On a day when Brodie MacArthur made franchise history, he was more concerned with the game result than personal accolades.
The 20-year-old son of Rodney and Kim MacArthur scored two third-period goals in a 3-2 come-from-behind shootout win over the Edmundston Blizzard on Sunday, to become the franchise’s all-time regular-season points leader.
“Obviously, the main goal for this year was not to become the all-time leader for points; it is to win a championship and that’s what we are going to try and do,” emphasized the soft-spoken MacArthur. “I have had the chance to play with a lot of good players in the last three or four years. TJ Shea, Kallum Muirhead, Cameron Roberts and a lot of other players, too. They have all helped a lot.”
MacArthur has recorded 305 points in 172 games to move past Skinners Pond native Jordan Knox, who registered 304 points in 194 games over 3 ½ seasons with the Caps before he was traded to the Pictou County Crushers in January 2008.
“Brodie leads our team, is our captain and the significance of this accomplishment is massive,” said Caps head coach Billy McGuigan, who feels MacArthur is the “most gifted offensive player ever” in the Maritime Junior Hockey League.
“He still has over 20 games to go and he’s only going to add to those numbers. I think this will be a statistic that may never be broken.”
Didn’t realize
“Obviously, the main goal for this year was not to become the all-time leader for points; it is to win a championship and that’s what we are going to try and do. I have had the chance to play with a lot of good players in the last three or four years. TJ Shea, Kallum Muirhead, Cameron Roberts and a lot of other players, too. They have all helped a lot.”
- Brodie MacArthur
MacArthur admitted he did not realize he was close to Knox’s record until he saw a tweet by the Caps, who are in their 39th year of operation.
“I knew Jordan would have been the all-time leader, but I did not know how close I was,” said MacArthur, a business student at UPEI.
When pressed, MacArthur admitted it feels “pretty awesome” to set the record, but he quickly turned to the team’s success.
“It wouldn’t have been the same feeling if we had ended up losing that game,” said the 2018-19 Maritime Junior Hockey League scoring champion and player of the year.
MacArthur remembers watching Knox, a former Canadian Junior Hockey League player of the year.
“I was pretty young and don’t know how old I would have been, but I remember how fast he was and he was fun to watch,” said MacArthur. “I always thought a lot of him.”
MacArthur’s breakdown of points with the Caps is 117 goals and 188 assists.
NOTE: Knox was traded to the Pictou County Crushers in January 2008. He would score 24 goals and add 14 assists for 38 points in 18 regular-season games with the Crushers. He completed his Maritime Junior Hockey League career with 342 points – 155 goals and 187 assists – in 212 games between the Caps and Crushers.
"Brodie does amazing things with the puck, making little subtle plays like directs off his skates, passing through guys and he's just an unbelievable talent," said McGuigan. "He’s a kid who can skate, he’s worked on his game, he’s gotten bigger and stronger every year he's played here.
"He has a deceivingly good shot that he does not use nearly enough. He’s a playmaker but he can score goals when needed.”
McGuigan noted MacArthur’s humble personality rubs off on his teammates.
“He’s a great teammate, a great guy, he never looks for accolades and just goes out and does his business,” offered McGuigan.
The Caps selected MacArthur 10th overall in 2015 and he joined the Caps as a midget-aged rookie out of the Kensington Wild major midget program for the 2016-17 season.
“When I first came in at 17 the biggest adjustment was the speed and size,” said MacArthur. “Once you adjust to that it’s just playing hockey and every year you are more confident.
“As your confidence goes up, so does your production. Thanks to Billy over the years for giving me lots of opportunities and hopefully we can finish it off with a championship this year.”
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