Wildcats – Year twelve - 2007-08

Chris Morehouse never missed an opportunity to motivate his Moncton Wildcats team mates and the fiery; spark plug captain did it one final time at the annual Awards presentation on March 17th.  “We were a team that never quit,” said the veteran 20-year-old, who was made Captain following the Christmas trade period.   “Despite the tough season, we gave it all we had, every single night we played and showed the opposition and the fans what a dedicated bunch of players we were”.  

Morehouse was referring to a season that started and ended the same way and in between twenty-five other games would have the same result, a one goal loss. 

The Wildcats opened the 2007-2008 season at the K.C. Irving Regional Centre in Bathurst on September 14, 2007 losing to the home town Titan by a 6-5 score.  They ended the season at the Charlottetown Civic Centre on March 16, 2008 with a 3-2 loss to the Prince Edward Island Rocket and for the first time in 5 seasons missed post season play.

The Wildcats started the QMJHL campaign with a successful first month going 5-2 and 1 in the 8 games they played in September but that would be the only winning month they would enjoy.  In October the stats showed a 2 win 10 loss record.  In November, the Cats played 13 games going 4-8 and 1. They played December with 4 wins and an equal number of losses.  In January following the Christmas trade period, where top scorer Matt Marquardt and captain Phil Mangan were sent to other teams, the Wildcats played 14 games with 4 wins and 10 losses.  In February with 8 games on the calendar, they won twice, lost 5 games in regulation time and had one loss in overtime.  March saw a seven game schedule with the Cats failing to gain a victory. 

It was not all doom and gloom; they played tough in ever game and surprised some of the top teams in the league with impressive victories.  Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations, Danny Flynn, pointed to outstanding efforts by the team.  The Coach recalled a three game road trip at the end of the January when the Cats lost the first two games, the second 7-0 to Chicoutimi but went into the Colisee Pepsi in Quebec City the next night and came away with a 4-3 shoot-out victory over the Remparts. 

At the annual Awards presentation, Flynn made this statement: “To the players, this was a challenging year, but one of the things I enjoyed the most was how hard you competed and worked to be your best. It was a great group of kids here and it was a pleasure and a privilege to work with them all.”

Third year veteran centre Matt Eagles lead the team in scoring, notching 57 points on 25 goals and 32 assists over 61 games. 

Second year defenceman Mark Barberio, played in all 70 games and was second in the team scoring race with 11 goals and 35 helpers. 

Chris Morehouse, in his final year of major junior, was a tireless worker on and off the ice, capturing the team’s Community Spirit Award for the second year in a row and was also given the Outstanding Athletic Scholastic award.

Others singled out for honours were first year forward, Zach Sill, voted the Most Valuable Player.

Pictou,  N.S. native Matt Brown was voted Rookie of the Year. 

Outstanding Defensive Player went to Mark Barberio who led the Wildcats defense in +/- with a -1 rating.

Scott Brannon was named Unsung Hero.  Matt Boyle was selected by the fans as the Most improved player, while Eagles took home the Leading Scorer Award.

A new award was unveiled at the ceremony, the Commitment to Excellence award.  This award recognizes a person who has gone above and beyond the call of duty as a representative of the Moncton Wildcats.  The inaugural award was given to Serge LeBlanc.  Serge has been the equipment manager of the Wildcats for eight years and served in the same capacity for the Canadian Gold Medal Under-20 World Junior team this past season.

The Wildcats now prepare for the draft in Sydney in June with the highest number of early round picks in the history of the franchise.  “We have to build from the draft,” says Director of Hockey Operations and Head Coach Danny Flynn.  “The future of the Wildcats is based on how well we do in selecting players, who will become part, of the team that will win the Memorial Cup in the not too distant future.  Our young players from this year will continue to improve and develop.  We will add good, new talent to the Wildcats roster and we continue to move forward to the ultimate goal of our owner Mr. Robert Irving and the entire Wildcats organization, that being, to capture the national championship.”

Team Photo

View Individual Stats

QMJHL Standings 2006-07

2007 QMJHL Entry Draft