Word on the Herd

• While it wasn’t a lot of fun for any of us to hear the news this week that Ryan Falkenham’s career with the Mooseheads is over due to his ongoing hip problems, we may not have seen the last of him yet on the ice as a hockey player. Moose fans know how determined Ryan is as a player and you can count on him working equally as hard off the ice to be in a position to suit up in the CIS at some point. I think what I’ll remember most about his time as a Moosehead will be his penalty killing and shot blocking abilities. There’s nothing the Captain wouldn’t do in terms of sacrificing himself for the team.  Ryan has also been a wonderful ambassador away from the rink by continually stepping up to take part in community appearances like visits to the IWK children’s hospital, Salvation Army Kettle Drive, reading to elementary students at school and the list goes on and on. Ryan served as a true team Captain in every sense of the word and we are definitely going to miss him with the Mooseheads. All the best buddy.

• Now that Falkenham is out of the picture that leaves Danny Moynihan, Eric Brassard, Sam LeBlanc, Kelly Bent and Brandon Vuic as the potential 20-year-old players vying for the three available spots. Who would you choose? There is always quality overage players available closer to the season as teams make tough decisions on who makes their roster to start the year. Who knows for sure what will happen with the Mooseheads lineup over the next couple of months but I know it’s a debate that fans will love to engage in right up until the final decisions are made.

• So who’s excited about our new players we picked up at the QMJHL Entry Draft?
  I can’t wait for training camp to actually get a look at seventh overall selection Arnaud Durandeau on the ice. By all accounts he sounds like the real deal in terms of an impact forward. The 16-year-old scored 51 points (25 goals – 26 assists) while playing on a line with Sea Dogs top pick Joseph Veleno with the Lac St-Louis Lions.  Durandeau is the highest player chosen by the Herd since Jonathan Drouin was taken second overall in 2011. The Beaconsfield, QC native stands nearly five-foot-10 and is 167 pounds and counts strong skating as one of his better attributes.  I don’t think anyone will expect the kid to come in and light up the league offensively but it will be fun to watch a young prospect develop along with the rest of this young roster.  Another interesting aspect to this year’s training camp in August will be the battle for a spot on the blue line. Halifax featured several rookies on defence last season and they will have their work cut out for them to hold onto a spot in the lineup thanks to the additions of players like Walter Flower, Jordan Lepage and Mathieu Charlebois at the draft. Flower has the local fans in his corner as he hails from Lunenburg and was a key player on Nova Scotia’s Canada Games team last winter. Lepage and Charlebois appear to be steals for GM Cam Russell, who was able to select the players well below where they were ranked.  Charlebois already has tremendous size and just about crushed my miniscule hand when I greeted him on the draft floor.
• We can officially start mentally preparing for the 2015-2016 hockey season now that our exhibition schedule has been released. Halifax will play a pair of games at the Forum which will be nice after the timing didn’t work out for us to play there at all last preseason. The Moose meet Cape Breton on Saturday, August 15th at 7pm to kick off the exhibition tilts and wrap up the preseason on Thursday, September 3rd at 7pm against the Screaming Eagles – with both games being played at the Halifax Forum. No doubt great memories from #StormTheForum will come back too. I’ll never forget that Timo Meier double overtime goal against Shawinigan.  The only other “home game” the Moose will play in August is in Truro where they will face off with the Islanders on Saturday the 22nd at 7pm. Tickets for these games will be available later this summer. For those wondering about the regular season schedule, I am told it will be released by the QMJHL in the near future.
  
• We’re all rooting for Timo Meier recently took part in the NHL scouting combine in Buffalo. Sounds like he continues to turn heads with many scouts believing he has one of the most NHL-Ready bodies in the draft.  We will find out where Timo’s rights end up on Friday, June 26th which is just over three weeks away. These must be exciting but exhausting times for our Swiss sniper.

• A few members of the Herd will be out for the annual Play On! Halifax which is coming up later this month (June20-21) at CFB Shearwater. I mean who hasn’t always wanted to play ground hockey on a tarmac right? We will have Mooseheads staff on hand with our own display setup and a chance for you to win some prizes so make sure you come out for a good time!
• And our tweet of the week comes from @BenChisholm88 who was happy to see his fellow Lunenburg native pull the Mooseheads jersey over his head on Saturday in Sherbrooke.