Saint John Sea Dogs to play first CHL regular season games in Fredericton

A QMHJL regular season game will be played in Fredericton for the first time.

For the first time in the history of the Canadian Hockey League, regular season games will be played in Fredericton.

The Capital City Series will see the Saint John Sea Dogs of the Quebec Maritime Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) travel north to play three of their 32 home games. The games will be played out of the Aitken Centre, home of the popular University of New Brunswick (UNB) hockey teams.

The first game will be played Nov. 30 against the Cape Breton Eagles. A pair of games will follow in the new year, the first against Gatineau Olympiques on Jan. 8, while the final Fredericton faceoff will go down Feb. 1, when the Sea Dogs host the Baie-Comeau Drakkar.

“Fredericton, and especially UNB have a long history together,” says Saint John Sea Dogs President Trevor Georgie. “We have a long list of players from Fredericton, and also we have had a pretty good pipeline to UNB with the Reds of Sea Dogs alumni going to play there.”

Georgie says local fans have been mostly receptive to the plan, adding season ticketholders will have the option to take a bus to the game free of charge, or will be able to flex their tickets.

The two-time Memorial Cup champions, having won most recently in 2022, have played several pre-season games in the capital over the years but never during the regular season.

While Fredericton does not have a QMJHL to call their own, the town is not without a team to root for. The UNB Reds teams has become a powerhouse of Canadian collegiate hockey in recent years. During the 2023-24 campaign the Reds men’s program didn’t lose a single game en route to the national championship.

UNB President and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Paul Mazerolle says Fredericton is a hockey city and will serve fans not just in the capital.

“We don’t see it as a risk to our fan base, and I think if anything we think it’s an opportunity to bring more fans,” says Mazerolle. “Maybe a different fan base from further afield, maybe all the way up to Woodstock and Florenceville to come see a different kind of brand of hockey.”

Georgie says fans can expect to see a young and talented team full of future NHL stars. Among the biggest draws will be potential 2027 NHL lottery pick centre Alexis Joseph of the Sea Dogs.

Future Fredericton Team?

While Fredericton has never had a QMJHL of its own, the first regular-season games in the city could be a sign of what’s to come.

Jamie Tozer, editor of Station Nation, has covered the Sea Dogs through his blog since 2009.

He says the move will likely benefit the Sea Dogs and hockey fans in Fredericton, but it doesn’t mean a team is coming to the city next season.

He says, with the departure of the Acadie-Bathurst Titan, junior hockey fans in New Brunswick only have the Sea Dogs and Moncton Wildcats to cheer for and credits Saint John for “trying to take the market.”

But one day, he believes fans in Fredericton will have a QMJHL team of their own.

“There’s probably a chance that in our lifetime Fredericton could have a QMJHL team,” says Tozer, adding it would likely be years away and a suitable home rink would need to be identified.

“The QMJHL is looking to expand. They’re trying to expand into New England, and I think a lot of that New England expansion, one of the factors is that they’ve kind of run out of markets in Atlantic Canada and in Quebec to expand to. So, Fredericton seems like a logical destination, but it’s just the arena is kind of the big question.”

The Sea Dogs president suspects the league will be watching the results of the Fredericton games with a close eye.

As for his thoughts on a league expansion to Fredericton, Georgie says it is an interesting market that loves the sport and has seen success at the highest level.

“Potentially,” he says when asked about a team coming to Fredericton one day.

“A lot has changed now with the NCAA rule change, it’s really changed the landscape of hockey across North America. It’s fluid right now, but I wouldn’t rule out any of that.”

When asked about the potential of a major junior hockey team one day moving to the market, Mazerolle says he is open-minded to the idea, but it is not something that is being planned at this time.

“It is a hockey city, and we’ve got fantastic men’s and women’s hockey teams that we’re very proud of, and we don’t want anything to derail that,” says Mazerolle.

“Is there a demand for this? I think there probably is. Would it be good for the community? I think it would be. I think we’re open-minded about maybe that’s something that could be explored down the track.”

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