February 9, 2012

SAINT JOHN – The Saint John Sea Dogs have several exciting promotions planned for February. The Sea Dogs have five home games on the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League schedule, with special promotions in place for each one.

On Sunday, Feb. 12, the team will combine two popular annual themes, as the Journée des Francofans meets the Valentine's Day Spectacular at Harbour Station. The theme for the 3 p.m. game against the Acadie-Bathurst Titan is “From Saint John With Love.” Fans will be able to purchase bread, wine and cheese, there will be live music and mimes, and the first 400 female fans will receive a carnation courtesy of the Sea Dogs. In addition, Ganong Bros. Limited will be providing free chocolates.

"La Journée des Francofans is particularly important for us, since it brings the community together around the celebration of Francophonie in Saint John. It’s even more meaningful to the youth of our school. They can participate in the planning of the festivities while being able to live it and share it in French with parents and friends in a context other than school," said France Maillet, vice-principal at the Centre scolaire Samuel de Champlain.

On Friday, Feb. 17, the game against the Quebec Remparts will be nationally televised by Rogers Sportsnet. The game start time has been changed to 8 p.m. to accommodate the media schedule. In addition, it is Country Music Night at Harbour Station, sponsored by Country 94. Fans are encouraged to wear those cowboy boots and hats, on-air personalities will be in attendance and of course, country music will be played throughout the game.

“The Sea Dogs put Saint John in the national spotlight during last year’s Memorial Cup and this is another outstanding opportunity for our organization and our city to be represented on the national stage,” said Sea Dogs President Wayne Long. “We’re hoping to see a sell-out crowd to show the country which city has the best junior hockey fans in Canada.”

Fans looking for the absolute best value of the season can take advantage of a Toonie Night on Tuesday, Feb. 21. Youth upper-bowl tickets to the 7 p.m. game against the Halifax Mooseheads are available for just $2 (plus $1 service charge) with the purchase of an adult ticket. The savings continue on Sunday, Feb. 26, as fans can take advantage of special Family Day pricing to purchase four tickets for only $46.

On Tuesday, Feb. 28, the Sea Dogs host the finale of the Brunswick News Rivalry Cup. The 7 p.m. contest is the final regular season game between the Sea Dogs and the Moncton Wildcats. The Rivalry Cup will be presented at the game, and the close competition could come down to attendance at the game. The scoring was broken down into four parts:

1.  On-ice record: one (1) point for an overtime or shootout loss, two (2) points for an overtime or shootout win, and three (3) points for a regulation win.

2.  Attendance: based on game-by-game attendance numbers, one (1) point for 4,000 or more fans, two (2) points for 5,000 or more fans, and three (3) points for 6,000 or more fans.

3.  Social Media Challenge: one (1) point per new like on each team’s Facebook page, one (1) point per new follower on Twitter, and five (5) points per picture taken in “hostile territory” and posted/tagged online. The team with the highest total from those three Social Media Challenge categories receives five (5) points toward the overall Rivalry Cup challenge standings.

4.  Food Drive: Each team hosted a New Year’s food drive, raising 4,000 pounds of food for New Brunswick food banks. The teams split the three (3) bonus points in this category.

The Sea Dogs have the lead 4-2 in the season series on the ice, and lead 14.5-11.5 in Rivalry Cup scoring. With one game remaining in each location, it could come down to the wire.

A big factor in this year’s competition, the Social Media Challenge, will come to an end on Feb. 23 at 4 p.m. Fans can bring the cup back to Saint John by following the Sea Dogs on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/sjseadogs and on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/SeaDogsHockey but they must do so before 4 p.m. on Feb. 23 to count towards the Social Media Challenge.

Tickets for all home games are available at the Harbour Station box office, by calling 506-657-1234 or online at www.tickets.harbourstation.ca.