LEWISTON — There will be no rest for the weary Lewiston Maineiacs this weekend.
Or, at the very most, a half-day.
Less than 48 hours after suffering a second defeat in as many days on a three-games-in-four-days swing to the Maritime Provinces, the Maineiacs will face off Sunday against the Montreal Junior for a fourth game in six days, this time at the friendly confines of the Androscoggin Bank Colisee.
“I’m not going to hide it, we’re a little fatigued right now,” Maineiacs’ coach J.F. Houle said Saturday while watching his own son play hockey at the Colisee. “We played Moncton, I thought we outplayed them, we played well, Saint John was a great team. The teams we played are really good and we traveled in between. It’s still a game we have to play, though. We’re going to get our team as ready as we can to compete against Montreal.”
The Junior, one of the top teams in the QMJHL and in all of Canadian junior hockey, according the BMO CHL Top 10, played Friday as well, but did not play Saturday, and will be in town with the same rest as Lewiston.
“The guys got a day off (Saturday),” Houle said. “I wanted them to stay in bed, catch up on some sleep, that’s important. We have guys not feeling too well, a cold is going around, we have guys with minor injuries here and there, so it’s important for them to rest and get their bodies back in shape.”
Technically, the Junior have a sound team from top to bottom. Goaltender Jean-Francois Berube is 15-3-1 this season for Montreal. A draft pick of the Los Angeles Kings, Berube has a 2.60 GAA and an .898 save percentage.
Another strong defensive unit lies in wait for the Maineiacs, too, with five of the team’s six regular blueliners boasting at least two years of QMJHL service.
The offense? Right. Led by Louis LeBlanc, a highly-touted Montreal Canadiens draft pick, Montreal has scored 125 goals this season, second only to Saint John in that department.
“Montreal is one of the best teams in our league,” Houle said. “They have a very potent offense. They have Louis LeBlanc and whole lot of other players, and if you look at the roster, they have a lot of 19-year-olds.”
The Maineiacs will ice a team Sunday that could still be without some important pieces. Kirill Kabanov is listed as day-to-day after a hit in Moncton shook him up, defenseman Zach Shannon is iffy after a dump-in caught him awkwardly in that same game, and Olivier Dame-Malka will be a game-time decision after sitting out Friday’s game in Saint John due to team-imposed disciplinary actions following a string of what the team called “bad penalties.”
Learning a lesson
Dame-Malka leads the Lewiston Maineiacs in penalty minutes with 66 in 32 games this season, and not one of those minutes has accrued because of a fight.
“He’ll be a game-time decision Sunday,” Houle said. “We needed to send a message. We’re the most penalized team in the league right now, and we need to start holding the players accountable.”
Michael Chaput is right behind Dame-Malka with 62 minutes in penalties to date this season.
The team as a whole has amassed 611 minutes, stemming from 228 minor penalties and 31 majors. The Quebec Remparts lead the league in fewest minutes in the box with 294, and PEI has registered the fewest major penalties with just 10 through 29 games.
Player of the month
Etienne Brodeur made headlines across the QMJHL in November almost every time he played a game. The Maineiacs’ most consistent skater offensively, the rugged speedster notched nine goals and added nine assists for a total of 18 points in 11 games, a stretch that saw Lewiston lose just once. Three of Brodeur’s goals were game-winners.
“It’s great to see him recognized like that, he’s been working hard,” Houle said.
In the past three games, though, Brodeur has gone a bit quiet. Houle believes he knows why.
“He’s had chances, but he’s a player to watch now,” Houle said. “Teams make sure they match lines when he’s on the ice, they’re aware of him. When that’s the case, it’s tough to get points, and I think Etienne’s finding that out right now. Nonetheless, I think he’ll keep his production going. He’s been a great player for us so far.”
Back in action
Goaltender Andrey Makarov didn’t appear to be too busy in his return to action earlier this week, but looks, and stats, can be deceiving.
Makarov earned a win in his first game in more than a month when the Maineiacs upended Cape Breton, 2-1, in overtime on Tuesday.
“He only had 11 shots, but out of those 11 shots, I would say nine of them were point-blank shots,” Houle said. “He made the big saves to keep us in the game.
“We’re happy with Mak, but we have to make sure he’s healthy,” Houle added. “We don’t want to push him too hard after he had a groin injury, but I think he’s fine now, and I think we should see him this week in the lineup.”
Following their game Sunday afternoon against Montreal, Lewiston hosts Baie-Comeau on Tuesday and then welcomes the Sea Dogs to town on Friday evening.
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