LEWISTON – Three games in four days on the road is starting to seem normal to the Lewiston Maineiacs, and this week is no different.
After coming home last weekend for the last
of their two home games in October, the Maineiacs are on the road again this weekend with games at Prince Edward Island, Acadie-Bathurst and Rimouski.
Thursday night, the Maineiacs head to Prince Edward Island to take on the other QMJHL team to move in the offseason, the P.E.I. Rocket, who left Montreal after last season.
The Rocket are 8-5-1-3, and have perhaps the best offense in their division.
“They have three good, solid lines,” said Maineiacs coach Mario Durocher. “They play a lot of trap style, like in the NHL, and the big thing for us will be finding holes in their defense and in goal.”
The Rocket’s coach, Alain Vingneault, is the former head coach of the Montreal Canadiens, and brings with him the popular trap style of play. Last season, the Rocket and the Sherbrooke Castors battled to seven games in the first round of the playoffs, with the Castors advancing.
On Friday, Lewiston travels to Acadie-Bathurst for an important game against a team with the same number of points as the Maineiacs, and seemingly in the same situation.
“That is a game like in Halifax,” said Durocher. “They are a very young team, but they have a good goaltender. We seem to be running into a lot of hot goalies lately.”
The other trend the Maineiacs hope to buck this weekend is that of poor showings in second games.
“All year, the second game of a road trip has been the worst for us,” said Durocher. “We want to be able to play solid in all three games.”
After a day of practice in Rimouski, Lewiston will square off against the Eastern Division-leading Oceanic in a rematch of a game that saw the Maineiacs pull off the surprise road win.
“Obviously they have two big lines, and they have Sydney Crosby and (Marc-Antoine) Pouliot, who are both good players. That game will be a big test for our defense.”
Following the three-game trip, the Maineiacs will play 10 of their next 13 games at home, including one on Friday, Nov. 7, against the Oceanic.
jpelletier@sunjournal.com
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