The Dieppe Commandos put win number 20 in the books tonight, defeating Campbellton 3-1 on the road. Alex Murray continued his recent hot streak with a pair of goals, including the game winner. That makes it 10 points in the last six games for the 19 year old winger. Murray is one of those kids that goes out, works his tail off, quietly does his job in all three zones and leaves with a point or two. This isn't the first time this season #14 for Dieppe has rattled off a hot streak (he had at least one point in eight straight back in November). But he is one of those guys who doesn't always make a person take notice until he's had a couple strong offensive games in a row. Apparently, he's flying under the radar of the opposition as well... much to the delight of Jeff Leblanc and company.
Looking at the summary of this game, it should be noted that Joey Bernard and Mathieu Newcomb engaged in a scrap in the third period. I mention this because the last time Bernard faced off against Dieppe, he didn't make it through the game. In fact, he didn't make it off the ice under his own power as he suffered probably the worst injury sustained at the AJL this season, a very deep cut to his leg. Not only has he returned to the Tigers lineup, he's also made a cameo appearance in recent times with the Acadie-Bathurst Titan. Certainly great news for a Tigers team that could use some after the loss of personnel to trades and promotions it's suffered over the past month or so.
One other point regarding the Tigers that bears mentioning... as happy as I am for him to be among the major junior coaching ranks again as an assistant with the Titan, I must say I miss having Charlie Leblanc behind the Campbellton bench. Every time he made an appearance at the AJL, he always had time for a handshake and a quick chat. He's truly one of the nice guys in the game who deserves a place in the Q, but is no doubt missed at the Jr.A level.
In a weekend where picking up points wherever possible is critical (and not too easy), it's off to Summerside and a date with the Western Capitals tomorrow night at Eastlink Arena. It probably won't be one of those really good "we have so much in common" dates. I'm picturing more of an affair where one party is trying to keep the other of them and maybe one or two slipped mickeys. Hopefully the consistent effort Dieppe has put up against the Caps most of this season continues on.
It's 1-0 Cats in the third in Shawinigan... and it's not the visiting Cats, either. From what I've heard of the game, it sounds like Moncton is a step off some of the time, bottled up by a determined Cataractes team at other times, shooting themselves in the foot (7 minute Shawinigan powerplay courtesy of former Cataracte Yannick Veilleux) at still other intervals. Frankly, I'm just hoping that if I type long enough, the game will rectify itself. Moncton holds a 6-1 shots advantage in the third as of right now, so hope definitely springs eternal. Alex Dubeau is also producing yet another strong showing in nets. Oh, and speaking of which...
My take on the drama in the Times & Transcript between Neil Hodge and Dubeau, in which the netminder refused an interview request from Hodge and the later had a couple of scathing comment for the former in his daily article this morning. There's really no right or wrong side in this situation. I have yet to have someone show me where Hodge's factual information regarding Dubeau's play was inaccurate. As for his comment about Dubeau needing to "grow up" and become "thicker skinned", that's his opinion... which is neither right or wrong. Unfortunately for the Cats' beat reporter, asking an 18 year old who has shown on the ice to be an emotional player to develop this thicker skin is easier said than done. Both parties were fully within their rights to do and say (or not say) what they said. That's not to say I wouldn't have handled it differently if I was either person. If I'm Dubeau, I swallow my pride and give a statement for the benefit of the fans who want to hear from me. If I'm Hodge and I am stuck without an interview from the star of my article, I mention it almost in passing that the request for an interview was denied and leave it at that - being as tactful as possible in the process. Again, this is me playing Devil's Advocate... and again, this is not a wrong answer. Everyone deals with situations differently. I'll say this much about the episode however; it accidentally made for a more interesting story. Not only was there the drama of the interview snub, we got a couple quotes from Matt Cooling, who's opinion I was very interested in hearing.
As an aside, operation "type until they score" is successful! 1-1 thanks to the former Cataracte Jonathan Narbonne.
Finally, if Moncton does win, they should not do the now former Habs post-game win ritual of the low-five perfected by PK Subban and Carey Price. Apparently, this is disrespectful of the team concept and not just some random, nearly meaningless thing done between two players. Hopefully this brings Montreal at least 5 more victories on the season and isn't the amazingly ludicrous coaching decision that it appears to be. And of course, since this is Montreal, it won't be blown out of proportion at all. I mean, this is Michel Therrien's first run through the Habs organization so I could understand him not being aware that any and all asinine decisions he makes will be put under a microscope and prove potentially distracting to the team itself. Yes, this is definitely part of the learning curve for this latest Montreal bench boss who's just getting a feel for how things are done around town.
And the visiting Cats pull it off in OT, 2-1! Make it nine in a row the (unnecessarily) hard way. The system works, people.
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