LEWISTON – Local youth hockey is starting to feel the positive effects of having a Quebec Major Junior Hockey League in town.

According to team officials, this week will mark the first of several in a partnership between the Maineiacs, local youth hockey organizations, and Country Kitchen.

Under the agreement, Lewiston players will attend youth hockey practices and help teach the young skaters different skills. On Monday, players attended practices for three different local teams. In return, the players on the selected teams each week will receive tickets to an upcoming Maineiacs’ home game compliments of Country Kitchen.

“Every team that we go help gets invited back,” said Maineiacs vice president and governor Matt McKnight. “We actually had this deal in place by the end of the summer, but we had to wait until all of the leagues had started and then sit down and hammer out a schedule.”

Injury update

For the first time in several weeks, the Maineiacs are operating at nearly full strength. Olivier Legault, sidelined for a few weeks with an ankle injury, tried to play last Thursday, but according to Mario Durocher, couldn’t go for the rest of the weekend.

“He tried to go against P.E.I last week and it still hurt him,” said Durocher. “His ankle isn’t OK, yet.”

On Sunday, Brandon Roach skated for the first time in two weeks, coming off of a groin injury that has sidelined him on two separate occasions this season. “It helps to have everyone back,” said Durocher. “Everyone can push everyone else, and when you play three games in three or four days, it helps to have a deep bench.”

Goaltending conundrum

Matt Davis and Brandon Roach have been splitting time all season. Davis is listed as the team’s No. 1 goaltender, but has yet to emerge with the statistics to back that moniker up. Over the weekend, Davis seemed to snap out of his funk, making several key saves despite losing 2-1 to Acadie-Bathurst.

Verge stated his case on Sunday, but did allow four goals on just 24 shots. “They are starting to look better, but the save percentage is still pretty low,” said Durocher. “They have to play confident, and I am starting to see that.”

Around the league

For the fourth consecutive week, Gatineau has been named the top team in all of the Canadian Hockey League, and this week Cape Breton joined the Olympique at the top, coming at No. 2. Rimouski was the third QMJHL team to make the top 10, coming in at No. 7. The list is published every week in the middle of the week, and Rimouski’s loss to Lewiston may drop them from the new rankings.

Meanwhile, goaltender Adam Russo made history on Sunday when the Acadie-Bathurst Titan won 2-1. The victory was the 100th of Russo’s career, making him just the fifth player in league history to reach that mark. The first four to do so were Maxime Ouellet, now of the Portland Pirates (101), Mathieu Chouinard (104), Jean-Franois Labbé (105) and Jacques Cloutier, the all-time leader with 131 wins.

Players of the week were announced on Monday, and for the third week this season, Sidney Crosby of Rimouski was the top offensive player. Over the weekend, Crosby had one goal and seven assists for eight points in three games, and accounted for 62 percent of his team’s scoring, including three points against Lewiston Sunday.

Russo garnered defensive honors, winning two games in two starts while allowing just two goals for a 1.00 GAA and a .970 save percentage. Richard Stehlik of the Maineiacs was nominated for the defensive award, the first time a Lewiston player has been mentioned this season.

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