GAME PREVIEW Week #2 of the QMJHL season starts tonight for your Halifax Mooseheads with their first matchup of the season against the Moncton Wildcats. The Herd enjoyed a strong start last weekend by earning three points in their two games against Cape Breton. The Wildcats are a much different looking team this year as they start another rebuilding process. The Cats have struggled to score early with only two goals and are still searching for their first win following losses to Charlottetown and Acadie-Bathurst. Tonight’s game also pits Moose forwards Zachary L’Heureux and Elliot Desnoyers against their former team for the first time Halifax acquired them from Moncton during the offseason.

SCOTTY’S 3 WHOPPERS OF THE GAME FREE AGENT FIND The Moncton Wildcats only have two goals this season but both have come off the stick of Vincent Labelle. He’s an 18-year-old free agent from Ottawa, ON who played Junior A last season with the Rockland Nationals of the CCHL. He’s a smallish forward with some offensive skill and actually had scored both of his goals before any other team in the league had scored on opening night last Friday.

ROOKIE POWER The Mooseheads couldn’t have envisioned a better start for their large group of rookies who accounted for 10 of the team’s 23 points last weekend, led by Bobby Orr’s three points while Markus Vidicek and Cole Foston each had a pair. Jake Furlong, James Swan and Jordan Dumais each chipped in with a single point. You have to think that for those players to get their name on the scoresheet early in the season it will only help to build their confidence going forward.

QMJHL DRAFTEES Justin Barron (25th overall) and Elliot Desnoyers (135th overall) made headlines in Moose Country but as a whole there were 19 players from the QMJHL drafted during the 2020 NHL Entry Draft earlier this week. Cape Breton forward Ryan Francis of Beaver Bank was the only other Nova Scotian selected aside from Barron. Francis went to Calgary in the 5th round. Moncton’s Philippe Daoust went to Ottawa in the 6th round.