juliansteed
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Yes I've heard several rumours. Most involve relocation but it appears those options are limited so now some are even suggesting them folding and there being a dispersal draft as you mention. It looks like they are staying put for 1 more year at least then I'm not sure what will happen. But next year Kabanov will be 19 so it shouldn't affect him as he will be eligible for the AHL after that if he doesn't make the NHL.
I really hope that they stay in Lewiston. They have a great group of die-hard fans but the problem is they are pretty close to the AHL's Portland Pirates and the NCAA Maine Blackbears. That makes for a pretty tough sell in a small town where hockey is popular but probably the 3rd and maybe even 4th most popular sport. Plus it doesn't help that the rest of the league is from Canada and most teams are from french cities in Quebec they have never heard of. They drew better when they were in a division with the English speaking Maritime cities but a relocation forced some realignment and now they are in a division with Quebec based teams. A few years ago I heard rumours that the QMJHL wanted to expand to another New England city but couldn't seem to come to an agreement with anyone. I think that would have helped Lewiston out a lot.
Sherbrooke is one of the places I've heard rumours about but that is where the franchise came from about 8 or 9 years ago. I've heard that the owner burnt his bridge with that city and the only way they could move back is if he sold the team. I've also heard rumours of them wanting to move to Summerside PEI but the PEI Rocket, who play out of Charlottetown PEI, have blocked that move. Other rumours have them moving to Fredericton NB, which is an hour north from Saint John, but there are 2 university teams there already so they think it would be a tough sell, especially since they would probably have to find another venue to play out of.
It really would be a shame if they folded or relocted. I went to a game in Lewiston about 3 years ago against the Sea Dogs with my dad. The fans there treated us great when they found out we were Sea Dogs fans from Saint John. No hostility at all. They were also very friendly with the scratched Sea Dogs players and they were disappointed when they found out there wasn't a fan bus from Saint John because they said they always had fun when a bus full of Sea Dogs fans would come down. I've never had a problem in any other arena that I have visited but I've heard from other Sea Dogs fans that claimed to have had problems in certain arenas that Lewiston was by far their favourite place to visit and had the best fans.
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I'm not sure if Lou is at the Memorial Cup but I know he attended a lot of games during the QMJHL finals. The Devils 2009 2nd round pick Eric Gelinas also plays for the Sea Dogs and the Sea Dogs opponent in the finals were led by star goaltender Maxime Clermont who is also a Devils pick. So needless to say he had a lot of interest in that series and got a good look at Huberdeau.
