Team overview of the Maritimes Division

With a new season about to begin in the QMJHL, here’s a look at the teams in the Maritimes Division in alphabetical order:

 

ACADIE-BATHURST TITAN

Change is in the air for the Titan in 2014-2015, an organization with only five post-season wins in the past six years. Acadie-Bathurst has a whole new look; ditching its old logo and color scheme and adopting the slogan “Defend the Bay”. The Titan also have a new head coach in former Baie-Comeau front man Mario Pouliot. There is continuity in goal and on the blueline. 20 year-old Jacob Brennan is the number one netminder and has appeared in 82% of his team’s games the past two seasons. There are six returnees on a defence which features former 5th overall pick Guillaume Brisebois. He was a member of the gold medal winning Canadian team at the Ivan Hlinka Under-18 Tournament last month. 19 year-olds Mark Trickett, Alexandre Gosselin and Anthony Gingras are joined by 18 year-olds Nicolas Latulippe and Nicolas Dumulong. Tucker White was acquired from Moncton to add size and depth to the defence. Offence is a major concern. The Titan scored the fewest goals in the league last year (144) and have lost their top four scorers from last season. The addition of Andrew Ryan should help. The fifth year winger is coming off a career-high 27 goals last season with Halifax and has more than 250 games of QMJHL experience. Fellow newcomer Raphael Corriveau scored 23 goals in Cape Breton in 2013-2014. Mark Simpson and Bronson Beaton are also new to the Titan. Diminutive Russian Egor Popov led the Saskatchwan Midget AAA league last year as a member of the fabled Notre Dame Hounds. Slovak Juraj Mily will also be looked upon to help provide offence. 6th overall pick Jordan Maher is a forward with a bright future.   

 

CAPE BRETON SCREAMING EAGLES

Since being hired by the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles in December of 2012, Head Coach/GM Marc-Andre Dumont has been wisely and methodically rebuilding the Screaming Eagles roster. His moves began paying off with a 9th overall finish last season and the team should be even better this year. The Eagles feature a talented core of 18 year-old players: NHL draft picks Clark Bishop and Julien Pelletier head that group and both could take a big leap forward this season. Other important 1996-born players include defensemen Duncan MacIntyre, Jonathan Deschamps and Loik Leveille, all acquired in trades. Offensively gifted Jason Bell should see ample time on the power play. The 17 year-old has a cannon of a shot from the blueline.

Flashy Maxim Lazarev should be more comfortable after a solid rookie season and the winger’s friend and fellow Russian Evgeny Svechnikov also has Cape Breton fans excited. Svechnikov projects to be a game breaker and helps give the Eagles two strong scoring lines. Local boy Kyle Farrell could have a big year. The overager was a 35-goal man last season and will be a key contributor on the power play.

Goaltending was an area of concern last year, especially in the playoffs where the Eagles allowed 29 goals in an opening round sweep at the hands of Gatineau. Former second round pick Alex Bureau will get a fresh start in Sherbrooke. The 18 year-old goalie was dealt to the Phoenix in the Deschamps deal. 20 year-old Francois Brassard was brought in from Quebec for a pair of draft picks and can expect to be a workhorse for the Eagles. 18 year-old Miguel Sullivan, a former Acadie-Bathurst Titan, will back him up.

 

CHARLOTTETOWN ISLANDERS

It’s no secret that Islanders General Manager Grant Sonier made a lot of bold manoeuvres during last season’s Christmas trade period to reshape the team with an eye to the future. While Charlottetown could be a league powerhouse next season, there’s certainly a lot to like about the 2014-2015 roster. Super sophomore Daniel Sprong was one of the league’s most exciting players last year and could be a high NHL pick next summer. He leads a group of forwards bolstered by 2014 Import Draft picks Filip Chlapik and Filip Rydstrom. Both are centremen with good size and at 17 and 18 years old respectively, they fit the Islanders blueprint. Chlapik is a Czech who will be on NHL scouts radar and Sonier says Rydstrom, a Swede, plays with ‘smarts and jam’. Forwards Alexandre Goulet, Kameron Kielly, Bradley Kennedy all gained valuable experience as rookies last year and give the Islanders versatility and skill up front. Overager Ross Johnston and 19 year-old Oliver Cooper bring size and an edge to the wing. Johnston was with Victoriaville last year; Cooper was a Sea Dog for the past three seasons.

Ex-Oceanic Ryan MacKinnon was brought in to help lead an emerging group of young defencemen. MacKinnon is known for his professional approach and has more than 200 QMJHL games under his belt. Former Foreurs first-rounder David Henley played like a seasoned veteran when he was acquired last season. At 17 years old and 6’4” 200lbs, he’s developing into a physical presence. Fellow second-year defencemen Luc Deschenes and Will Thompson and veterans Dexter Weber and Guillaume Rioux-Legault round out the blueline.

The Islanders have one of the league’s best young goalies in Mason McDonald. The lanky lefty was the first goalie chose in June’s NHL draft as Calgary selected him 34th overall. He will be a workhorse for the Islanders this season and will like what he sees in front of him, as Charlottetown will see a big improvement on last year’s total of 21 wins.   

 

HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS

Following a season where they finished second overall and lost in the deciding game of the semi-final to the eventual league champion Val-d’Or Foreurs, the Mooseheads roster will look decidedly different in 2014-2015. Gone is Jonathan Drouin, the offensive wizard who may go down as the best player in franchise history.  Also expected to stick in the pros is defenceman Mackenzie Weegar, who logged a ton of minutes and was named to the league’s second all-star team. Graduating from junior are long-time forwards Darcy Ashley and Brent Andrews as well as steady defenseman Brendan Duke. But the cupboard is certainly not bare in Halifax. Assuming he doesn’t make the Winnipeg Jets roster, Nikolaj Ehlers will be one of the top players in the league. The 2013-2014 Rookie of the Year had 104 PTS last season and his creative style and high skill level quickly made him a fan favorite in Halifax. Fourth year goaltender Zach Fucale will begin the season 29 wins short of the all-time QMJHL record and will look to bounce back from a disappointing performance in last year’s semi-final. Swiss winger Timo Meier showed flashes last year of developing into a power forward. He should get plenty of ice time in his second season. The Mooseheads will also return 19 year-old forward Ryan Falkenham, who only played 14 games last year because of hip problems. His two-way play and leadership abilities as captain will be key on a team that will feature eight rookies. Philippe Gadoury joined the team as a free agent in January and scored 20 goals in 19 games. The overager will be looked upon to carry much of the offensive load this season. Halifax’s other 20 year-olds are defencemen Austyn Hardie and Jessie Lussier. They, along with 19 year-old Matt Murphy, are the only defencemen on the roster with significant QMJHL experience (Cavan Fitzgerald appeared in 3 games last season).

The Mooseheads won’t be one of the top teams in the league as they have been each of the past three seasons, but with Ehlers and Fucale leading the way and Dominique Ducharme behind the bench, they shouldn’t be a cellar-dweller either.

 

MONCTON WILDCATS

Like three other teams in their division, the Moncton Wildcats will lean heavily on a 20 year-old goaltender this season. Last year, Alex Dubeau thrived under the workload and will be counted on to do the same in 2014-2015. He played the most minutes of any goaltender in the league and was deservedly named team MVP. He will play behind a young defensive group led by 19 year-olds Jacob Sweeney and Garrett Johnston. The club has high hopes for 18 year-old American Zach Malatesta, a strong-skating defender who should help the power play. As of this writing, the Wildcats only have two overagers on the roster and may fill the third spot with a defenseman. 

The Wildcats have an impressive group of forwards, including St. Louis Blues 2nd round pick Ivan Barbashev. The Russian picked up 68 points in 48 games and displayed a sound, well-rounded style in his rookie year. He could be one of the best players in the league this season. Barbashev’s 5’8” countryman Vladimir Tkachev had 30 points in only 20 games after joining the team in late January and followed that up with an impressive playoff performance. There’s no doubt the Wildcats received a lot of calls last Christmas enquiring about the ability of Christophe Lalonde as a 19 year-old. They were wise to hang on to him as he finished the season with 40 goals and 69 points and has a good chance to improve those totals in his final year. Former Drummondville Voltigeur Cameron Askew was picked up at the draft and will add size and skill down the middle. Conor Garland had an excellent rookie campaign and was leading the team in scoring before his season came to an end due to an injury in early February. Second year coach Darren Rumble has some versatile character players like Mathieu Oliver, Stephen Johnson and Will Smith to help round out the group of forwards.  Moncton was pleased to convince Liam Murphy to report to the club this season. He was one of eight Americans drafted by General Manager Roger Shannon this year and has the size and skill to step right in to a prominent role.

 

SAINT JOHN SEA DOGS                                                                                     

This year’s version of the Saint John Sea Dogs will bare a scare resemblance to last year’s group. New General Manager Darryl Young brought nearly 60 players to training camp as the Sea Dogs look to improve after a 19 win season. Young’s first draft pick as GM should make an immediate impact. First overall selection Luke Green is a right shooting defenceman with elite skating skills who loves to get involved offensively. Former first round pick Olivier LeBlanc is one of the smoother skating defencemen in the league and at 18 could be poised for a breakout season. 17 year-old Thomas Chabot returns on the blueline. He had respectable 22 points as a 16 year-old. Czech defender Jakub Zboril was the 5th overall pick in this year’s CHL Import Draft and could be a high pick in the 2015 NHL Draft. Former OHL first rounder Adam Bateman will look to regain his form in Saint John.

Up front, Matthew Highmore enters his third season with the Sea Dogs. The 18 year-old two-way centerman was second on the team in scoring last year and earned an invitation to Montreal Canadiens development camp. 2013 first-rounder Nathan Noel had 39 points as a 16 year old and will get every chance to improve on that this season. Samuel Dove-McFalls, former Moncton Wildcat Mark Tremaine and Spencer Smallman all offer experience to a young group. Mitchell Dempsey is an intriguing free agent acquisition. A 7th round draft pick of the Boston Bruins in 2013, the 6’4” winger played 78 games with Plymouth, Sault Ste. Marie and Kitchener in the OHL.

The Sea Dogs are set in goal with Sebastien Auger. The 20 year-old has faced a ton of shots in the past two years and is one of the top goalies in the league.  Head Coach Ross Yates enters his second season at the helm.