LEWISTON – Even with a recent skid, the Lewiston Maineiacs needed a break.

“Six games in 10 days will do that to anybody,” said coach Clem Jodoin. “This is what people need to understand. Everyone is tired.”

Tired, and perhaps frustrated with a current league-worst three-game losing streak.

“We are starting over now,” said Jodoin. “Tuesday, we started over, like it was another training camp. If we want to come out of this bad streak we are in, we need to look at ourselves, break down our own performance, person by person, and figure out what is wrong.”

Lewiston has one of the most prolific offenses in the league – fifth overall with 83 goals in 25 games – so blaming offensive production isn’t high on the list, and the defense and goaltending has allowed just 76 goals against, ranking the Maineiacs eighth in the league there.

Penalties, however, are a different story. In 25 games, Lewiston has taken 699 minutes in penalties (28 minutes per game). At times, Jodoin has called those penalties, and that style of play “stupid,” and “dumb.”

“Hockey is a game of skating, passing and shooting,” said Jodoin. “Not hooking, slashing and cheap shots. This team needs to play smart, aggressive hockey.”

If there is one actually on-ice aspect of the game Jodoin has focused more on this week than in the past it’s boxing players out in front of the net. While typically a basketball term, boxing out, according to Jodoin, includes clearing the front to prevent tip-ins and re-directs on shots from outside the slot.

“In the last games, so many of the goals were tip-ins or close shots,” said Jodoin. “They need to box out better. There has been too much scrambling in front of the goalies.”

In the last two games, of the 11 goals scored by Maineiacs’ opponents, seven have been the result of a tip-in or a re-direct in in front of the goaltenders.

Friday night’s opponent is Shawinigan. The Cataractes were one of the better teams Lewiston faced with its lineup of youngsters in the preseason, and this season Shawinigan is 10-11-5-1, seventh overall with 27 games played.

“Every game is important now,” said Jodoin. “Everyone has to do their job.”

One missing asset on the Shawinigan bench this week will be Benoit Mondou, out 4-6 weeks with an injury. Mondou is his team’s leading scorer with eight goals and 20 assists in 26 games. Goaltending-wise, though, Shawinigan is more than solid, with Julien Ellis putting up another solid year. In 22 games, Ellis is 9-9-4 with a 2.55 goals-against-average and a .922 save percentage.

Notes: Maineiacs will be playing without Jonathan Paiement. Paiement was suspended for two games for a knee infraction during last Friday’s game against Chicoutimi. Alexandre Picard was away from the team this week, traveling to Columbus for a checkup with Blue Jackets’ team physicians after complaining of dizziness following Sunday’s loss to Baie-Comeau. The team expects Picard back for the game tonight….Jonathan Bernier and Pierre-Luc Champagne were absent from practice all week this week, participating in the final selection camp for the Quebec Under-17 team that will skate in a Christmas-time tournament against other teams from Canada and teams from five other countries….Marc-Andre Cliche is expected to be on the ice for Friday night’s game. The Maineiacs first overall pick in the June 2003 entry draft has played in just eight games this season, amassing two goals and five assists in that time.