Author: Alexander Cole

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Sports

Looking back at the Stingers men’s hockey season

The Concordia Stingers won their first playoff series in 16 years this season. Photo by Brianna Thicke.

With a plethora of fresh talent, Concordia had one of its best seasons in years

When the Concordia Stingers men’s hockey team defeated the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) Ridgebacks in game three of their first-round playoff series, it marked the first time the Stingers had advanced past the first round in 16 years.

The Stingers hockey program, which has been plagued with a lack of talent and interest for the last decade, crawled their way out of the darkness and became one of the best teams in the league this year. The team, led by captain Olivier Hinse, finished second in their division and were ranked seventh in the country by U SPORTS.

So why the sudden change? How did a team that finished seventh in their division a year ago, become such a powerhouse in one of the toughest divisions in the country?

Well, there are a couple of factors, one of them being head coach Marc-André Élement. Élement was an interim head coach last year, but during the off-season he was hired full time. Since then, Élement has implemented a solid defensive system which has complimented the team’s natural ability to score goals.

Last year, the team’s biggest problem was defence and goaltending. Starting goaltender Robin Billingham had a goals-against average of four goals against per game, while the defence struggled to keep teams at bay. The offence, however, was always strong with Hinse and former player Jessyko Bernard leading the charge.

Élement addressed these problems in the off-season, adding goaltender Philippe Cadorette and an array of talented young defencemen, including Anthony Gingras, Alexandre Gosselin, Matthieu Desautels and Michael Beauregard.

With the defensive issues addressed, Élement did not stop there. He also went out and added more goal scorers like forwards Philippe Sanche, Anthony Beauregard and Anthony De Luca, who finished with the second most goals in the country. De Luca was also first place in rookie scoring this season.

All of these pieces meshed perfectly this season, creating the perfect storm which culminated in the best season the team has had in decades. Before the season, few pundits predicted the Stingers would pull off what they did. The team was able to compete against strong teams like McGill, Queen’s and Ryerson, which were all teams they struggled against in the past.

The team was fun to watch, and they finished the season with the second most goals in the league, with 118 in 28 games.

Now what’s next for this team?

Well, that’s a good question. Hinse, who has been with the team for five years, is graduating and will not be back next year, which means there will be a leadership void. However, with assistant captains Philippe Hudon and Raphael Lafontaine coming back next year, the team should be in good hands. It will just depend on who Élement decides should dawn the “C” next season.

Fans of the team shouldn’t worry too much though. This year’s team was filled with talented rookies, which means these players will be with the Stingers for the next three to four years. That means the next few years of Stingers hockey will be some of the most entertaining hockey in the country.

Not to mention, now that Concordia hockey is back on the map, more and more recruits are going to want to come play here.

There is definitely still some work to be done with this team, but it won’t be long before they are contending for a Queen’s Cup and maybe a U SPORTS championship.

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Sports

Turning it around at the end of the season

The Stingers made it to their first conference final since 2005 this season. Photo by Alex Hutchins.

Fresh off winning RSEQ Coach of the Year, Julie Chu talks about her team’s season

After winning only three of the team’s first 10 games, the Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team was able to turn their season around and win seven of their last 10 games, cementing themselves as a real contender in their division.

“I think the biggest part is focusing on one day at a time,” Stingers head coach Julie Chu said. “In the fall, when you’re not winning, you can get off track really easily. But we have a great team dynamic that allows us to continue to work hard even when things get tough.”

In a division with powerhouses such as the Université de Montréal Carabins and the McGill Martlets, winning can be tough. There are five teams in the division which means in a 20 game season, you see each team five times.

In the beginning of the season, the team struggled to beat teams like the Carabins and the Martlets. However, after a few adjustments going into the last stretch of the season, the Stingers were able to pull off some big wins.

The biggest of those wins occurred just a week ago when the Stingers swept the Carabins in the first round of the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) division playoffs. Having won the U SPORTS championship the year before, the Carabins were heavily favoured. However, the Stingers pulled off the upset, thanks to their hard work and attention to detail.

“We do a lot of video sessions as a team to breakdown the areas that we want to improve on and also look at what we do well,” Chu said. “Players are welcome every week to look at videos individually, and it’s been a huge tool for us to teach players what they have to do in order to make good decisions on the ice.”

The team’s ability to beat the Carabins is also a testament to their trust in the system Chu has put into place. Despite a rough first half of the year, Chu said her team stayed the course and was able to execute in the latter half of the season.

Julie Chu won RSEQ Coach of the Year after a 10-9-1 season. Photo by Brianna Thicke.

With strong performances from everyone on the team—not just its star players—Chu said the team showed plenty of character.

“It was great to see our players step up in the series,” Chu said. “There were a lot of shutdown plays from our defence, and everyone fills a role. Some roles get more recognition than others because they require a goal or a save, but it doesn’t mean one role is more important than the other.

The win against the Carabins gave the team a spot in the RSEQ final against the McGill Martlets. In that series, the team eventually lost in two games, but worked hard through the series.

The team’s trip to the conference finals was their first since 2005. Their game-one win against the Carabins was their first playoff win since 2006. Making the conference final also cemented the team’s spot at nationals this year, which hosts eight teams featuring the two best from each conference.

“One of our goals was finishing top two in the RSEQ because we knew that would bring us to nationals,” Chu said. “One of the biggest challenges is that, with all the milestones we achieved, it feels like a mini-championship in itself. But with nationals three weeks away, we can’t think about that now—we have to look at what’s in front of us.”

Before the team’s playoff series against the Carabins, Chu was named RSEQ Coach of the Year. While the honour is an individual one, Chu said it’s her team and the rest of her coaching staff that have helped turn the team into what they are today.

“We have an incredible coaching staff here and this award is a testament to them, so I can’t take the credit,” Chu said. “My name might be on the certificate but it’s really about all of our coaches and, ultimately, our team going out and executing. You can have great coaches who run great practices and systems but you need a team that’s going to buy in, and if the team hadn’t, we wouldn’t be talking about this.”

No matter what happens at nationals, the Stingers have had one of their best seasons in the last decade and, with a strong staff behind them, the future is bright.

As Chu reiterated, the whole season has truly been a team effort.

“I know, for me, the people I am surrounded by are absolutely tremendous and a huge reason why our team has gotten so many recognitions this year,” said Chu.

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Music Quickspins

Future – Future

Future – Future (Epic Records, 2017)

Atlanta rapper Future’s fifth studio album brings back the type of trap music no one wants to hear anymore. With artists like Migos, Travis Scott and NAV excelling with moody, atmospheric sounds, Future tries to push a more upbeat, hard-hitting flavour. However, just like an old bottle of Coke, the flavour falls flat. The album starts out with a banger called “Rent Money” which features Future delivering his signature triplet flow, while a heavy beat supports his voice in the background. From that point on, the album degenerates into a directionless mess with no real appeal. Sure, the beats sound nice, but that isn’t enough to save the album. Future flows the same on almost every song, while delivering the same uninspired lyrics about money, drugs, fame and women. Just by listening to one song, you’ve pretty much heard the entire album. Future was once at the forefront of trap music, but now he’s outdated and has been surpassed by much more interesting artists.

Trial Track: “Super Trappers”

2/10

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Sports

Stingers advance to first conference final since 2005

The Concordia Stingers will play for their first conference championship in 12 years. Photos by Alex Hutchins.

Concordia’s women’s hockey team held off the Carabins to win their best of three series 2-0

After a 6-2 win in game one of their semi-final match up against the Université de Montréal Carabins, the Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team won game two by a score of 3-2 and will move on to the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) finals.

“We set a lot of goals throughout the year and one of the was being top two in the division,” Stingers head coach Julie Chu said. “This win pretty much guarantees that we go to nationals so we achieved our first goal, now we still have to keep working hard.”

The Stingers started the game off slow, only registering three shots in the first 10 minutes of the game. The Carabins were able to get the puck into the Stingers zone and got solid chances on Stingers goalie Katherine Purchase, who did a good job shutting them down.

With about six minutes left in the period, the Stingers caught a break when the Carabins took a penalty for cross-checking. On the ensuing power play, Stingers forward Stephanie Lalancette scored on Carabins goalie Marie-Pier Chabot to make it 1-0.

Despite leading after the first period, Chu knew her team needed to be better.

“We didn’t start great. Montreal played with a lot of desperation and they were outworking us,” Chu said. “We were working hard but we didn’t have the same desperation.”

Halfway through the second period, the Carabins tied up the game on the power play, as forward Laurie Mercier squeaked the puck by Purchase.

The Stingers will either play Ottawa or McGill now.

Four minutes later, the Concordia Stingers regained the lead thanks to a power play goal by forward Claudia Dubois, who scored a hat trick in game one.

“The energy was great today and we knew it was our game,” Dubois said. “We knew it wasn’t going to be easy.”

In the third period, the Stingers gave everything they had to hold off the Carabins. However, with just under four minutes left, Carabins forward Jessica Cormier scored on a shot that surprised Purchase, which tied the game at two.

Instead of getting discouraged and waiting for overtime, the Stingers went right back on the attack and just a minute later, Dubois scored her second goal of the game on a wraparound.

Dubois’ goal made the score 3-2 for the Stingers. The team hung on all the way until the final buzzer.

“We knew they could score and when they did our energy and our mindset never changed,” Dubois said. “We just wanted to score the next goal and we did it.”

Purchase was a big contributor to the team’s win, stopping 38 out of 40 shots. She made key saves down the stretch, and kept the Carabins off the board in the dying minutes of the game.

“I think I just didn’t want to play tomorrow,” Purchase said when discussing the possibility of a game 3. “When you win game one you have to put them away in game two and I had to be solid. When you’re getting consistent shots it’s easier to stay in the game.”

The win marks the first time the team will be going to the RSEQ finals since 2005. Depending on the winners of the other semi-final series, the Stingers will either play the McGill Martlets or the Ottawa Gee-Gees.

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Sports

Stingers fall in game one against Queen’s

The Stingers are now down 1-0 in the series and have to win game two to stay alive. Photos by Alex Hutchins.

A hot goaltender kept Concordia from scoring more than one goal in a tight loss

The Concordia Stingers men’s hockey team lost the first game of their semi-final match up against the Queen’s Golden Gaels by a score of 3-1 on Feb. 22, despite registering 50 shots on Golden Gaels goaltender Kevin Bailie.

“The goalie played a really solid game, and [Queen’s] is a good defensive team,” Stingers head coach Marc-André Élement said. “But we’re going to get back at it and I’m not too worried. We just need to get more bodies in front of the goalie.”

The Stingers came out buzzing in the first period, firing shot after shot at Bailie, who seemed unbeatable. Despite the fact that the Stingers dominated the first half of the first period, the Golden Gaels opened the scoring thanks to a goal by forward Harrison Hendrix.

Just six minutes later, the Golden Gaels increased their lead to 2-0 after defenceman Peter Angelopolous scored on Stingers goalie Philippe Cadorette, who was being screened by his own defenceman.

At the end of the first period, the score was still 2-0 in favour of the Golden Gaels.

“I told the guys to keep their heads up because we were pretty well dominating,” Élement said. “I hope that in [game two] the bounces go on our side.”

Kevin Bailie stopped 49 shots in his team’s win.

In the second period, the Stingers looked to make a comeback, and continued to dominate the play. Just 30 seconds into the period, Stingers forward Raphael Lafontaine sent a cross-ice pass to forward Charles-Éric Légaré, who scored to make it 2-1.

The Stingers continued to dominate the play for the majority of the period but were unable to get another goal passed Bailie. Then, with five minutes left, Cadorette misplayed a puck behind his net which led to an open net for the Golden Gaels. The puck landed on the stick of forward Darcy Greenaway who put it in the empty net, making the score 3-1.

“It’s hard because we were in their face and we were coming back,” Stingers captain Olivier Hinse said. “They were lucky on that one, but next time the bounce is going to go our way and we’re going to score.”

The Stingers continued to push in the third but were stymied by Bailie, who finished the game with a 98 per cent save percentage.

The team will now travel to Kingston on Feb. 24 to play the Golden Gaels in game two of their best-of-three series. If the Stingers lose, their season will be over. However, if the team wins, they will come back to Montreal on Feb. 26 for game three.

“We’re not afraid and we’re confident,” Hinse said. “We’re a team with a lot of skills and work ethic so we know on Friday night we’ll play our best. We’re going to win the next game.”

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Sports

Stingers win first playoff series in 16 years

Photo by Alex Hutchins

Concordia’s men’s hockey team held off a late rush from the Ridgebacks to win 3-2

Riding the momentum of Friday night’s win, the Concordia Stingers men’s hockey team came out flying against the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) Ridgebacks and won 3-2 to move on to the second round of the playoffs.

“I’m really, really proud of the guys,” said Stingers head coach Marc-André Élement. “I’m so happy about winning the series. They had a good team on the other side, and we came back from a tough loss.”

In game two on Friday night, the Stingers scored four goals in the third period. They continued that trend in the first period on Saturday. Despite two phenomenal games by goaltender Brendan O’Neill, the Ridgebacks opted to play backup goalie Tyson Teichmann.

During the first shift of the game, Stingers forwards Dominic Beauchemin and Scott Oke set up a fast-moving passing play that eventually found the stick of captain Olivier Hinse, who scored on the team’s first shot of the match.

“We knew we had to get a start, and the first shift for our line we were buzzing,” Hinse said. “Beauchemin made a great pass, and all I had to do was tap it in, so that gave us a lot of momentum.”

The Stingers continued to dominate the first period and, 14 minutes later, Stingers forward Raphael Lafontaine scored after a cross-ice pass from Charles-Éric Légaré. Then, just four minutes later, forward Antoine Masson scored after tipping a shot from forward Philippe Sanche.

By the end of the first period, it was 3-0 for the Stingers. Despite allowing the three goals, Teichmann was solid for the Ridgebacks, stopping 18 shots in the first period alone, and 33 over the course of the game. For Élement, the goaltending change had no effect on the team’s strategy.

The Stingers survived a late push by UOIT.

“Last game, we needed to take a lot of shots and get some traffic in front, and we did the same thing against Teichmann,” Élement said.

The second period was a different story as the Ridgebacks came in swarming, looking to make a comeback. The Stingers started to run into some penalty trouble in the period, but thanks to the goaltending of Philippe Cadorette, the team was able to escape the period still up 3-0.

It was the third period that would prove to be the scariest for the Stingers. Just three minutes in, the Ridgebacks scored to make it 3-1. Six minutes later, Ridgebacks forward Mike Robinson scored on the powerplay, cutting the Stingers lead to just one goal.

“They gained momentum with all the penalties and they had a lucky second goal,” Élement said. “I just told the guys to keep working hard and keep the same game plan, and we came out with the win.”

The victory capped off the team’s first playoff series win in 16 years. The win was especially meaningful to Hinse, who is in his last year with the team. After the game, Hinse said the team’s performance on Saturday was one of the reasons he came back for a fifth season.

“I’ve been waiting for this the past five years,” Hinse said. “I knew this year we had the group of guys that could accomplish anything. The love in this room and the brotherhood that we have is incredible, and I couldn’t ask for a better team.”

The Stingers will now take on the Queen’s Golden Gaels in the second round of the playoffs, which will start next week. The exact dates of the games have not yet been announced.

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Sports

Stingers force game three against UOIT

The Stingers will play game three tonight at 7:30 p.m. at Ed Meagher arena.

Concordia’s men’s hockey team had a strong third period in last night’s win

After losing game one of their first round playoff series 4-0, the Concordia Stingers stormed back in game two, coming from behind to defeat the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) Ridgebacks by a score of 5-2.

“I was emotional after the second period and I told them that I was so proud of them,” Stingers head coach Marc-André Élement said. “They battled during the whole season. We had a little something going on tonight and I told them if they kept working hard they would win.”

The highlight of the first game was Ridgebacks goaltender Brendan O’Neill, who stopped all 35 Stingers shots in his shutout win in game one. On Friday night, O’Neill continued his stellar play, stopping all 20 shots he faced in the first period.

O’Neill’s solid play allowed his team to take an early lead in the game. After a defensive breakdown by Stingers defenceman Anthony Gingras, Ridgebacks forward Jack Patterson was able to go one-on-one with Stingers goaltender Philippe Cadorette. Patterson made no mistake, putting the puck up and over Cadorette’s arm to make the score 1-0.

In the second period, the Stingers were playing catch up. They threw everything they could at O’Neill, but were unable to tie the game—until rookie forward Anthony De Luca scored on a one-timer after a pass from forward Anthony Beauregard.

The Concordia Stingers had to win or else they would have been eliminated. Photos by Alex Hutchins.

“We knew O’Neill was playing well but we just want to break him down and we needed one goal,” De Luca said. “Unfortunately we couldn’t do it in the first game but now we have and we’re going to continue tomorrow.”

Later in the period, the Stingers went on the penalty kill and were pressured by a buzzing Ridgebacks offense. The Stingers eventually caved under that pressure and gave up a goal, making the score 2-1 in favour of UOIT. The period ended at 2-1.

Down by a goal with a period left, the season was on the line. If the team had lost, they would have been eliminated from the playoffs. It also would have been the last game for team captain Olivier Hinse. Despite the pressure, Hinse knew his guys were there for him.

“The guys knew it could have been my last game and they were all playing a little bit for me and it felt great,” Hinse said. “We just needed to play our game.”

The third period was much different for the Stingers, as the floodgates opened and they were able to solve O’Neill.
Just seven minutes into the period, Stingers defencemen Philippe Charbonneau tied the game with a wrist shot from the blue line. Then, with five minutes left, forward Scott Oke gave the team their first lead of the night, with a goal that went between O’Neill’s legs.

With the Ridgebacks pressing to tie the game back up, Hinse scored to make it 4-2, with De Luca adding an empty netter for the 5-2 final score.

The Stingers will play game three on Feb. 18 at Ed Meagher arena at 7:30 p.m. The winner will move on to the second round of the playoffs.

“Game three is going to be business as usual,” Élement said. “We’re just going to adjust a couple of things, but I told the guys that once they leave the rink tonight, it’s over and we do it all again tomorrow.”

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Sports

Lighting the lamp in his first year

De Luca is in his rookie season with the Stingers and is tied for second in the league in scoring. Photos by Brianna Thicke.

Men’s hockey forward Anthony De Luca has made an early impact with the Stingers

After a first-round exit from the playoffs last season, the Concordia Stingers men’s hockey team went on a mission this offseason to acquire as many talented rookies as possible.

The team brought in starting goaltender Philippe Cadorette, forwards Philippe Sanche and Anthony Beauregard, as well as defenceman Mickael Beauregard. Also among these new players is rookie forward Anthony De Luca who, in his first year alone, is ranked second in U SPORTS in scoring, with 41 points. He has 23 goals and 18 assists, and has the most goals of all rookies in the league.

“Honestly, I think last year helped me a lot, going to a pro team at 20 years old,” De Luca said. “It’s hard to get used to the pro game at such a young age but, once you go through that, you really get used to anything and nothing shakes you up.”

The pro team De Luca referred to is the Alaska Aces of the ECHL, a team he played for during the 2015-16 season. With the Aces, De Luca played 46 games, scoring seven goals and earning 13 assists.

For De Luca, the hectic travel schedule and experiencing different time zones on a weekly basis is what has allowed him to deal with any kind of hardship thrown at him on and off the ice.

De Luca said the toughest part about transitioning from pro hockey to university hockey was getting to know all of the new guys he’d be playing with.

“You’ve got to adapt to every league you play in,” De Luca said. “From going to junior to pro, it was all about speed, but now it’s just about execution and finding chemistry.”

Since joining the Stingers, De Luca has played most games on a line with captain Olivier Hinse and Sanche. All three forwards have had success playing together, as Hinse and Sanche both have 28 points each.

For the past few games, however, the Stingers have been without Hinse due to his involvement with Team Canada at the Winter World University Games in Almaty, Kazakhstan. In order to fill the gap, De Luca and Sanche have been playing with rookie forward Anthony Beauregard, who joined the team in January. So far, the line has been just as good, with Beauregard picking up 15 points in just 10 games.

De Luca and his teammates will be preparing for the playoffs in the coming weeks.

“It’s fun to be playing with a lot of good guys,” De Luca said. “I’d say Sanche is my best buddy off the ice so obviously it is easier for me to be playing with him. Now that Beauregard has jumped into the lineup, it’s even better.”

This season, the Stingers are having one of their best seasons in years. They are second in the East Division—last year they finished seventh. They have a record of 18-7-2 and are already eight wins ahead of last year’s team which finished with just 10.

U SPORTS has the Stingers ranked seventh in the country and in heavy competition with the Queen’s Golden Gaels and the McGill Redmen for top spot in their division.

De Luca explained that a large part of their improvement from last season is thanks to the work of head coach Marc-André Élement.

“[Élement’s] a younger guy and the players relate to him. They can go into his office at any time to just talk,” De Luca said. “It’s nice to know that he’s always on our side.”

De Luca further explained his respect for his coach by telling the story of how Élement got him invited to Team Canada’s Winter World University Games try-outs. Originally, De Luca was not invited to the training camp, so Élement called the coach of the team and got De Luca an invitation.

However, because De Luca is in independent studies and hasn’t declared a major, he was not eligible to play in the tournament.

Now, the Stingers are looking towards the playoffs as a top-seeded team in their division. De Luca said the team has mixed emotions heading into the post-season.

“I’d say the mood in the room is a mix of nerves and confidence,” De Luca said. “A lot of the guys in the room have played junior hockey so they know what it’s like. The season is its own thing and the playoffs are a new season so anyone can beat anyone, we just need to be ready mentally and physically.”

De Luca and the rest of the Stingers will take on the UOIT Ridgebacks in the first round of the playoffs, which start on Feb. 15.

The interview in this article was conducted by Matthew OHayon and Safia Ahmad as part of an on-air interview with CJLO 1690.  The interview was done in partnership with Alexander Cole who wrote the article.

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Sports

From the football field to the press box

Barlett has earned the nickname “Mr. Concordia” during his time here. Photo by Brianna Thicke.

Andrew Barlett talks about football and being a broadcaster at Concordia University

On any given Friday or Saturday night, the Concordia Stingers men’s hockey team is usually playing a game at the Ed Meagher Arena. On this particular Friday night, the Stingers are playing the Western Mustangs. They may not be the best team in the league, but the Stingers know they have to play well if they want to win and get those crucial points for the standings.

Meanwhile, up in the press box are Salim Valji and Andrew Barlett. Both men are broadcasters for the Concordia Stingers basketball and hockey webcasts. Valji does play-by-play, while Barlett does the colour commentary.

Up in the box, Valji and Barlett strike up a conversation with a couple of Stingers, who approach Barlett and shake his hand. He smiles, makes a couple of jokes and then turns back to Valji for some notes.

The men who approached Barlett are not just Stingers at the game, they are also his teammates out on the football field. Barlett is not just a broadcaster—he is first and foremost a defensive end and captain of the Concordia Stingers football team.

Born and raised in Burlington, Ont., sports have always been a part of Barlett’s life. His father won a Vanier Cup with the Acadia Axemen in 1979. With a desire to follow in his father’s footsteps, Barlett took up football and hockey.

“Just watching football with my dad, I would pick his brain, and later on we had Argos season tickets so I grew to have a huge passion for the Canadian game,” Barlett said. “Playing on great teams and having great coaches, with my dad alongside me, was my inspiration to keep getting better and better.”

With a bigger passion for football, Barlett eventually decided to ditch hockey and went through the recruitment process for university in his last year of high school. Despite calling Concordia his home for the last five years, Barlett never thought he would wind up in Quebec.

“I spoke to and got recruited by a number of Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) teams in Ontario,” Barlett explained. “Throughout my whole high school career, I figured if I played in university it would be in Ontario because that’s all I knew.”

After winning the Ontario championships with his high school team, a few coaches from Concordia approached Barlett and offered him a spot on the team. From that point on, the coaches stayed in contact with him and Barlett came to Montreal for a recruiting trip.

Barlett, who is studying human relations, immediately took a shine to Concordia and has done almost everything he can to stay involved in the school.

Last year, he was the vice-president of finance for the department of applied human science, and the year before, he was the vice-president of academics for the same department. Furthermore, Barlett is a part of two charities on campus, as well as Concordia’s SWARM, which aims to get more people to attend Stingers games. He has even earned the nickname “Mr. Concordia,” thanks to his pride in the university.

Barlett (left) and Valji (right) have been broadcast partners for three years. Photo courtesy of Andrew Barlett.

“One reason why I stay involved is to gain experience in so many different fields and really find out where my passions are,” Barlett said. “The main reason though is the fact that I get to give back. No one is self-made so, for me, the fact that I can help other people is special.”

When it comes to broadcasting, Barlett has been a part of the Stingers webcast for three years now. After working on the webcast in a supporting role, Barlett figured he would give being a broadcaster a shot. Some inspiration from a few former teammates helped guide his decision as well.

“I got into it because I used to do statistics for the webcast and some of my former teammates were on the broadcast and they had no prior experience,” Barlett said. “I eventually told myself that that’s what I wanted to do, and it happened.”

Valji and Barlett have been partners for the last three years. They linked up with one another when Valji started his first year of journalism at Concordia. Valji, who had an interest in broadcast journalism, signed on to be part of the Stingers webcast.

For the first year of their partnership, Valji and Barlett only called men’s hockey together. Over the last two years, however, they have been doing basketball and hockey together for the men’s and women’s teams.

According to Valji, working with Barlett has been fun because they both have laid-back personalities. Valji said they are always trying to make their audience laugh and, over time, they have been able to develop great chemistry.

“In terms of our chemistry and play calling, it was a feeling-out process,” Valji said. “Now, I know when he’s about to make a point or reveal some stat. Occasionally, we’ll scribble notes down, but at this point it’s instinctual.”

As Valji and Barlett prepare their notes with just five minutes until the broadcast, a Stingers employee taps both men on the shoulder and hands them each a headset for the game. Barlett and Valji adjust their ties almost in unison and then turn around to face the camera. They’re live.

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Sports

Stingers defeat Western in penalty-filled game

The Stingers picked up their 17th win of the year on Friday night. Photos by Alex Hutchins.

Concordia men’s hockey team had it out with the Mustangs on Friday night

Both the Concordia Stingers and the Western Mustangs men’s hockey teams got into heavy penalty trouble on Friday night. However, the Stingers were able to come out on top and win the game 7-4.

“I think we need to be more focused and ready to pay the price,” said Stingers head coach Marc-André Élement. “We’ll have to show the guys some video and show them the penalties so they can fix it. We can’t be taking those penalties in the playoffs.”

The Stingers found themselves on the power play early and were able to capitalize on their second man advantage of the night, after a goal by Stingers forward Philippe Sanche. A few minutes later, Western took two consecutive penalties which gave the Stingers a five-on-three powerplay.

With more space to move around, the Stingers made no mistakes and went up 2-0 when forward Antoine Masson scored. The Mustangs took another penalty right after the goal which gave the Stingers another five-on-three.

That’s when Stingers defenceman Anthony Cortese scored off of a wrist shot from the blue line, to make the score 3-0 in favour of the Stingers. The power play was headed by forwards Sanche, Anthony Beauregard and Anthony Deluca, who have developed chemistry with one another over the last few games.

“Having chemistry with each other has been easy. We’re good friends off the ice,” Sanche said. “We’ve known each other for a long time and we played against each other a lot in junior so we all know everybody’s style.”

With just a few minutes left in the first period, the Stingers took two penalties in a row which gave the Mustangs their own opportunity at a five-on-three power play.

The Stingers defeated Guelph the following night.

On the ensuing faceoff, the Mustangs cut the Stingers lead to 3-1 when forward Andrew Goldberg scored on a rebound.

The second period began with more penalty trouble for the Stingers. A couple of penalties led to a goal by Mustangs forward Spenser Cobbold, which cut the lead to 3-2.

By the end of the period, the Stingers were able to pick themselves back up, and jumped to a 5-2 lead thanks to goals by defencemen Curtis Gass and Mathieu Desautels.

“We managed to get a lot of offense and a lot of shots,” Sanche said. “We just need to tighten up a little bit defensively, but overall it was a good game for us.”

The third period was more of the same, with both teams taking multiple penalties. Both teams traded goals until it was 6-4 with just a minute left. That’s when the Mustangs pulled their goalie to add an extra attacker.

Desperate to tie the game, the Mustangs were unable to generate offense, and Sanche ended up scoring on the empty net to bring the score to 7-4.

Throughout the game, the Mustangs were all over Sanche, hitting him at every chance they got. However, Sanche said he embraces the physicality.

“I like it, it’s part of hockey,” Sanche said. “I get more energy when someone is trying to get me off my game. It makes me want to beat them more.”

The following night the Stingers defeated the Guelph Gryphons 6-3.

Categories
Music Quickspins

Migos – Culture

Migos – Culture (300 Entertainment, 2017)

With the success of their biggest hit, “Bad and Boujee,” Migos capitalized on the hype by releasing their latest full-length album Culture. With Culture, however, the group dials back their high-energy style and trades it in for a more moody and melodic one. After the opening track, “Culture,” the next three songs are “T-Shirt,” “Call Casting” and “Bad and Boujee,” which are all singles that came out before the album. These are the three best songs on the record and feature the group’s best lyrics, beats and melodies. The album takes an immediate nose dive after that. Each song begins to sound the same and the lyrical content becomes non-existent. The beats are too trendy and sound like they’ve been stolen from the latest Travis Scott record. Culture is the perfect example of what happens when a group cares too much about singles, and forgets about the rest of the album.

Trial Track: “T-Shirt”

4/10

Categories
Sports

Bell Let’s Talk reaches Concordia

Philippe Hudon shared his personal story with the media in his last year of Junior hockey. Photo by Ana Hernandez.

Stingers men’s hockey forward Philippe Hudon speaks out about his experiences with mental illness

In any given year, one in five Canadians suffer from a mental health or addiction problem, according to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

One of those Canadians is Philippe Hudon, a forward and assistant captain on the Concordia Stingers men’s hockey team. In 2010, Hudon was diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD).

The condition is described as a disorder in which a person has uncontrollable, reoccurring thoughts (obsessions) and/or behaviours (compulsions) that they feel the urge to constantly repeat, according to the National Institute of Mental Health.

Since sharing his story with sports network RDS in 2014, Hudon has turned his condition into a positive experience and has lent his voice to the discussion surrounding mental illness. This year, he is the Concordia Stingers’ representative for Bell Let’s Talk Day.

According to Bell Canada, on Jan. 25, more than 20,000 university athletes from 53 schools across Canada will take part in an initiative to promote mental health awareness on campuses.

For Hudon, helping Concordia take part in the Bell Let’s Talk campaign is something he’s always been interested in doing.

“The Stingers have been really involved with community work,” Hudon said. “When I came in, about two years ago, I really wanted to make a difference, especially with the Bell Let’s Talk initiative which I had already touched upon previously when I was playing in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.”

One of the Stingers’ contributions leading up to Jan. 25 was the Bell Let’s Talk Day hockey game, which was held at the Ed Meagher Arena on Jan. 7. Before the match, which was against Ryerson University, the Stingers gave out pamphlets to raise awareness about Bell Let’s Talk and mental health in general.

Hudon, who is in his third year with the Stingers, got to take part in the ceremonial face-off before the game—an honour usually reserved for captains.

“It felt great to be a spokesperson for a great cause, especially with myself having been through times of hardship where I had to battle and come back better than ever,” Hudon said. “Being able to host a game and being able to be a part of the puck drop was pretty emotional, especially with all of my brothers on the ice with me.”

Apart from the game against Ryerson, Hudon has been involved with the Bell Let’s Talk initiative in other ways. For instance, he recently gave a talk at Kuper Academy in the West Island, where just one year ago, a student committed suicide.

Hudon talked to the students about mental health and his struggles with OCD. The assembly was organized by Kuper Academy student Ethan Chang with the goal of helping to end the stigma surrounding mental illness.

“At first I was really excited to do it because I love getting involved like that, but I was also really nervous. I’ve done presentations in class but talking to 500 students was something big,” Hudon said. “It turned out to be a success and that’s something that I’m really proud of.”

As part of Bell Let’s Talk Day, Hudon was given the opportunity to share his story on a national level. Earlier this month, he spoke to a representative at Bell about his struggles, and was approached by media outlets such as CTV and TSN for features.

Since airing his story on a major network three years ago, Hudon said he has become more confident in sharing his experiences. He said he will talk to anybody who is willing to listen, and believes it’s important to share his story with as many people as possible.

Hudon took part in the ceremonial face-off during a game against Ryerson on Jan. 7. Photo by Brianna Thicke

“I think that I can make a difference,” Hudon said. “By sharing my story, I hope I can help people whether they are affected personally by mental illness or not, or whether they know someone who is affected and that it gives them the tools that will help them in the near future.”

The Bell Let’s Talk initiative, whose official spokesperson is Olympian Clara Hughes, has been around since 2010 and has grown every year since. In 2016, the campaign broke its donation record, with over $6 million raised for mental health programs across Canada.

Hudon said it’s been incredible to see the increasing support for the initiative, and he feels that people are really starting to care about issues surrounding mental health.

“It makes me feel comfortable and happy that people aren’t just supporting Bell Let’s Talk for hashtags and social media. I think there’s more to it,” Hudon said. “I see more and more people actually want to get involved and want to know more. We want to include everybody in society and the growing number of spokespeople and donations is progress that makes me feel warm and happy.”

For those with mental illness who are worried or afraid about sharing their experiences, Hudon said it’s a tough situation. However, he said something that helped him when he was struggling was surrounding himself with his friends and family who were truly there for him.

“By sticking with your true friends, it’s going to make it a lot easier to talk because you know those people won’t judge you and will just listen,” Hudon said. “My motto is ‘lend an ear.’ For people who aren’t affected, just listen and be there for someone and make sure they aren’t lost and don’t feel like an outsider.”

If you’re a student at Concordia who is suffering from any mental health issues and needs someone to talk to, Health Services is open to all students and is located at 7141 Sherbrooke St. West in room 131 of the AD building.

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