Saint John Sea Dogs

Saint John Sea Dogs
File:SeaDogsLogo.jpg
City	Saint John, New Brunswick
League	Q.M.J.H.L.
Division	Eastern
Founded	2005-06
Home arena	Harbour Station
Colours	Royal Blue, Black, White & Silver
General manager	Jacques Beaulieu
Head coach	Jacques Beaulieu

The Saint John Sea Dogs are a major junior ice hockey team in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, entering the league as an expansion team in 2005. They play at Harbour Station, New Brunswick, which has a capacity of 6,701 spectators. The team's C.E.O. is Scott McCain.

History

2005 - Present

The Sea Dogs filled the void left in Saint John by the departure of the AHL's Saint John Flames when the city was granted a team for the 2005-2006 QMJHL season, paying a $3.0 million expansion fee. Oddly enough, the other expansion team to enter the QMJHL that season was the St. John's Fog Devils from Newfoundland.

The Sea Dogs' very first head coach was Christian La Rue under general manager Bob "Tipper" LeBlanc, and the captaincy was split between Charles Bergeron and Vincent Lambert. The Sea Dogs were also given the 1st overall pick at the 2005 QMJHL Draft, selecting defenceman Alex Grant. The Sea Dogs had a weak first season and missed the playoffs.

The Sea Dogs' poor success in their first season granted them another 1st overall pick at the upcoming 2006 QMJHL Draft, where they selected another defenceman, Yann Sauve. The team had a little more success this season, but still finished with poor results and missed the playoffs again.

The 2007 QMJHL Draft saw the Sea Dogs land yet again the 1st round pick, with which they selected defenceman Simon Despres. The team also selected goaltender Robert Mayer 3rd overall at the 2007 CHL Important Draft, where top picks are difficult to come by.

The Sea Dogs have more optimism for the 2007-2008 QMJHL season, as the young team has more experience and has recently acquired star forward Alexandre Picard-Hooper from the Baie-Comeau Drakkar.

Canadian Flag Incident

In December 2006, the Sea Dogs cut 20 year-old player Dave Bouchard after he did not sign a flag the team was sending to Canadian Forces troops stationed in Afghanistan. Sea Dogs coach Jacques Beaulieu stated that there were ongoing problems with this player, but that any player who refused to sign would have been cut from the team: "It wouldn't matter who it would have been. It could have been one of our best players, our first round pick." Bouchard explained that he thought one of the other players had already added his name.

Yearly Results

Regular Season

Legend:
SL = Shoot Out Loss, OTL = Overtime Loss

Season	Games	Won	Lost	SL	OTL	Points	Pct %	Goals For	Goals Against	Standing
2005-06	70	15	47	6	2	38	0.214	174	325	8th East
2006-07	70	20	47	1	2	43	0.286	209	337	8th East
2006-07	70	20	47	1	2	43	0.286	209	337	8th East Playoffs 2005-06 - Out of Playoffs. 2006-07 - Out of Playoffs. Team Records Individual Player Records For A Single Season Statistic Player Total Season Most Goals Christopher DiDomenico 25 2006-2007 Most Assists Christopher DiDomenico 50 2006-2007 Most Points Christopher DiDomenico 75 2006-2007 Most Points (Rookie) Felix Schutz 52 2005-2006 Most Points (Defenceman) Jeff Caron 35 2005-2006 Most Penalty Minutes Brett Gallant 192 2006-2007 Most Wins (Goaltender) Jason Churchill 14 2005-2006 Best GAA (Goaltender) Jason Churchill 4.16 2005-2006 References See also List of ice hockey teams in New Brunswick External links Saint John Sea Dogs site