IceCaps Player of the Week: Charles Hudon
After another short stint in the NHL, the IceCaps’ leading goal-scorer returned to the lineup, and didn’t miss a beat. Despite being held off the scoresheet in a 3-2 win over Utica and a 3-2 loss to the Syracuse Crunch, he saved his best effort for the rematch with the Crunch on Sunday.
Hudon registered his 21st and 22nd goals of the year in a crucial game against the Crunch, unfortunately the rest of the team was nowhere to be found in a 6-2 blowout loss. With 22 goals this year, Hudon continues to be the go-to source for IceCaps scoring, making his demotion to the third line in Sunday’s game baffling, to say the least. He’s still 12 points behind his pace from last season, but with the cast around him in St. John’s this year while a steady exodus of talent heads off to Montreal, that’s not surprising.
Weekly Stats
| Player | GP | G | A | PTS | +/- | PIM | SOG |
| Bud Holloway | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -1 | 0 | 1 |
| Michael McCarron | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 | 0 |
| Charles Hudon | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | +0 | 4 | 7 |
| Mark Barberio | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 | 0 |
| Daniel Carr | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 | 0 |
| Gabriel Dumont | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -2 | 6 | 9 |
| Morgan Ellis | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | +0 | 0 | 4 |
| Sven Andrighetto | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lucas Lessio | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 | 0 |
| Darren Dietz | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 | 0 |
| Joel Hanley | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 0 | 2 |
| Mark MacMillan | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | +0 | 0 | 5 |
| Jeremy Gregoire | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | +1 | 15 | 6 |
| Brett Lernout | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | +0 | 12 | 1 |
| Jacob de la Rose | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nikita Scherbak | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -1 | 2 | 3 |
| Mac Bennett | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 | 0 |
| Michael Bournival | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 | 0 |
| Max Friberg | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0 | 6 |
| Ryan Johnston | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -1 | 0 | 1 |
| Victor Bartley | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tim Bozon | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 0 | 5 |
| John Scott | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 20 | 2 |
| Connor Crisp | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Player | W | L | OTL | SO | GAA | SV% |
| Eddie Pasquale | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3.08 | .923 |
| Zachary Fucale | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4.99 | .859 |
Bud Holloway: Holloway managed to register a pair of assists in a 6-2 loss to Syracuse. With 54 points, the veteran forward is still among the AHL’s best scorers, sitting fifth overall in total scoring, but he remains 14 points behind the league’s top scorer, Chris Bourque.
Michael McCarron: It took a little bit longer than expected, but McCarron collected his first NHL goal in a 4-1 loss to the Calgary Flames, deflecting a Nathan Beaulieu shot into the net.
Sven Andrighetto: The Swiss winger had his point streak stopped this past week, and then received a check to the head from Dion Phaneuf in a 5-0 loss to Ottawa. Andrighetto is currently on the injured list with an upper-body injury.
Daniel Carr: Still the shelf for up to three months with a major knee injury sustained on January 26.
Gabriel Dumont: The IceCaps captain is a steady source of production, picking up his 18th goal of the year; just two behind his career high of 20. With 43 points, the longtime AHL forward is sure to pass his career high in points (45) within the next few games.
Morgan Ellis: The career season for Ellis continues as he collected another two points, both assists, in three games. This offensive outburst is very reminiscent of Greg Pateryn’s final full AHL season where he put up similar numbers before cracking the Canadiens‘ roster.
Mark Barberio: The off-season signee continues to pay huge dividends for the Canadiens, as he recorded an assist against Florida. He then left the game against Buffalo with concussion-like symptoms, and is out indefinitely.
Mac Bennett: Even with Darren Dietz and Joel Hanley called up to the NHL, the former Michigan captain couldn’t break into the IceCaps’ lineup.
Lucas Lessio: The speedy winger looks to have found a permanent spot in the Habs lineup, with his speed and physical style of play creating plenty of scoring chances. However, that did not translate into any points.
Jacob de la Rose: The 2015-16 season remains a struggle, as the young Swede didn’t find the scoresheet in the four games for Montreal.
Joel Hanley: His scoring drought continued in the AHL, however, with an injury to Victor Bartley, he earned his first NHL call-up for Sunday’s game versus the Calgary Flames..
Victor Bartley: Thrust into an NHL role by an injury to one of the regulars, Bartley himself missed Sunday’s game against Calgary with a lower body injury, prompting the recall of Hanley.
Brett Lernout: Despite being known for his hard-hitting style the rookie blue-liner managed to add another assist to his season total on Gabriel Dumont’s 18th goal of the year. He was also ejected from Sunday’s 6-2 loss to Syracuse for being the third man into a fight.
Connor Crisp: Crisp’s season is over after it was revealed the young forward suffered a concussion earlier this season.
Darren Dietz: The defenceman is playing solid minutes for a depleted Canadiens roster, though he’s clearly not fully adjusted to the NHL game. He does show a lot of promise for a such a young player.
Jeremy Grégoire: A stalwart in the IceCaps’ bottom six, Gregoire recorded his fourth goal of the year and racked up another major penalty from a fight against Syracuse.
Mark MacMillan: MacMillan had a solid performance collecting two assists in three games.
Tim Bozon: Bozon has been steadily climbing up the depth chart in St. John’s, playing top-six minutes all weekend. He did fail to record a point, however..
Michaël Bournival: The veteran forward is on the shelf indefinitely with concussion-related issues.
Max Friberg: Since the All-Star break, the Swedish forward has been outstanding for the IceCaps. He scored the overtime winner against the Utica Comets on a gorgeous solo effort as he fought through a check, went down ice, and wired a wrist shot past the goalie for a much-needed two points.
Ryan Johnston: The playmaking blue-liner continues to generate assists, this time supplying the helper on Brandon McNally’s fifth goal of the year in a 3-2 loss to the Crunch.
Nikita Scherbak: It was a strange week for the rookie forward, he collected one assist on the week. He also saw himself demoted to the 4th line in a 3-2 loss to the Syracuse Crunch. Though the demotion lasted less than a period it’s a bad look on the coaching staff that this is how they handle a rookie experiencing a rough patch.
John Scott: After an outstanding week of production the IceCaps enforcer took a step back, collecting ten-minute misconducts in back-to-back games, and failing to add any more points to his record totals.
Zach Fucale: Fucale received two starts. In his first, he stymied Utica with a 30-save performance in an overtime win. Against the Syracuse Crunch, he let in six goals on just twenty-four shots and was pulled after two periods. If the IceCaps want to make the post-season, they’ll need to see more consistency from the rookie netminder.
Year to Date Stats
| Player | GP | G | A | PTS | +/- | PIM | SOG |
| Bud Holloway | 60 | 18 | 36 | 54 | -12 | 12 | 153 |
| Charles Hudon | 56 | 22 | 23 | 45 | -5 | 71 | 155 |
| Gabriel Dumont | 61 | 18 | 25 | 43 | -14 | 68 | 154 |
| Morgan Ellis | 63 | 12 | 23 | 35 | +3 | 47 | 141 |
| Michael McCarron | 54 | 15 | 19 | 34 | -9 | 82 | 115 |
| Max Friberg | 57 | 11 | 20 | 31 | -5 | 8 | 110 |
| Sven Andrighetto | 26 | 10 | 13 | 23 | +6 | 22 | 74 |
| Daniel Carr | 24 | 10 | 11 | 21 | +7 | 10 | 66 |
| Lucas Lessio | 42 | 10 | 11 | 21 | -16 | 41 | 102 |
| Mark Barberio | 26 | 2 | 18 | 20 | +0 | 25 | 51 |
| Darren Dietz | 58 | 4 | 12 | 16 | -6 | 59 | 103 |
| Nikita Scherbak | 38 | 6 | 10 | 16 | -24 | 16 | 66 |
| Joel Hanley | 61 | 5 | 8 | 13 | -8 | 23 | 67 |
| Mark MacMillan | 52 | 6 | 7 | 13 | -10 | 39 | 49 |
| Jacob de la Rose | 30 | 4 | 7 | 11 | -8 | 16 | 44 |
| Brett Lernout | 65 | 1 | 9 | 10 | -7 | 71 | 53 |
| Ryan Johnston | 28 | 0 | 9 | 9 | -14 | 12 | 27 |
| Michael Bournival | 20 | 1 | 7 | 8 | -7 | 12 | 55 |
| Jeremy Gregoire | 52 | 4 | 3 | 7 | -6 | 61 | 62 |
| Tim Bozon | 31 | 2 | 3 | 5 | -5 | 8 | 47 |
| Victor Bartley | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | -11 | 16 | 39 |
| John Scott | 18 | 2 | 2 | 4 | +0 | 48 | 8 |
| Mac Bennett | 32 | 1 | 2 | 3 | -11 | 30 | 26 |
| Connor Crisp | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -6 | 25 | 8 |
| Player | W | L | OTL | SO | GAA | SV% |
| Eddie Pasquale | 10 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 2.53 | .920% |
| Zach Fucale | 15 | 16 | 4 | 0 | 3.09 | .902% |
Weekly Record
| GP | W | L | OTL | PTS |
| 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
The win over Utica on Friday night was a massive boost to the IceCaps playoff push, but losing both games to a Crunch team they’ve dominated all year dealt a major blow to their post-season aspirations.
Record to Date
| GP | W | L | OTL | PTS | Conference | Division |
| 66 | 28 | 27 | 11 | 67 | 12th | 6th |
St. John’s desperately needs some points as they square off with the Rochester Amerks on Wednesday and Friday. Both teams are in the hunt for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, so these games are undoubtedly the most important of the year. On Saturday afternoon, the AHL’s best rivalry re-commences when the IceCaps and Toronto Marlies clash once again.
