Four skaters and one goaltender who have called the Lewiston Maineiacs’ training camp home for two weeks are leaving today. There are 27 skaters and goaltenders left.
Forwards Josh Smith and Karl Prefontaine, defensemen Matt Carroll and Scott Corrigan and goaltender Claude Garland received word from head coach and general manager Clem Jodoin following Thursday night’s game in Bathurst that they would be headed home.
“There are four guys left for two spots,” said Jodoin. “We have (Manuel) Brunet, (Shane) Peterson, (Daniel) Basque and (Jakub) Bundil coming back for one more week, and we will see after that.”
The eight defensemen on the team for the remainder of the season, barring any professional call-ups, are set. Peterson, if he is to make the team, will come on board as a forward.
Lewiston will lose seven players to professional camps next week, so it is unlikely that anyone else will leave before they return.
All of those players that were cut, save for Garland, had one last chance to play for the Maineiacs.
For the second consecutive night, though, the Maineiacs allowed their starting goalie to get shelled. This time, though, the offense couldn’t pull out anything on the other end.
Acadie-Bathurst managed three goals on 56 shots against Maineiacs’ starting netminder Travis Fullerton, two of them on a power play, and a rookie-laden Lewiston offense sputtered as the Titan upended the Maineiacs 3-0 at the K.C. Irving Centre in front of 1,622 fans.
“I am not concerned (about the shot total),” said Jodoin. “We were missing five regular defensemen and we had all rookies in the lineup. They had almost their whole lineup in.”
Of the 20 players allowed on the roster Thursday, just five saw regular shifts last season in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
After outshooting the Maineiacs 17-4 in the first period, Mathieu Perreault notched his first preseason goal 49 seconds into the second frame to give Bathurst a 1-0 lead. Mathieu Roy, who assisted on the first goal, scored on a power play at 16:58 of the second to give the Titan a cushion.
Maxime Morier capped the scoring in the third, again on a power play, with just over 10 minutes to play.
The Maineiacs who are able to go home will have the next three days to do so. Players are due back in Lewiston on Tuesday in time for the team’s next preseason game against Moncton.
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