Another year and another long, season-opening road trip looms for the Lewiston Maineiacs. The team begins its 2005-06 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League season tonight with the first of three consecutive games on The Rock, in St. John’s, Newfoundland.
“It’s no question, it’s going to be a long road trip,” said coach Clem Jodoin, who enters his second season behind the bench for Lewiston. “But, I think we can do well.”
When asked how well the team should do, and what was the goal for the two-week, six-game swing, Jodoin never skipped a beat.
“To win them all,” Jodoin said with a laugh that sounded almost forced. He wasn’t really kidding. But then, he reluctantly changed his tune.
“When you’re on the road, the goal, really, is to play .500,” said Jodoin. “If you are above .500, it’s a bonus.”
For a team with as many question marks as the Maineiacs have, St. John’s may not be a bad place to start. The Fog Devils (1-1) are one of two expansion franchises playing in the Maineiacs’ conference this season. The other, the Saint John Sea Dogs, is also on the opening road trip.
“The biggest key for us, there’s no question, we need a good start,” said Jodoin. “We have to avoid injuries. We should stay out of the box, but we have to stay out of the hospital emergency room, and we’re hoping that everybody will rise.
“We have to challenge people, and we have to get better, with our sticks, with the new rules. We have to.”
The Maineiacs open their schedule with a lot of familiar names.
Of the 20 players expected to be in the lineup tonight, 16 have played at least a half season in the QMJHL. The four who haven’t are 17-year-old Slovakian Jakub Bundil, fourth-line wing Rob McCarthy, first-round draft pick Kevin Marshall and backup goalie Travis Fullerton.
“So far, I like the atmosphere,” said Jodoin. “I like the work ethic. There is some good leadership. No one is picking on the rookies at all, which is a good sign. It’s all together as a team. I told them, it’s like a business now. There are always three guys that won’t be dressed up. It’s going to be tough. There will be highs and lows, and there really isn’t anything in the middle. You’re either high or low, winning or losing.”
Because Pearl Jam is playing at Mile One Arena in St. John’s this weekend, the Maineiacs will play their second and third games Monday and Tuesday before flying back to Moncton. From there, the team will meet its bus for the trip to Saint John, New Brunswick, for a Friday tilt against the Sea Dogs. Moncton will host Lewiston on Saturday, and the Maineiacs will play their final game of the trip Sunday at P.E.I.
Against St. John’s, which loaded up on players with high penalty-minute totals in the expansion draft, Jodoin knows that patience and discipline will rule the weekend.
“To combat that, we have to be disciplined,” said Jodoin. “We have to stay out of the box and score our goals on the power play. This is where we will get an advantage.”
While the coaching staff acknowledges that the first few games in a 70-game season aren’t going to make or break the year, the hope is for a better beginning.
“We have to do better than last year,” said Jodoin. “Even if we lost two key guys, our work ethic, our persistence, our approach to the game has got to be there. Our leadership. And discipline. Discipline could make the difference in half of the games we play.”
Send questions/comments to the editors.
