"Special Teams Were the Difference", Says Absolutely Everybody

This was important... and doesn't Jonathan Narbonne look alot smaller in this picture?

5-3 win for the Cats over Bathurst last night at the Coliseum... and apparently special teams were the key. That's according to everyone Neil Hodge talked to last night, including Hodge himself (whether he actually talks to himself or not is unverified... though I've heard rumblings to that effect). When everyone agrees, it must be true... and it was. The Cats going 2 for 3 with the man advantage was the edge required to get past Danny Dupont and company last night.

For most of the game, Moncton played well enough to win. They were the better team, but it wasn't like the full out 60-minute display put on against Halifax a couple weekends back. There were actually a few moments in this game where I felt Bathurst had an opportunity to take the reins. After each Moncton goal except for the first one, Bathurst seemed to get a bit more jump in their step and successfully hemmed the Cats in their own zone for a couple shifts afterward. They also put enough pressure on in the last two minutes to give the feeling that things could've gotten a bit more interesting had a bounce or two gone in their favor. Unfortunately, keeping one's foot on that gas pedal can be a daunting task and Moncton simply took advantage of that enough to pull out the W.

For me, the third line was the best one last night. Ryan Penny, Mark Tremaine and Chris Lalonde were a force, combining for five points and pressuring the Titan at virtually every stop. On the surface, a person would look at that line and see a hard checking, strong skating unit and maybe not much else. However, I don't think we should lose sight of the fact that Penny has put up some decent numbers in the past considering the role he plays. With Yannick Veilleux out of commission earlier this year, he was placed on the top line with the Saulniers and fit in very well, so an offensive touch exists there. It's also easy to forget that Lalonde was highly touted by many GM's in this league when Moncton acquired him in the Lewiston dispersal draft... and Tremaine was a scoring star in midget AAA. All three have shown some offensive touch at some point in their careers and what it's added up to this season is a reliable third line that's produced key goals throughout the season and can still set the tone of the game for the Cats even when they don't factor into the offense.

In other news, Connor Garland is very fun to watch. He may only be 16... and he looks like the back of his jersey should read "Timbits"... but make no mistake, he's got plenty of potential. His skills with the puck are already evident and his speed and maneuverability is impressive. It's very obvious how he was able to score both of his goals in a Cats sweater thusfar (which came in a very similar manner, by stealing the puck behind the opposition net, quickly making his way out front uncontested and stuffing it home)... he even threw a check! Hey look everyone, he's gritty!! In all seriousness however, he will only improve with age. With age comes strength and the stronger he gets, the tougher he will be to stop. Cole Holowenko added to his winning ways last night, a streak that now sits at five games. What Holowenko may lack in prettiness (some of his saves tend to be more of the reactionary variety) he makes up for in technical ability and the willingness to battle. I've been told by more than one goaltending aficionado in the past that if a netminder is going to fight the puck, he should still be working hard to make the save. That's what Holowenko does... I don't care how you stop it, as long as you can do it consistently and get the win for your troubles.

I'm eager to see how the Titan continue to react to Dupont's game plan... as well as how he builds this team. Without naming names or getting into too much detail, I could see a few Bathurst players finding a new home this Christmas. Dupont has had a pretty decent run as a head coach at lower levels... and has worked behind some very good coaches at this level... With the right mix of players for him, the Titan could easily be considered the solid squad many had them pegged to be earlier this year. They aren't quite there yet... but it might be taking shape. Also, the 17 year old duo of Zdrahal and Zboril represent the best Euros drafted by the organization since Janis Sprukts (look it up... that was a long time ago). Like Connor Garland in Moncton, they are going to be a treat to watch (and very much not fun to play against) as time goes by. The same can be said for Mason MacDonald, the (quite big) 16 year old Titan netminder who kept Bathurst in the game at times while looking very sharp virtually any time Moncton collapsed down low. He covers the bottom half of the net remarkably well, particularly for a kid his age at this level.

Speaking of goalies, or more specifically goalie coaches, Moncton has one fewer as of yesterday. That's when Marc Champagne announced his resignation. I had the opportunity to speak with Marc on a number of occasions during his first season in the Wildcats organization and he always came across as a likable guy who certainly knew his stuff and was a good communicator... all key skills in the world of coaching. However, Champagne is a Montreal resident and was therefore not available in Moncton as often as I'm sure he or the organization would've liked. Further work commitments at home have reportedly made continuing his role with the Cats even less possible. All signs point to Matt Cooling taking over the position outright. I'll say this much for Cooling... being a local guy, he's obviously around the team more than Champagne was. As well, there has been a marked improvement in the play of Alex Dubeau over the last month and half. How much of that can be credited to Cooling? Seemingly enough in the opinion of the club to hand him the reigns full time as there has been no "interim" tag applied to his title so far as I've seen. I think this goes to show, in some way, that the Wildcats brass understands the clear cut advantage of having a local person fill that important role. With all due respect to Marc Champagne, I feel that aspect was sorely missing the last few seasons... and something the organization had been spoiled with in a way with the always available and impeccable abilities of Frantz Bergevin-Jean. I hope Marc finds the time to somehow catch on with another club sooner rather than later. He could prove very valuable to some other organization... one obviously closer to home.

Caught much of the red/white game at World Juniors training camp online last night. Without getting too much into the details, I'll just say this - I think my wish to have Phillip Danault on this year's team keeps getting more and more likely. Kid was one of the best looking players out there last night. Also, I would not want to be the person that has to decide which one of these goalies to cut based on the display put on last night. That's a problem I don't mind seeing... and one that I'm willing to bet hasn't cropped up for Team Canada in a few years.