Saint John still top Dogs

First off, nice to see the defending MasterCard Memorial Cup champs on Friday Night Hockey this past week on Sportsnet. The Saint John Sea Dogs finally have everyone healthy in their lineup. Out for months, Washington prospect Stan Galiev is back and although his timing is off just a bit, he has four goals in as many games.

The depth of the Sea Dogs is quite amazing when you can throw St. Louis picks Ryan Tesing, Stephen MacAulay along with Galiev on your third line.

You can put aside any doubts about the play of goaltender Mathieu Corbeil. Despite having the best overall numbers in the QMJHL, Corbeil is working on becoming more patient and letting the puck come to him. His rebound control is great and the tweaks to his game have made him arguably the best goalie in the league. Thank the coaching staff for getting him one start in the 2011 MasterCard Memorial Cup.

Danick Gauthier's rise to prominence has surprised everyone but his team and coaches. His dad Daniel is a former third-round pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins and is still playing in Europe. With 40 goals, Gauthier is gunning for the Sea Dogs' single-season record set by Mike Hoffman in 2009-10 with 46.

I can't say anything more about Jonathan Huberdeau. He's as solid a two-way player as there is in the CHL, maybe even the 59-team league's best player. He's finally catching stride after dealing with a lower body injury that kept him out for over a month before playing in the World Junior Hockey Championship. On a night where he didn't look nearly as dangerous as I've seen him in the past, he still ended up with three assists.

How about a little love for the pairing of Pierre Durepos and Kevin Gagne? Durepos deservedly had a tryout with the Los Angeles Kings in the fall, and some NHL team would be wise to give him another shot. The same can be said about Kevin Gagne, who has solidified himself as Durepos's partner in the second pairing. He's got great mobility and super hockey sense. NHL scouts will find a way to get by his size and look at his competitiveness and offer him a shot somewhere.

As for the Quebec Remparts, Anthony Duclair will be a superstar in the 'Q' before he graduates. Duclair has unreal speed, magic hands, and when he goes to the net, he's as dangerous as anyone in the league. Not to mention, he's got a nice, confident demeanor about him. When Duclair adds strength and endurance to his frame, he will be unstoppable.

Adam Erne is a bull with good hands. Committed to Boston University and with a year of USHL play under his belt, he's adjusted quite well to the rigors of the QMJHL. If he can stay healthy, he's a cinch to score 30 as a 16-year-old. As Erne matures alongside Duclair, the Remparts have the makings of a dominant one-two punch.

Not the least of this youth movement is Mikhail Grigorenko. It's been a long, tough year for the 17-year-old Russian. He's played in the U-18's, the Subway Super Series, the U-20's, the Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game and most of his regular season games with the Remparts. Add the fact he's adjusting well to learning a new language and culture.

On Friday, he was a non-factor, but did show the occasional sign of brilliance. He looks fatigued and must find a way to get some rest before the young-gun Remparts start the post-season. Some scouts have told me about his inconsistent play. I chalk that up to fatigue, and there's no doubt when he's right, he's one of the Q's top players. Not to mention he's still not playing at 100 per cent.

Remparts goaltender Francois Brassard was not at his best Friday night. He allowed three goals on 12 shots before being pulled by Patrick Roy. He looked nervous, but maybe the sight of the Q's top team at the other end of the ice, the pressure of being a No. 1 goalie and a national TV audience combined to sabotage his game. He's a confident young man and we've yet to see his best.

On the flip-side, Louis Domingue's 25-save performance may exactly be the wake-up call required to get him back on track. Previous to Friday night, Domingue had lost 9 of 12 games, had been pulled in 4 of 7 and had lost his starter's job to Brassard. Domingue responded with a 27-save shutout in Moncton on Saturday. If he catches fire and plays as he did at the start of the season, the Remparts may go deeper than expected.

Owen Werthner's a great story. Undrafted and twice tried in the OHL, the Remparts were active in their pursuit of the defenceman, finally getting him to commit this past summer. And they couldn't be more pleased. As of Sunday morning he was a plus-27, which leads the Remparts and is good for top 10 in the league.

QMJHL

There's a great dogfight going on at the bottom of the QMJHL table. Cape Breton, Rouyn-Noranda and PEI are all slugging it out for the last two playoff spots. In a year where the Q is down to 17 teams just one won't make it, and right now it's the Rocket.

Yanni Gourde of Victoriaville was the first player to reach 100 points in the CHL this season, but Mark Stone of Brandon surpassed the century mark Saturday night with two assists in Brandon's 6-2 win over Prince Albert.

The Quebec Remparts are used to getting off to good starts -- they've scored first in 37 of their 57 games.

Speaking of scoring first, the Saint John Sea Dogs are 29-2-0-0 when tallying first.

OHL

Better known as the MASH unit of the OHL, the Sudbury Wolves are once again without the services of Matthew Campagna, Michael McDonald, Alex Racino, Andrey Kuchin, Frankie Corrado and Jeff Corbett.

To make matters worse, two more Wolves left Sunday's game against the Brampton Battalion with injuries and did not return. Michael Kantor was banged around as well. The Wolves were persistent in their effort, rallying from 1-0 and 3-1 down to lead 4-3 until the final three minutes. To add insult to injury the Wolves lost it on an overtime penalty shot goal by Mitchell Porowski. Michael Sgarbossa was in on all four Wolves goals and was a threat every time he touched the ice.

After going 1-7 without Stan Butler behind the Brampton bench, the Battalion have won three straight since his return and now sit three points up on Barrie for third spot in the Eastern Conference.

In talking to a couple of hockey people, Wolves coach Trent Cull and Attack bench boss Greg Ireland came up as possible OHL Coach of the Year candidates. Cull hasn't fielded a full lineup all season, and on many nights has played under the full complement, often missing key players. As for Ireland, he's not allowing his team to sit on last year's OHL title and without the likes of Joey Hishon, Garrett Wilson, Robby Mignardi, Andrew Shaw and others, the Attack are still in the hunt for home ice.

The Saginaw Spirit are 14-6-1-4 since Greg Gilbert took over from Todd Watson behind the bench. The Spirit have points in eight of its last nine games. The Spirit will not be a desired match-up for anyone in the first round.

The memory of Mickey Renaud lives on. All weekend long, the Windsor Spitfires wore commemorative jerseys, recognizing their former captain who passed away from an undetected heart condition in 2008. Expect the tradition to continue, and rightfully so.

WHL

Since Ty Rattie, Joe Morrow and Brad Ross returned from Canada's world junior selection camp, the Portland Winterhawks have gone 20-4. They've won six straight and nine of their last 10 games. They're averaging 4.79 goals for over that stretch.

It's possible that the team holding the eighth and final spot in the WHL's Eastern Conference could have a .600 winning percentage.

Kootenay's Mr. Everything Jeff Chynoweth packed the bags and headed to Everett for the weekend with his family. Jeff's son Ryan is a member of the Silvertips, and Everett had a family weekend for its players. Ryan was able to draw an assist on the game tying goal and then scored in the shootout as the Silvertips defeated Vancouver Saturday night. Here's to taking time to be a dad.

The Brett Connolly watch continues in Tri City. Americans fans will be as excited about trade deadline day as the rest of Canada. That's when the Tampa Bay Lightning must make up its mind on whether or not Connolly gets returned to junior.

Food for thought

Is there a level of over-sensitivity in the concussion discussion? Has the hockey world CNN-ed (read, fear mongered) itself into thinking every headache is a concussion? Or is over-sensitivity the best way to err on the side of caution when it comes to head injuries?

I'd love the readers to respond to how the skills portion of the Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game could be better or different, or does the current format work?

Friday Night Hockey would like to take this opportunity to welcome Tieja MacLaughlin to the fold. Tieja will monitor all things CHL via Twitter. Tieja comes with a solid reputation, especially in the OHL where she is based.

Coming up on Friday Night Hockey:

Friday, February 24: Kootenay Ice @ Saskatoon Blades

-Two teams that are battling for home ice in the WHL's Western Conference

-The Ice swept the favoured Blades right out of the playoffs en route to becoming the WHL Champs

Friday, March 2: Oshawa Generals @ London Knights

-The Knights remain a perennial top 10 CHL team despite youth

-It looks as if the Generals have finally turned things around, and may become a darkhorse in the OHL playoffs

Friday, March 7: Rimouski Oceanic @ Shawinigan Cataractes

-Rimouski is a team the QMJHL quietly talks about

-Our first look at the Mastercard Memorial Cup host Cats

Friday, March 16: Sarnia Sting @ London Knights

-The 402 rivalry heats up with the Sting looking for home-ice in round one, and a possible return of 2012 top prospect Alex Galchenyuk

-The Knights hope to have 1st place in the OHL locked down by then