The Halifax Mooseheads resumed their season on Friday night at the Scotiabank Centre following a disappointing loss to the Cape Breton Eagles just a day prior. Hosting the Sherbrooke Phoenix, Halifax was welcomed by an enthusiastic crowd that had witnessed the Phoenix’s recent 5-2 victory over the Charlottetown Islanders. The Mooseheads were without their player Quinn Kennedy, who was serving a two-game suspension due to a fighting penalty incurred during the previous game.

Halifax opened the scoring early in the first period, with Paulo Gualberto Jr. netting his second goal of the season at 11:12. The assists were credited to Oleg Kulebiakin and Carlos Händel. However, the game took a dangerous turn shortly after when Händel was hit from behind, prompting a review by the officials. The Sherbrooke forward Florant Houle was assessed a five-minute match penalty for the incident. Taking advantage of the power play, Danny Walters capitalized, scoring twice in quick succession to extend Halifax’s lead to 3-0. Shawn Carrier added another goal, pushing the score to 4-0.

The first period concluded with some tension on the ice, as both teams engaged in a skirmish near the boards. The aftermath saw Halifax ending up shorthanded, with Sherbrooke's Étienne Giroux and Brogan McNeil receiving misconduct penalties for unsportsmanlike conduct. Jean-Félix Lapointe also faced a roughing call, while Halifax’s Carlos Händel was penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct, and Walters received minors for cross-checking and roughing.

As the second period commenced, the gameplay normalized, and Halifax effectively killed off the existing penalty. However, midway through the second period, a penalty to Amelio Santini for boarding put the Mooseheads back on the defensive. Sherbrooke capitalized almost immediately, with captain Olivier Dubois scoring just five seconds into the power play, narrowing Halifax’s lead to 4-1.

Momentum shifted further when the Phoenix reduced the deficit to 4-2, with Éloi Bénard finishing an odd-man rush from Brogan McNeil at 8:12 of the second. Following this, Sherbrooke received another power play opportunity when Händel was penalized for checking from behind. Halifax found themselves two men down after Eddy Doyle was penalized for delay of game. During this power play, Phoenix import Ilya Kolmakov received an unsportsmanlike misconduct penalty for arguing with the officials. The second period concluded with Halifax still in the lead at 4-2.

Halifax returned to a power play three minutes into the third period when Dubois was penalized for hooking. The Mooseheads’ power play unit performed excellently, with Händel scoring at 4:37 to restore Halifax’s three-goal advantage. Händel finished the match with an impressive performance, totaling one goal and three assists for four points—the best outing of his career as a Moosehead.

Despite Halifax’s strong start, the Phoenix fought back with a goal from Brandon Delarosbil at the 10:48 mark, making it 5-3. In a bid to regain control, Sherbrooke pulled their goaltender with 2:43 left in the game, but Halifax's Sam Rousseau sealed the match with an empty-net goal, finalizing the score at 6-3 in front of an energetic crowd of 8,251 fans.

For their outstanding performances, Händel was awarded the first star of the game, while Halifax’s Daniel Walters earned the second star, and Sherbrooke’s Thomas Rousseau was named the third star. With this victory, Halifax improved their season record to 20 wins, 18 losses, 2 overtime losses, and 2 shootout losses (20-18-2-2). Meanwhile, Sherbrooke’s record fell to 19 wins, 20 losses, and 4 overtime losses (19-20-4-0).

The Mooseheads are set to return to action at the Scotiabank Centre on Sunday afternoon, with a game scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. Fans can catch all the live play-by-play action on 95.7 NewsRadio with Garreth MacDonald.