QMJHL: 2008 Draft Eligible MAINEiacs

The 2007 President Cup Champions and Memorial Cup Representatives (QMJHL), the Lewiston MAINEiacs have seven players that are eligible for the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. The MAINEiacs and the St. John's Fog Devils met recently for a two-game set at Mile One Center. St. John's won the opener 8-2, while Lewiston pulled out a 2-1 win in a shootout in Game 2. McKeen's was on hand and files this report on six of the 2008 draft-eligible MAINEiacs.

Alexander Beaton (2008), C, Lewiston

Selected in the fifth round, 73rd overall, in the 2006 QMJHL draft by the MAINEiacs .. the 6-foot, 175-pound pivot hails from Lower Sackville, NS .. played in both games .. centered the second line with Chris Tutalo and Marc-Andre Daneau .. played in all situations: regular shift, powerplay, penalty killing and 4-on-4 .. logged solid minutes .. skates well, smooth motion .. shifty with the puck (twists and turns) .. had some extra jump .. demonstrated good anticipation in both the offensive and defensive zones .. was active in the attacking zone, constantly moving in and out of open ice .. made a number of solid passes, which were quick, hard and accurate .. demonstrated good patience with the puck .. strong work along the boards at times .. demonstrated ability to protect the puck, but not for long periods .. displayed stickhandling ability in open ice and in close quarters .. did not shy away from contact, but never really initiated it either .. battled to get to open ice (danger zones), but failed to create room for himself .. second efforts are needed on a more consistent basis .. was on the receiving end of a big open-ice hit, but bounced back right away .. finished the two-game set with no points, a minus-one rating, four shots on goal and took 41 faceoffs, winning 20 .. despite not registering a point, he was involved in the offensive zone as a set-up man .. would have liked to see him carry the puck and attack more, especially with one-on-one coverage .. would have also liked to see him shoot on a more consistent basis .. a player that passes the puck too much becomes very easy to defend .. interesting note on Beaton: rarely skated with his stick on the ice without the puck, always had two hands on the stick.

Marc Bourgeois (2008), RW, Lewiston

The 5-foot-7, 176-pound right-winger is from Glace Bay, NS .. selected in the 10th round, 180th overall, in the 2007 QMJHL draft by Lewiston .. skated on the fourth line in Game 1 with Dominic Savoie and Lucas LaBelle .. was used at center and on the wing in Game 2 skating with different line combinations throughout the game .. played at even strength, no icetime on special teams in Game 1, some penalty killing time in Game 2 .. displayed a quick release on a few occasions, but not all of his shot attempts reached the net .. skated well, used speed to pressure the puckcarrier and was solid on the forecheck .. played a simple game overall .. role player who contributed solid minutes and did little things well .. paid particular attention to detail without the puck .. never really created much in the way of offensive chances, but did score two-goals (one in regulation and one in a shootout, which happened to be the GWG) .. despite doing a lot of things right, the one thing that stands out is the undisciplined slashing penalty he took at the end of the play just after the whistle .. finished the two-game set with one goal in regulation time, one in the shootout (GWG), four PIM's, a plus-one rating, three shots on goal and was a dismal 1-for-12 in the faceoff circle.

Billy Lacasse (2008), C, Lewiston

Selected in the second round, 36th overall, in the 2007 Q-draft by the MAINEiacs .. the 5-foot-11, 178-pound center is from Mont-Laurier, QC .. played and centered the third line between Todd Chinova and Jakub Bundil in Game 1, but was a scratch in Game 2 .. played a regular shift and had time on the penalty kill .. skated well, strong on his skates with good balance .. displayed good speed and ability to change gears .. moved the puck well to his wingers .. dependable defensively .. solid backcheck, puck support .. demonstrated willingness to drive to the net on a number of occasions .. filled the lanes well .. worked hard, second efforts .. drew a couple of penalties because of hard work .. was over aggressive at times, especially on the PK .. caught out of position on a few occasions .. needs to learn to challenge energy on the PK .. failed to create much in the way of offense .. finished with a minus-one rating and won only 4-of-12 faceoffs.

Dominic Savoie (2008), RW, Lewiston

The 5-foot-11, 187-pound right-winger was drafted in the second round, 32nd overall, in the 2007 Q-Draft by Shawinigan .. the Febreville, QC native was acquired by Lewiston at the 2007 training camp trading period from the Cataractes for Sebastien Piche and a 2008 fourth round pick .. played Game 1 against St. John's, but was a scratch in Game 2 .. skated on the fourth line with Lucas LaBelle and Marc Bourgeois .. played a regular shift, no powerplay or penalty killing time .. a choppy skater with wide strides .. displayed a strong work ethic on a number of occasions .. demonstrated willingness to track down loose pucks .. provided team with energy, but not much offensively .. played a simple and safe game .. was responsible defensively .. definitely used as a role player .. finished with one assist and just one shot on goal.

Peter Delmas (2008), G, Lewiston

Selected in the fifth round, 83rd overall, in the 2006 QMJHL draft by the MAINEiacs .. the 6-foot-1, 166-pound Bedford, NS native started Game 1, but was pulled after two-periods in favour of LA draft pick Jonathan Bernier .. was the backup to Bernier in Game 2 .. some might consider his start a surprise considering that Bernier is back with the team, but that was not the case here .. Delmas did a good job of handling the workload before Bernier returned from the NHL .. surrendered four goals against on 18 shots in 40-minutes of work .. three of the four goals came on the powerplay .. two of the four goals he had no chance of stopping, but the other two had to be considered weak goals .. remained cool, calm and composed between the pipes .. caught deep in his crease on a number of occasions .. not overly active .. goes down on shots, but no real style .. rebound control for the most part was fine, but did kick out rebounds in the high slot on more than one occasion .. was also able to direct shots to the corners and out of harms way .. never anticipated the play well .. had trouble with pucks in his feet and picking up pucks and the play from behind the net .. was not really tested in the contest with many dangerous chances .. an off night for Delmas, but in his defense he never had much support from his teammates and credit the Fog Devils for getting the job done as well .. a better goaltender than the results showed.

Danick Paquette (2008), RW, Lewiston

The 6-foot, 209-pound right-winger was selected in the first round, 11th overall, in the 2006 Q-Draft by Lewiston .. the Montreal, QC native missed Game 1 against St. John's because of a one-game suspension handed down by the QMJHL following an incident that occurred during a game against the Halifax Mooseheads in which Paquette hit an opponent on the head .. was inserted into the line-up for Game 2 .. skated on different lines throughout the contest .. used at even strength and on the powerplay, no time on the PK .. played strong along the boards .. looked slow skating, but was strong on his skates .. never really stood out .. had a quiet game overall .. tried to get involved physically, finishing his checks .. was a non-factor offensively, never really competed on the defensive side of the puck .. intensity dropped on defense, stopped skating .. finished with four PIM's and a minus-one rating.