For a team about to travel 510 miles to Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, the Lewiston Maineiacs sure seemed to be in a hurry Monday.
“It’s always nice to get there early,” said Maineiacs coach Clem Jodoin. “This is a long ride.”
A long ride that will only get longer as the Maineiacs criss-cross the Maritime Provinces this week on their last road trip of the season. From P.E.I. tonight, Lewiston will head down to Nova Scotia to face Halifax on Wednesday (another 155 miles), followed by a 285-mile trek back across New Brunswick to take on Acadie-Bathurst on Friday.
“It’s a tough trip for us, but this is what you expect after Christmas,” said Jodoin. “This is the time that the men are separated from the boys.”
The Maineiacs are coming off a win over second-place Acadie-Bathurst on Sunday during which they scored five power-play goals in a 5-2 win over the Titan. The win, according to Jodoin, was more than welcome.
“It was big for the confidence, for sure,” said Jodoin. “The win gave us confidence to go on the road with, and it helps the team to know they can compete with anyone.”
First up for the Maineiacs is the sixth and final meeting between Lewiston and the Rocket. In five games this season, the Maineiacs have outscored P.E.I. 25-11 and have won all five games.
“This doesn’t mean it will be easy,” cautioned Jodoin. “They are still fighting. They are three points ahead of Victoriaville for the seventh place in the conference.”
The last time Lewiston faced the Rocket, P.E.I. was without 20-year-old former Maineiac Travis Mealy, who was suspended, and Viatcheslav Trukhno, who was ill.
“Those two make a big difference on that club,” said Jodoin.
Following tonight’s game, Lewiston faces a rested Halifax Mooseheads team that is hot on the Maineiacs’ heels for the fourth and final home-ice position in the Eastern Conference. Halifax has three wins over Lewiston this season, two of which came by way of a shootout. In Halifax, the teams split their two meetings, with the Mooseheads winning in December, 6-2, and the Maineiacs taking a 4-2 decision a month later.
In the teams’ last game at the Colisee in Lewiston, Lewiston blew a 3-0 lead and lost in a shootout, 4-3.
“Halifax will be fresh and waiting for us,” said Jodoin, “but we were fresh and waiting for them after they played Quebec last time, too, so you never know.”
The final leg of the trip sends Lewiston to Bathurst for the teams’ second game in six days. Overall on the season, Bathurst has a 4-3 edge on the Maineiacs.
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