Series Preview: Newfoundland vs. Cape Breton

Your Newfoundland Regiment open their quest for the Gilles-Courteau Trophy on Thursday night with game one of their first round matchup against the Cape Breton Eagles.

The Regiment finished the regular season with a 38-22-3-1 record, their 80 points good for third place in the Eastern Conference standings. As a result, they take on the sixth place Cape Breton Eagles who collected 69 points thanks to a 28-23-4-9 record.

A natural geographic rival, the Eagles were a real thorn in the Regiment’s side in the regular season — particularly in the first half of the year when Cape Breton won the first five meetings between these two teams.

Newfoundland did manage to finish the head-to-head battle with three consecutive wins over Cape Breton including a pair of 4-1 victories on home ice back on February 20 & 21.

Improvements on the penalty kill, impactful deadline acquisitions, and plenty of capacity crowds at home have seen the Regiment find another gear in 2026. Advancing past the pesky Eagles and onto round two will require a similar recipe.

Puck drops at 7pm on Thursday and Friday. Limited single tickets for Game 1 & 2 are still available online at tickets.nlregiment.com or in person at the Mary Brown’s Centre Box Office.

 

 

3 KEYS

CAPTAIN CLUTCH

Anyone who has followed this hockey team across the 2025-26 season knows just how impactful Regiment captain Justin Larose has been from opening night. The teams point leader with 88 (32G, 56A) in 64 games, some 16 more than his closest teammate, its hard to believe #9 has scored just one goal in eight meetings with the Eagles during the regular season. With a seven game series vs. Cape Breton on the horizon, here’s a great shot at redemption for Larose.

POWERPLAY POTENCY

It’s a strength vs. strength special teams battle as Newfoundland’s potent powerplay takes on a sturdy Cape Breton penalty kill in this first round series. The Eagles have been of the league’s more disciplined groups all regular season with only four teams racking up less penalty minutes. When a man advantage chance does presents itself, it could be crucial the Regiment cash in on the opportunity in what is expected to be a tight checking series at 5v5.

DENAULT THE DENIER

Louis-Antoine Denault has been the definition of a difference maker since joining the Regiment at the deadline back in late December. 16-9-0-0 in 25 starts, the 19-year-old Quebec City native is a near sure thing to start Game one in goal for Newfoundland. If the 6’8 netminder can stand tall in this series, the Regiment have a great chance to advance.

The full series schedules is as follows:

ROUND ONE SCHEDULE — NEWFOUNDLAND VS. CAPE BRETON

GAME	MATCHUP	DATE	TIME
Game 1	Cape Breton at Newfoundland	Thu, March 26, 2026	7:00 PM
Game 2	Cape Breton at Newfoundland	Fri, March 27, 2026	7:00 PM
Game 3	Newfoundland at Cape Breton	Tue, March 31, 2026	7:00 PM
Game 4	Newfoundland at Cape Breton	Wed, April 1, 2026	7:00 PM
Game 5	Newfoundland at Cape Breton *	Fri, April 3, 2026	7:00 PM
Game 6	Cape Breton at Newfoundland *	Sun, April 5, 2026	3:00 PM
Game 7	Cape Breton at Newfoundland *	Tue, April 7, 2026	7:00 PM

* If necessary.    All times are listed in their local timezone.