LEWISTON – The rookies had their chance to shine alone last week in the Lewiston Maineiacs’ first preseason game against Saint John.
Today, the Maineiacs will play the first of two games in two days on the road with a squad mixed with rookies and veterans, giving the fresh faces two more chances to prove their worth to the team.
“We have to mix the two now,” said Maineiacs head coach and general manager Clem Jodoin after a long, tough practice Tuesday morning. “We have to put the veterans in the lineup now, too, because they have to get used to being back in a game. They need to get back into their rhythm.”
Lewiston will square off tonight against the Saint John Sea Dogs and Thursday night against the Acadie-Bathurst Titan.
“The veterans, a lot of them, are going to their (NHL) camps next week,” said Jodoin. “They have to get back into it on the ice before them. The rhythm there will be much faster.”
One area of concern Jodoin expressed to his team following last week’s loss to Saint John was a lack of discipline.
“We addressed it (Monday) and we address it again (today),” said Jodoin. “But when you look at the game summaries from around the league, we are not the only ones. It’s not only us, it’s everywhere in the league.”
Jodoin also said Tuesday that there will be a round of cuts Friday.
Some players will not make the trip this week, but only one of those missing will stay behind due to an injury. Mathieu Aubin, who arrived at practice last week on crutches with an ankle injury, no longer needs the crutches, but the coaching staff is taking things slowly.
Twenty-year-old defensemen Brandon Roach and Jonathan Paiement will stay behind to allow some of the younger defensemen a chance to show why they should be kept when four veteran defensemen leave next week for NHL camps, and Michal Korenko and Jakub Bundil will remain behind due to visa problems.
Other players nursing minor injuries, including Josh Smith, Alex Sousa and Pier-Luc Champagne, will make the trip.
Following the trip, the players will have the long Labor Day weekend off before returning to the ice early next week. Lewiston plays two preseason home games next week, Tuesday against Moncton and Saturday against Bathurst.
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