Season ends on home ice with Round 2 loss to Huskies
2025-04-16
An embrace at the final horn between longtime Mooseheads players and fan favourites Brady Schultz and Braeden MacPhee signalled the end of the season for Herd and an emotional end to the junior hockey careers of those two overage players along with graduating goaltender Jacob Steinman.
The trio of 20-year-olds were the heart and soul of the Mooseheads throughout the season and the exciting playoff run that ended with a second round sweep by the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies at Scotiabank Centre. Hoards of fans stood and cheered long after the handshake line between the teams after the Huskies had skated to a 5-1 win over Halifax. It was a sign of appreciation and admiration, not only for those three leaders, but for an entire team that won the hearts of Moose Country in year one of a rebuilding season. Led behind the bench by first-year Head Coach Andrew Lord, the club worked hard to build a new culture of character and work ethic and no matter what the win/loss record may have shown in the standings, it was evident that the Mooseheads had the beginnings of something special.
Halifax squeaked their way into the playoffs and enjoyed a brief Cinderella-type run by shocking the QMJHL with a first round upset of Drummondville in seven games. The Mooseheads became the first 16th seeded team in league history to win a series and did so by knocking off the top seed in the Western Conference in the defending Gilles Courteau Trophy-winning Voltigeurs. The second round was a different story with the Huskies proving to be too dominant while combining with an ever-growing list of injuries to the Moose, the young squad was overmatched and lost four consecutive games.
Share the final moments of the season with us. We can't thank you enough Moose Country ❤ #GoMooseGo pic.twitter.com/IuRFkIFZI4
— Halifax Mooseheads (@HFXMooseheads) April 17, 2025
Quinn Kennedy scored the lone goal for the home squad in the Game 4 defeat in front of 7,251 fans. Lucas Veilleux tallied twice for the Huskies while Rouyn-Noranda’s other goals came from Remi Gelinas, Eliot Ogonowski and Benjamin Brunelle.
Schultz notched an assist in his final game in a Mooseheads sweater, Steinman made 35 saves and MacPhee – true to form – played his agitator role right to the end and took a tripping penalty in the final minute of the game.
He’s been a true leader and will remain a legend in Moose Country. Thank you Braeden MacPhee 💪 #GoMooseGo pic.twitter.com/a4roDdxkqK
— Halifax Mooseheads (@HFXMooseheads) April 17, 2025
The Herd will hold their heads high after reaching the league’s final eight and doing so as the team with the youngest average age in 50 years in the QMJHL.
Indeed the future is bright for the Mooseheads who will say goodbye to MacPhee, Schultz and Steinman while everyone else is eligible to return. Halifax played the majority of the second half of the season without any 19-year-old players on the roster. The focus will quickly turn to June’s QMJHL Entry Draft where the team holds a lottery pick and will select in the top five. General Manager Cam Russell will travel to Montreal next Wednesday to participate in the draft lottery with Halifax holding 14% odds at winning the top overall pick for the annual session which will be held June 6-7 in Quebec City. The Mooseheads will also pick ninth overall in the CHL Import Draft later in the summer.
