brady Schultz (upper body, week-to-week), Antoine Fontaine (lower body, day-to-day) and leading scorer Shawn Carrier who left last Sunday’s game with an upper body injury and remains questionable heading into the trip.
Carrier’s 13 points is tied with Liam Kilfoil for most on the squad this season and both players were named to NHL Central Scouting’s Players to Watch List for the 2025 NHL Entry Draft on Wednesday along with teammate Carlos Handel.
FRIDAY @ SHAWINIGAN – 8PM ADT
The Cataractes are the first opponent on the three-game roadie and Shawinigan is no slouch. They are middle of the pack in the Western Conference with a 6-5-0-0 record and are led by 19-year-old forward Vince Elie and his 15 points. The native of Montreal, QC was picked up in a trade with Saint John last season and was nearly a point-per-game player last season with 62 points in 67 games played. He was named the first QMJHL Player of the Week of this season after a hot start that included three goals and four assists in his first two games. Shawinigan’s lineup also features former Mooseheads forward Reece Peitzsche who was part of the Jan Sprynar/Lou-Felix Denis at last year’s deadline. Peitzsche, a right winger, has contributed 18 points in 41 games with his new team since last season and primarily skates on the third line.
SATURDAY @ VICTORIAVILLE – 5pm ADT
The Tigres have struggled out of the gate with a 2-7-1-1 record and are winless in their last seven games to sit in seventh place in the eight-team Conference. The team was involved in a swap of 20-year-old forwards a few weeks ago when they sent Joey Henneberry to Cape Breton in exchange for Olivier Houde. Since the deal, Houde has provided four goals and five points in five games played. Mael Lavigne, a 6-foot-4 19-year-old centreman, is the leading scorer for the Tigres with 17 points.
SUNDAY @ SHERBROOKE – 4PM ADT
Halifax finishes a busy weekend in Sherbrooke where they also cap off the two-game season series with the Phoenix. The Herd scored a 4-2 win against the visiting Phoenix on Thanksgiving Sunday at Scotiabank Centre thanks to 31 saves from Jack Milner and goals by Braeden MacPhee, Jan Sprynar, Shawn Carrier & Liam Kilfoil. Sherbrooke has been playing pretty good hockey otherwise this season and will enter the weekend with a 7-4-0-0 record and two consecutive wins. The Phoenix are a scoring by committee type of team so far with a handful of players sitting at eight and seven points respectively to lead the charge. 19-year-old goalie Linards Feldbergs was a first round CHL Import pick in the summer and has posted a 4-1 record with his only blemish coming in the loss to the Mooseheads.
Fans can watch all games on CHL TV or listen live on 957 NewsRadio.
The next home games for the Mooseheads are set for Friday, November 1st at 7pm vs Rouyn-Noranda and Kids Day on Sunday, November 3rd at 3pm against the Moncton Wildcats. Tickets are on sale now at Ticketmaster.ca
