BY PATRICK KING
sportsnet.ca

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. -- For all the fire and brimstone Dave Cameron brings behind the bench, he was remarkably subdued following his Mississauga St. Michael's Majors loss.

The Majors' head coach had every reason to let his emotions get the best of him after his team let their emotions dictate their play. Mississauga gave the Saint John Sea Dogs eight power-plays throughout the game, but the most defining moments involved a late penalty call and a missed off-side.

The first came in the second period when the Sea Dogs had a delayed penalty. Saint John goalie Jacob DeSerres darted towards the bench and was standing at his own blue line with Jordan Mayer breaking down the wing on an empty net. The refs blew the play dead with the Majors possessing the puck, a call that drew the ire of fans, but apparently not from their head coach.

"In the moment, I didn't think it was right obviously because it took away a chance," Cameron said, who went on to explain that the referee was watching the two players and missed which team currently had possession. "It was the right call."

The second, more crucial play of the game, came in the third period when the Sea Dogs put the game to rest. Zack Phillips appeared to be off-side on the play that led to Nathan Beaulieu's clinching goal.

Although Cameron would go so far as to say he thought it was off-side, he seemingly felt more sympathy than frustration with the refs.

"Mistakes happen," Cameron said. "I've made a few, so I understand it. The tough part of that from my point of view is it wasn't like somebody was sneaking in away from the puck that was off-side. The guy that was off-side (Phillips) was right there and they made a mistake."

Mississauga veteran defenceman Marc Cantin agreed with his coach.

"I was on the ice, I thought it was off-side right away," he said. "You could tell everyone was kind of waiting for a whistle and everyone kind of let up. I know myself I was very surprised there was no whistle. (Saint John) capitalized on it and they went upstairs after and it was blatantly off-side. It's obviously a missed call, but we could have tied it up. We had a chance at the end there, so I'm not going to totally blame (the loss) on that."

Following the alleged off-side was a pretty passing play capped by the streaking Nathan Beaulieu. The highly-touted prospect for this summer's NHL draft finally connected on a pinch after some near-misses all game.

"That's part of my game on the offensive side so it was great to pop one in and help the team out," Beaulieu said.

The game was mired by uncharacteristic penalties. Saint John forward Alexandre Beauregard twice took a penalty behind the play while jostling with Majors defenceman Dylan DeMelo.

Justin Shugg, playing in his third MasterCard Memorial Cup, took two consecutive penalties in the third period. He was less understanding than his coach, but chose his words carefully.

"I couldn't tell you," Shugg said when asked why the game was underlined with undisciplined play by both teams.

Cantin felt the physical play may have been attributed to some bravery from some players not used to getting their noses dirty.

"Sometimes guys that aren't tough throughout the year like to shoot their mouths off sometimes and I think I saw a lot of that tonight," he said.

Mississauga is in a major hole heading into their next game against the Western Hockey League champion Kootenay Ice on Sunday. Sixteen of the past 18 MasterCard Memorial Cup champions won their first game.

The Majors also became the third host team in a row to lose the opening game. None of the previous three wound up winning the national title in front of their fans.

"You know what, that's what history says," Cantin said. "We came to this tournament now as the underdogs. Unfortunately what happened on Sunday (Mississauga's Game 7 loss in the OHL final) put us in that position. I thought we responded well today, but we're a team that likes to face a little bit of adversity and persevere."

The Majors will face the Ice on Sunday and the Owen Sound Attack on Wednesday.

The Sea Dogs will look to become the eighth Quebec Major Junior Hockey League team to win the MasterCard Memorial Cup since the tournament format was introduced in 1972. The last QMJHL champions are the Quebec Remparts from the 2006 tournament.