The spotlight from the world junior hockey championship has shifted back from Canada's golden moment to the Halifax Mooseheads and the second half of the QMJHL regular season.
Team Canada won gold Thursday night 3-2 in overtime over Czechia, claiming its 20th world junior title in front of a record-crowd at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax.
The annual international ice hockey tournament hosted in Halifax and Moncton meant the Mooseheads had a prolonged holiday hiatus away from its home rink.
Dec. 16 was the last time the Mooseheads played at home. They returned on Sunday afternoon as they hit the ice against the Cape Breton Eagles in a battle of Nova Scotia.
"I think the road trip has been extremely difficult for everyone, but not just difficult in the sense that it's hard to play games, but difficult in just coming off the holiday break and getting right on a bus from a plane to another bus," said Mooseheads head coach Sylvain Favreau.
The grueling grind of the road doesn't appear to have impacted the Mooseheads too much, as they picked up five wins over their last six games on the road.
QMJHL leading scorer Jordan Dumais scored the game-winner for Halifax with just over two minutes remaining in the third period, to lift the Mooseheads to a narrow 5-4 win over the Eagles on Sunday in front of 7,778 fans at the Scotiabank Centre.
It was the first home game for 20-year-old forward Alex Doucet, who has played five games with the Mooseheads, since he was acquired from Val d'Or in a Dec. 21 trade for several draft picks, including a first and third-round pick this year and a second-round pick in 2024.
Doucet made his mark, scoring his 33rd goal of the season and tying a career-high in the process, after banging home a rebound on the doorstep to give the Mooseheads a short lived 3-2 lead in the second period.
After the game, Doucet spoke to media and said it's easier to fit in with a team like Halifax who are talented and sit in first place in the Maritime division.
"It was very special,” said Doucet. “I think the rink and the fans are really amazing. It was really fun to play my first game here at home."
Adding a player of Doucet's calibre adds to the already potent Halifax offense that leads the league in goals scored.
He also leads the league in shorthanded goals and was relied on to kill several penalties for the Mooseheads, who got into some penalty trouble against the Eagles.
He also fits in well on the top-line with Dumais, who has led the league in points for the majority of the season.
"(Doucet's) presence is good for us, but obviously he is skilled and he plays the body and is the exact player we need," said Dumais. "He brings a lot of skill and he's good to play with as well."
Dumais was invited to Team Canada's selection camp but didn't make the final roster. Since then, the 18-year-old has been playing some inspired hockey and has scored 14 points in his last seven games.
"I just use it as motivation and I just stick to playing my game and I try not let that get in the way," said Dumais.
Favreau praised Dumais for his ability to handle the upset and adversity and he believes the leading-scorer will benefit from the experience.
"Overall, he's set himself up for a good opportunity to make next year's team," said Favreau. "It was a bit of a dress rehearsal to go to (selection) camp in Moncton and show his skill amongst the top prospects and top players in Canada."
Doucet is making an immediate impact with Halifax at both ends of the ice and was instrumental in holding Cape Breton’s power play scoreless on five chances, while helping force a turnover inside the Eagles blue line which helped set up Dumais' game-winning goal.
Doucet believes Halifax has what it takes to make a run for the Memorial Cup.
"There's a lot of talent on the team," said Doucet. "We have some things to work on, but I feel like we're nearly playoff ready."
The Mooseheads are on roll -- they've won 11 of their last 13 games and are one of the hottest in Canada since the Christmas break.
