ohn Sea Dogs have each been fined $2,500 after a game that degenerated into skirmishes at the MasterCard Memorial Cup.Organizers announced Thursday the teams were fined for "conduct prejudicial to the welfare of the game and the tournament."Three melees marked the final minute of Saint John's 4-1 victory on Wednesday night, including a fight between Shawinigan's Vincent Arceneau and Grant West.There were also shouting matches between the benches.In the first period, Arceneau fired a slapshot directly at Saint John's Stephen MacAuley,Free 5.0+ Pink White, but was not penalized.Saint John advanced to the Memorial Cup semifinal, while Shawinigan must play Edmonton in a tiebreaker for the other spot in the semi.
Jonathan Huberdeau scored twice and had an assist and Nathan Beaulieu had a pair of assists to lead the Saint John Sea Dogs to a 4-1 victory against the host Shawinigan Cataractes at Bionest Centre in Shawinigan, Que., on Wednesday in the final game of the preliminary round at the 2012 MasterCard Memorial Cup.The win gives Saint John, the defending champion, a berth in Friday's semifinal, where it will face the winner of Thursday's tiebreaker game between Shawinigan and the Edmonton Oil Kings. The winner of the semifinal game will face the London Knights in the championship game Sunday.Stanislav Galiev and Ryan Tesink also had goals for Saint John and goalie Mathieu Corbeil stopped 30 of 31 shots in the win."I can't find a player I didn't like tonight on my team," Saint John coach Gerard Gallant said.Anton Zlobin scored for Shawinigan, and goalie Gabriel Girard made 34 saves on 37 shots.It was a physical, penalty-filled game between the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League rivals. The teams combined for 72 penalty minutes, including 46 in the third period. The game ended with Shawinigan coach Eric Veilleux and Saint John assistant coach Mike Kelly yelling at each other over the benches."I was asking Gerard [Gallant, Saint John coach] why he had to spend so much time talking to the Maritime referee," Veilleux said. "That's what I asked him."Both coaches downplayed what has turned into a bitter rivalry, one that dates to Shawinigan being awarded the hosting rights for the tournament rather than Saint John. The teams split four physical regular-season games, and that level was raised even more Wednesday."They can do what they want," Gallant said. "They coach their team,Nike Free 3.0 Black Gym Red Wolf Grey, I coach my team. Not a big deal for us. We'll play a physical game. We weren't going to get involved in much if we don't have to. But we're not going to back down from anyone."After opening their tournament with a 5-3 loss to London on Saturday, Saint John has won two straight, beating Edmonton 5-2 on Monday and Shawinigan on Wednesday. Gallant said the upward trend in his team's play is just what he's wanted to see."It's gotten better every period,Nike Free Run 3 Black Green," he said. "There's still another step for me. It sounds cocky, but I think we can still turn it up a notch. A lot of guys were good [Wednesday] and there's still