The activity may gain prominence with public outdoor hockey on hold
Blizzards, icy roads, power outages, and howling winds are some of the many struggles that characterize the cold winter season. Additionally, the prominence of the pandemic and the evolving restrictions put in place to slow the spread of the virus will make an already rough season for some even more difficult.
While Canadian winters are undoubtedly ruthless, the burdens that plague the season can sometimes overshadow the positive aspects that are unique to these times. For one, hockey becomes considerably more accessible with the opening of city-operated outdoor rinks, enabling kids and adults alike to better indulge in Canada’s prideful tradition.
This winter, public rinks will be open, but hockey games will not be allowed. Fortunately for winter sports fans, physical activities that have limited contact amongst individuals such as free skating and skiing will be permitted.
While the news comes to the dismay of hockey enthusiasts, hope is not entirely lost. The uniquely Canadian hobby of making a backyard rink lends itself well to today’s circumstances. Unlike the city rinks and indoor arenas, these personal rinks can offer intimacy that is difficult to replicate in organized hockey.
Stacey Elissa Anne, a mother of two who lives in Thunder Bay, Ontario, said that growing up with two older siblings who played hockey meant her family was often busy splitting time between organized teams and outdoor rinks.
“Living in Winnipeg, my dad made sure to build us an outdoor rink every single winter,” Elissa Anne said. “It’s safe to say our lives revolved around the sport.”
Elissa Anne learned about the work involved in making a personal rink and the dedication it required when her family took to creating one of their own in 2019.
“We couldn’t have enjoyed it more,” Elissa Anne said. “The kids and their neighbourhood friends used it every single day.”
Some individuals continue to build an annual backyard rink in an effort to pay their childhood debts forward. The Tecumseh, Ontario-native Jason Bain has made building a rink a personal tradition that he has upheld for over a decade, but credits his late father for inspiring him to pass on the generous ritual. Bain believed it was his father’s way of connecting with the local kids.
Growing up, my family couldn’t afford to play hockey,” Bain said. “My dad would build an old-school rink out of snow every year, standing outside for hours even after working strenuously long work shifts.”
Nowadays, the time he spends alone outside maintaining a backyard rink for his own children is Bain’s way of connecting with his father, who would go out of his way to do the same for him as a child. Bain added that last season was the first year in which he did not build a rink in over 10 years, something that does not sit well with the Ontario-native to this day.
“Last year just didn’t seem right,” Bain said. “Even if the kids only get to skate on it once or twice, when they get older it would be immeasurably rewarding to see them do the same for their kids.”
Jeff Baer grew up in Stockbridge, Manitoba, skating on local ponds. As a child, Baer always dreamed of building his own rink one day to avoid having to trek through rough terrain and private property to find a place to skate.
This year will be the sixth in which Baer builds a backyard rink for his children, in hopes of forging unforgettable memories. While his two kids are passionate about hockey, his son is particularly fond of everything Canada’s sport has to offer.
“My 14-year-old son was born with cerebral palsy,” Baer said. “For him, hockey is everything and its tremendously helped him overcome his impairment.”
The father of two added that his son would skate at five in the morning before heading to school in past years. While his 10-year-old daughter’s team and their season are uncertain due to the pandemic, Baer has offered to host practice if the situation ever presents itself and is permitted.
“The rink may not be an ideal size to accommodate a full team,” Baer said. “However, it’s plenty large enough to host small skating workouts and drills.”
Rebecca Podniesinski’s family in Keene has resorted to making her yearly rink larger to better accommodate members of the local New Hampshire hockey club.“If we have ice that we can safely share,” Podniesinski said, “it’s just the right thing to do with the weekly shutdowns preventing kids from exercising and doing what they love.”
Cancellation of sports seasons means possible university career endings for senior athletes
Sports are on hold once again and Concordia’s student athletes are learning to cope with the disappointment of time lost on the playing field or the arena. Among those are fourth and fifth-year athletes, who are spending their last moments with the Concordia Stingers in limbo.
Audrey Belzile, fifth-year forward with the women’s hockey team, has been spending time at her family’s cottage outside of Montreal to escape the province’s hotspot, and is hoping for a season after Christmas.
“It’s tough because I chose to do a fifth year to focus on school and hockey,” Belzile said. “Now, there’s no hockey or training for a while, so I am just here with school. At least it’s keeping me busy.”
Belzile was hoping to cap off four successful years with the Stingers with a fifth and final season. Before joining the Stingers, the plan had been to go to a Division 1 NCAA school, but when that didn’t work out, she settled on Concordia because of the inclusive team culture.
All the staff and girls were super welcoming,” Belzile said. “That was the biggest difference for me between Concordia [and other schools]. I felt welcome the first day I was in the rink.”
Three Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) all star teams, two U Sports All-Canadian teams, a provincial championship, and a national bronze medal later, she said it has turned out to be a great decision.
The men’s rugby team also has to face the reality of the cancelled sports season. Jackson Marquardt, fifth-year veteran on the team, said he was “a little thrown-off” by the fact that practices were able to resume for the better part of September, as sports were allowed at that time in the province, but then had to be shut down again when red zone restrictions were put in place in October.
Like many students, the Ottawa native took refuge back home to focus on school, and while it’s nice to be busy, he said it’s tough being away from his usual rhythm.
“I miss playing rugby, and every single aspect of competing with the team,” Marquardt said. “It also feels like I’m missing out on a ‘what could have been’ season … especially after missing out on nationals last year.”
Marquardt has accumulated an impressive resume over his time as a Stinger athlete. After just one year of university rugby, he was invited to go on tour with Team Canada U19. He then followed it up with two All-Canadian nominations, as well as three RSEQ championships and two all-star team selections over the course of three seasons with men’s rugby. Marquardt spoke highly of the Concordia environment, including the coaching he received.
It’s some of the best coaching you can get in Canada and it was right at my university,” Marquardt said. “Looking back, I wouldn’t have done what I’ve done in rugby so far if I’d gone anywhere else.”
For student athletes, the time spent playing sports for their university will always be precious. It’s the culmination of years of development and growth as an athlete. As I’m writing this piece, I know my time spent as a Stinger will always be one that I look back on with immense pride and gratitude.
Concordia has a small athletics community compared to some universities, but this is often its greatest strength. Daily interactions with other teams and coaches are almost frequent and almost unavoidable (the hallways of our complex are quite narrow), but it’s how the Stinger culture has been formed over the years.
So for the sake of personal memories and great Concordia sporting moments, I hope these athletes didn’t finish their university careers last season, without even knowing it.
Photos courtesy of Audrey Belzile and Jackson Marquardt
Recent AHL news could indicate when the next NHL season will start
As we’re still waiting to know when the next National Hockey League (NHL) season will start, news from the American Hockey League (AHL), the NHL’s minors, may have given us a hint.
The AHL announced on Oct. 28 that it was pushing back its anticipated 2020–21 starting date to Feb. 5, 2021. With the AHL and NHL normally starting and finishing their seasons around the same dates, this may be indicative of when the next NHL season will start.
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has repeated constantly since the end of the 2019–20 playoffs that the goal would be to play a full 82-game season, with playoffs following as usual. However, there hasn’t been any clear details so far about when or how this would happen, or even why the league has been insisting so much on playing a full season.
Considering that without COVID-19,, the NHL’s 2020–21 calendar would have started in early October, it’s hard to see the same number of games being played in four fewer months. Of course, that’s if the league doesn’t plan to declare its Stanley Cup champions in the fall once again, in hopes of finally returning to their regularly scheduled seasons.
Especially if played without fans, a shortened season might be considered by the league in order to not lose too much income, which is in part used to pay the players. As the NHL isn’t in danger of bankruptcy, the best thing would surely be to focus on the most reasonable and safest hockey calendar for all, in a way that doesn’t bring us to the same dilemma next fall, which is: are we going to play a full season in 2021–22?
The Stingers men’s hockey team adds depth on defence
University sports may be on hiatus this semester, but that doesn’t stop teams from preparing for their next game, whenever that may be.
The Concordia Stingers men’s hockey team has remained active since the end of their last season, and have recruited many players since then. One of those players is defenceman Yan Aucoin, who spent the last five years in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL).
Aucoin officially joined the Stingers last May, when the team announced his addition via their Twitter account. Aucoin said his time in the QMJHL was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
“My time in the league went really fast,” Aucoin said. “I was really fortunate to live that. I started in the QMJHL at age 16, where I considered myself more of a teenager, and left at age 20, way more mature and capable of facing obstacles of life.”
Coming off a great season with the Acadie-Bathurst Titan, Aucoin was rewarded for his efforts, being named the 2019-20 Defensive Player of the Year. The Stingers’ acquisition described this award as a real honour.
“We had an extremely young team [this past season], and as soon as the Titan got me, the message was clear,” Aucoin said. “They wanted me to help the young players, and act as a big brother. I had the chance to play in all situations. We had really good defencemen on the team, and a great goalie.”
Aucoin described himself as a “defensive defenceman.” He said that even at the junior level, he was already reputed for his defensive skills.
“I think my defensive game is my bread and butter,” Aucoin said. “I take pride in blocking opponents’ best players. I also have a good physique, so it helps. I try to include all those aspects in my game. It’s my pride as a hockey player.”
Stingers head coach Marc-André Élément, who had been watching the defenceman for a year, said Aucoin is one of those players who are good on both sides of the ice. He added that the coaching staff always has big expectations with great defencemen like him, as he’ll have a big role on the team as soon as hockey starts back up.
“I’m sure he’ll have success when the season will start,” Élément said. “He’s someone who’s been captain last year in the QMJHL. He’s a leader. The goal is to recruit the right people, and Aucoin is obviously one of them. We’re really happy about his addition. He’ll also bring a good physical aspect to the team, as we added size on defence with him.”
Aucoin will study in Business while playing for the Stingers. He said he was also in contact with other universities, but he liked the connection he had with Élément and one of the assistant coaches, Jean-Philippe Hamel.
“I liked the fact I felt wanted by the team,” Aucoin said. “I thought I could have an impact on the team right from the start. I also already knew many players from the team, so of course it helped to convince me. I had the chance to visit the facilities last year, and I was satisfied.”
For Aucoin, his goal with his new team is simply to give them his best effort, as he said all games will be challenges.
“We want to win, but we’ll go one game at the time,” Aucoin said. “I don’t want to give myself any specific role, as there are many great defencemen on the team. We’ll see after my time at Concordia if I’m offered a professional contract somewhere, and if that’s an option I surely won’t close the door to it.”
Aucoin said he doesn’t have specific personal expectations for his debut with the Stingers. For him, the goal will be to be ready when his name is called on the bench.
“They finished their season well last year,” Aucoin said. “I think the goal will be to continue on that path and do even better. We’re obviously in nothingness right now, but we’re looking forward for the season to start.”
The Habs have the sixteenth overall selection in this year’s NHL Draft
As COVID-19 delayed the National Hockey League (NHL) 2019–20 playoffs, this year’s NHL Entry Draft will be presented on Oct. 6 and 7. It will be conducted online, while players and fans alike will watch from home.
The Montreal Canadiens have 13 draft picks this year, including the sixteenth overall selection. The team’s last two first-round picks were Cole Caufield and Jesperi Kotkaniemi, fifteenth overall pick in 2019 and third overall pick in 2018, respectively. As the team begins to see the impact of its young talented players, this year’s draft should only add to what the Canadiens are heading towards: youth.
The question is, who should the Montreal Canadiens select? Here are some players who might interest the Habs.
Hendrix Lapierre:
Besides Alexis Lafrenière, projected first overall selection in the draft, Lapierre is the next best French-Canadian player the Canadiens could select.
Unfortunately, Lapierre has suffered multiple concussions, which led him to miss over half of the 2019–20 season in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). During his short season, Lapierre produced two goals and 15 assists for 17 points in 19 games with the Chicoutimi Sagueneens.
His playmaking and ability to control the puck is something that could definitely help the Canadiens at the centre position. He isn’t the best offensive player in the draft, but he is definitely one of the best defensive centremen available. His hockey sense is impressive and he can easily find players on the ice. Lapierre could be the first French-Canadian drafted by the Habs in the first round since Louis Leblanc in 2009.
Dylan Holloway:
Ranked at number 16 on Bob McKenzie’s list on TSN, Holloway is another player that could interest the Habs. Although Holloway had an average season with the University of Wisconsin, scoring eight goals and nine assists in 35 games, the forward who can play centre and left-wing has a great potential.
His speed and physicality could help a team like the Habs, which mainly consists of small players. Finding players with the speed and size of Holloway is rare. He would help his teammates to free up space on the ice. The fact he played with Caufield in Wisconsin could also convince the Canadiens to draft him.
Dawson Mercer:
The Habs desperately need offensive power and if their General Manager Marc Bergevin does not trade for a goal scorer, Mercer could at least be a solution for the future. Last year, Mercer registered 24 goals and 36 assists for 60 points in 42 games, playing for the Chicoutimi Sagueneens and the Drummondville Voltigeurs.
His stickhandling skills help him get great opportunities for his powerful shot. While not the fastest, he is capable of outskating players and taking the puck from his opponents. He has a great mentality and works really hard on both sides of the ice, which is important for the Habs organization.
Noel Gunler:
This Swedish offensive player could add offensive power to the Canadiens. Playing in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) and the J20 SuperElit League, Gunler got 29 goals and 22 assists for 51 points in 46 games during the 2018–19 season. Gunler has an ease in finding the space and time to shoot the puck.
Being very tall, he doesn’t have any difficulty driving the net and blocking the goalie’s view, which could be a great addition to the Habs’ power play. Although he might need another year to be ready for the NHL, Gunler could potentially be a top-two player playing alongside the team’s great centres like Kotkaniemi.
Rodion Amirov:
Ranked as one of the best prospects for the Canadiens by RDS journalist Stéphane Leroux, Amirov is a tall, Russian left-winger. He has played in Russia in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), the Molodiojnaïa Hokkeïnaïa Liga (MHL) and the Vyschaïa Hokkeïnaïa Liga (VHL).
In 2019–20, Amirov counted 11 goals and 16 assists for 27 points in 43 games. Amirov has amazing skills, and can easily score goals on a penalty shot or a breakaway. His shot is also extremely good, as he has a powerful release. However, he might not be the heaviest player, which may deter the Habs.
He definitely has the potential to become a great goal scorer in the NHL, and he, just like Gunler, could help the Canadiens on the power play. He still has amazing potential and he is very entertaining to watch.
With all the great players available in this year’s draft, it will be interesting to see which one the Canadiens will pick. No matter who it is, it’s almost guaranteed they’ll have something to solve the team’s needs. However, after recently signing defencemen Alexander Romanov and Joel Edmundson, the Habs might look into drafting a forward for the fourth straight year.
The Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team spent all but one week as the best team in U Sports during the 2019-20 season.
For 14 weeks straight, the Stingers were voted to the No. 1 spot—and for good reason. This was the best regular season of Julie Chu’s head coaching tenure. The Stingers finished as the top team in the RSEQ (arguably the toughest division in U Sports) with a 15-3-1-1 record.
The Stingers were forced to hold off the Université de Montreal (UdeM) Carabins and McGill Martlets. All three of these teams should have consistently been ranked in the U Sports top five every week this season. All season long, not only did the Stingers survive those games against UdeM and McGill, they thrived, consistently winning hard-fought matches. The Stingers won the RSEQ division title for the first time since 2004-05.
Even though this team preached the “one game at a time” mentality, going into the playoffs, the expectations were that the Stingers would be heading to Charlottetown, P.E.I., to push for a national championship. Those expectations came to a crashing halt during the semi-finals of the RSEQ playoffs when the Stingers lost the best-of-three series to the Carabins.
Let’s start with the positives: they scored goals like nobody’s business, they fired a TON of shots on net. The systems on special teams figured themselves out and proved to be impactful. I’m sure if U Sports kept track of possession numbers, the Stingers would be close to the top as well. But the Stingers’ success this season was in large part due to the following two reasons.
Proving themselves
Three seasons ago, the Stingers won bronze at nationals. If that proved that the Stingers had the ability to compete with top teams, this season proved that they are a top team.
Despite not making it to the national championship this season, the Stingers proved themselves as a force in U Sports. No other team in Canada would have fared as well in the RSEQ as they did. Chu has built a team designed for long-term success in a gruelling division. She’s brought in rookies capable of immediately becoming impact players. Veterans play key roles in creating that winning culture. Goaltending continues to be one of the most underrated aspects of this team.
Individual talent
The Stingers played well as a team all season, but it didn’t hurt to have some of the top players in the country either. Rosalie Bégin-Cyr led the RSEQ in points with 28 in 20 games (she also led the U Sports top scorers in PPG).
Claudia Dubois capped off her five-year run with Concordia by being named team captain and becoming one of the best two-way forwards in U Sports. She also put up 23 points—the highest point total of her career—to finish second in RSEQ scoring, only behind Bégin-Cyr.
Audrey Belzile continues to be one of the most exciting players in U Sports and scored 22 points during the season. Brigitte Laganière exploded for 18 assists on defence, all while becoming one of the premier defenders in the division.
Alice Philbert went 12-4, sported a 1.99 GAA and 0.921 SV% while backstopping the Stingers to a division title. On any other team, Philbert is THE star player. On the Stingers, she flies under the radar more than she should. Emmy Fecteau led all RSEQ rookies with 17 points and played on the top line for a good chunk of the season.
So it shouldn’t come as a shock that the team cleaned up at the RSEQ awards. Chu won her second Coach of the Year award, Bégin-Cyr was named the division’s MVP and Fecteau was named RSEQ Rookie of the Year. Bégin-Cyr, Belzile and Laganière were all named First Team All-Stars. Alexandra Nikolidakis and Dubois were named Second Team All-Stars.
Now, remember that this team is only losing two players to graduation this year. With this type of talent returning to the roster, the expectations for next season are already sky-high.
Six-time F1 World Champion Lewis Hamilton has a great quote in the Netflix series Drive to Survive that goes “It’s easier to chase than to lead.” I think that sentiment sums up the Stingers pretty well this year.
They were vaulted to the top of the U Sports rankings in Week 2 and they held the position until the end of the regular season. For 14 weeks, the Stingers played with a target on their back. They managed to push past this, but you could tell that they were getting their opponents’ best every single night. Not many teams took days off against Concordia.
Despite this, even from a critical standpoint, the Stingers’ faults were either minor or addressed.
By no means did the Stingers get complacent—quite the opposite is true. All season, Chu spoke about how she and her team were focused on fixing the chinks in their armour. As the season progressed, the team won games by playing faster than anyone else. And all season long, that style and mentality worked. The team won a lot. They scored a lot. They played their game. Even the Stingers’ power play struggles managed to turn around and the team finished at 15 per cent.
Unfortunately, sometimes you play a team that just figures it out.
In the semi-finals, the Stingers struggled to gain momentum against the Carabins because they played a different style. While the Stingers focused on getting the pucks to the slot through speed, the Carabins played along the boards, keeping the Stingers to the outside and forcing the puck into scoring chances. The Game 3 shot map shows this well.
During the regular season, the Stingers were able to win those battles. In the playoffs, it was the Carabins who won those same battles. Credit where credit’s due, the Carabins played a great playoff series, a series that can be added to the ever-growing rivalry between the two squads.
While the Stingers are probably disappointed in how their season ended, there’s no way this stops the momentum the program has built over the past three seasons.
Even though the Stingers won’t be making the trip to P.E.I., make no mistake—this is a team capable of competing for a national championship next season.
After a collection of tight games and surprising many with a wild run to the OUA East finals, the Stingers fell in a 7-2 blowout to the now division champions, the Ottawa Gee Gee’s.
There was no time to sit and sulk though. There is still work to be done.
“It’s a tough loss but we’re not done, that’s what’s fun,” said Stingers head coach Marc-André Élement.
After a playoff run that included a victory over their most bitter rival, a sweep of the league’s top team, a triple overtime win, and eventually being swept themselves, the Stingers have one last challenge to face on their way to pushing for a berth at the national championship in Halifax.
They will be one of two teams vying for the bronze medal of the OUA and the final spot at nationals. They take on the loser of the OUA West final in a winner takes all, one game elimination battle later this week.
“It’s a game seven right away. So we have to be on our toes and play Stingers hockey,” said captain Philippe Sanche.
Because of new rules, regardless of the opponent and prior seeding, any Quebec team is not eligible to host such a game, so they’ll be traveling down to Ontario for the matchup.
The Stingers will need to work to get back to the team that toppled both Carleton and McGill as opposed to the one that showed up against Ottawa. The Gee Gee’s got them to lose their composure, taking penalties that simply hadn’t been a problem before this series. The vicious forecheck of the visitors left the Stingers scrambling and giving up turnovers in game two.
The Stingers’ offensive creativity that had gotten them so far seemed to dry up in the game after an intense first period in which both teams scored twice, including a late shorthanded goal by rookie Tyler Hylland.
The Stingers have liked playing with their backs against the wall this season and situations like that have provided some of their best hockey this year. It’s that exact scenario that they find themselves in now: Win and you’re in.
The team is refocusing themselves already and setting their eyes on where they can still get to.
“Obviously it’s hard because you want to win the league but you still have a chance to go to nationals,” said Sanche who went to nationals two season ago. “In my experience, even if we lost [at nationals two years ago], it was a great experience.”
There may be some doubting that they can get there now. They were a low seeded team heading into the playoffs, are now coming off of a blowout loss, and have to travel into enemy territory in Ontario.
That kind of adversity and underdog mentality is what the team has thrived on all season though. Whether it was injuries, suspensions, officiating trouble, the players reminded themselves that they had something to push back against.
“It’s been kind of our story the whole year,” said Stingers defenceman Carl Neill. “We didn’t play to our best capabilities throughout the season, so coming into the playoffs we ranked a bit lower. It might be the case next week now. It’s familiar territory for us. I’m sure the boys will be ready.”
They’re back to embracing that idea and certainly aren’t feeling scared of the new challenges this last chance game is going to bring them.
“It’ll be good for us to go down there and just work,” said Sanche. “We don’t have pressure. We’re just gonna play hockey and get a win.”
Some players have been in this exact spot before. Neill, Sanche, defender Alexandre Gosselin, and centre Jean-Philippe Beaulieu were all on the Stingers team that fell to McGill in the playoffs two years ago before beating the York Lions and earning a spot at nationals.
These players and their coach are reminding the young team that, regardless of the loss, their goal is right there for taking because they’ve seen it before. That’s certainly rubbed off on the rest of the Stingers.
We’ve been going through adversity all year, this is just another stepping stone,” said Hylland. “We’re going to take the sting of this loss with us and we’re going to carry it into the next game [as motivation].”
Hylland and his team feel they can make some noise and upset the country’s best. Now they just need to earn the chance to do so with one more win.
The Concordia Stingers, who had just 31 points and 13 wins in the regular season, have swept the OUA’s top team, the Carleton Ravens.
These are the Ravens that shutout the Stingers in the first game of the year, finished the season with 49 points and just four losses, and were ranked as the third best team in Canada.
Not one word of that mattered when the Stingers took the ice Saturday night.
“The good guys came out on top,” said Stingers defenceman Carl Neill.
In an arena with a crowd that spent the night cheering and chanting (a few creative ones got thrown Carleton’s way, particularly by the Stingers football players in attendance), the Stingers’ play was as electric as the atmosphere that threatened to blow the roof off the Ed Meagher Arena.
Like last week against McGill, the Stingers were a model of efficiency.
They generated chances from different areas to keep the Ravens defense guessing, the controlled play with simple, smartly executed rushes, and they shut down almost every chance that came their way.
It wasn’t always pretty. It was always smothering, fast, and effective.
The team was roaring at every level of play. Their forwards were pushing the Ravens into their own end and forcing them to scramble. The D broke up play after play while joining the rush and goalie Kyle Jessiman showed up big (more on him later).
The second period against the Ravens may have been their best of the season. Three goals, over 20 shots, few chances against, and a sense of dominance.
“It looked like the ice was tilted in their end. The puck wasn’t getting out and we had a bunch of chances. When they did get a few chances, [Jessiman] stood on his head,” said Neill.
While the game was a good example of every player rolling, Jessiman and a few others shined. The rookie goalie shut down everything, earning chants of “MVP” from the crowd, particularly after two late saves in the second that both looked like sure goals.
The team’s second line was also unstoppable. Jean-Philippe Beaulieu played the game of his life, scoring two goals and stymieing Carleton chances all night. He, along with Chase Harwell and Felix Lauzon shut down Carleton while creating chance after chance offensively.
“I wouldn’t even say it’s the second line. I’d say it’s a 1a/1b situation. That’s huge for us. That depth is what you need in the playoffs,” said rookie Tyler Hylland.
Now the Stingers find themselves in the OUA East finals. Two wins from a spot at nationals. It’s been a bumpy road, but one that they feel has made them stronger.
They battled for their position in the standings all season, finishing fifth in the division.
The Stingers were plagued with injuries, losing both starting goaltenders, their top veteran forward for half the year, one of their top rookie recruits, and up to eight players on a given night.
They also dealt with several suspensions, including one to one of their top players in Neill. Adversity has been a frequently used word around the team.
“We were frustrated by bad luck. Injuries, suspensions. It felt like we could never get our full team out there,” said Hylland.
The team believed in itself though. One thing kept being repeated: “when we’re at our best we can compete with anyone in the country.”
It may have sounded off early in the year, but when they caught fire after Christmas, when the team was finally healthy and added Jessiman in net and Lauzon on the wing, it began to look more and more true.
They were competing with, and beating, top teams. All of a sudden the offense was potent and they were allowing fewer and fewer goals.
“[We’re] starting to play like the team that we are,” said Neill.
Now, they’ve solidified themselves as true contenders. They’ve beaten rival McGill in a close series and swept one of the best teams in the country. They’re riding the high of underdog wins against teams that they certainly don’t like.
The mood is great for the Stingers.
“This is one of the best years in my entire career,” said Sanche. “The guys are having fun and it shows on the ice. We’ve been having fun since after Christmas. Even when we lost four in a row. Then we just started rolling. The boys got onto the bus and they’re playing simple, great hockey.”
The Stingers will take on the Ottawa Gee Gees in the OUA East Final, a team they had a 2-1-0 record against in the regular season.
While they may not have entered the playoffs at the top of the standings, they came into the postseason winning four games in a row and six of their last seven. Back then, Hylland said that regardless of their position in the standings, teams knew they didn’t want to play Concordia.
Two playoff series and another four game win streak later, and the Stingers have certainly proven that they’re not a team anyone should look forward to facing.
The National Hockey League trade deadline is one of the most exciting days of the year for hockey fans.
After weeks of rumors all over social media, we’ll finally know who’s getting traded and where some players are heading in the last sprint before playoffs.
The Montreal Canadiens have been quite calm during the trade deadline the past few seasons, mostly trading picks and veterans. While some teams make the most of trade deadline day, moving their superstars in exchange for the acquisitions they need, Habs general manager Marc Bergevin has largely opted for making his key moves during the summer break instead.
In 2016, Bergevin made a trade that people still talk about today, acquiring current team captain Shea Weber from the Nashville Predators in exchange for defenceman P.K. Subban. He also traded Lars Eller before acquiring right-winger Andrew Shaw from the Chicago Blackhawks in another deal. The following year, he got Jonathan Drouin from the Tampa Bay Lightning. In 2017-18, the Canadiens traded their 2012 first-round pick, Alex Galchenyuk, to the Arizona Coyotes for Max Domi, who scored 72 points in his first season in Montreal. Finally, Bergevin traded Shaw back to Chicago last summer.
Montreal’s biggest acquisition on trade deadline day goes back, arguably, to March 2, 2015 when the team acquired defenceman Jeff Petry from the Edmonton Oilers. Since then, the team made no significant trades, considering the only moves were trades for picks and players like Jordan Weal, which weren’t enough for the team to qualify for the playoffs since 2016-17.
As teams not qualifying for the postseason often trade established players for future assets, like draft picks, and become what we call “sellers.” The chances of seeing the Canadiens do so and be on the selling side are fairly high.
Assuming Bergevin decides to be a seller in the upcoming days, many players could interest the other 30 general managers of the NHL. Does that mean superstar goalie Carey Price could get traded? It would be shocking to see it happen. However, veterans Ilya Kovalchuk, Nate Thompson and Petry are all on the well-known TSN Trade Bait list, a list of the players most likely to be traded before the trade deadline has passed.
With the emergence of young forwards like Cole Caufield, Ryan Poehling and Joni Ikonen, in addition to great hopes on defence with Alexander Romanov, Cale Fleury, Josh Brook and more, Bergevin knows the goal is for them to be in the lineup fairly soon.
In fact, Fleury already played with the big club this season, showing great signs of development, and what he could bring in the coming years. Head coach Claude Julien sometimes scratches him as the team’s seventh defenceman, but if a trade happens, perhaps with Petry, he might have a chance to play as a regular blueliner for the remainder of the games this year.
Recent years at the deadline have showed how much value depth centres are worth. For example, 35-year-old veteran Brian Boyle, who signed a one-year contract with the Florida Panthers in October, has been traded twice the past three years, all around the trade deadline. Both times, the club who traded Boyle acquired at least a second-round draft pick.
Thompson can win faceoffs, play important minutes defensively, on the penalty kill, and can bring depth to a contending team looking for that extra forward entering the playoffs. As injuries can seriously impact a team’s season, and sometimes be the reason for them falling short of expectations, general managers of contending teams often prefer trading away their draft picks for those extra, proven players—in order to be prepared for any scenario. Thompson could be a player to fill that role elsewhere.
Of course, the Canadiens aren’t lacking draft picks for this year’s NHL Entry Draft, which will be held at the Bell Centre in June. The team currently has 11 selections, with three second-round picks. In that sense, the urge to trade players for picks right now isn’t there.
If Bergevin decides to trade someone like Thompson, it could help the case of Poehling, or Jesperi Kotkaniemi, who was sent down to the American Hockey League (AHL) Laval Rocket on Feb. 1. It’s doubtful that both will spend the entire season with the Rocket next year, so an option could be to let at least one of them finish the season with Montreal.
Both Poehling and Kotkaniemi have NHL experience, especially the latter, who has more than 100 games played with the Canadiens already. These two young forwards are expected by many to play an important role for the Habs in the future, as they could be the top two centres in a few years. However, for that to happen, they’ll need to fit in somewhere in the lineup, which currently has enough centres.
Last season, Poehling played his first career NHL game on the last game of the Canadiens’ season because the team was already out of playoff contention.
This year, the team’s fate seems to be already known, which could lead to more ice time for prospects, especially if trades happen.
We’ll have many questions answered today at 3 p.m. Who knows what the 31 teams will look like once the trade deadline has passed.
The number one ranked Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team’s season is over.
The Stingers lost 3-2 in game three of the RSEQ semi-finals to the Université de Montreal Carabins.
“It’s hard, we’re devastated for sure,” said head coach Julie Chu. “We always took it one game at a time, and we had belief that our team could go really far into nationals. But we also know that we play in the best conference in U Sports. To get out of our conference is always tough to do, especially against a great rival.”
The first period saw the Stingers start where they left things off after Saturday’s 5-3 game two win. They managed quality chances against the Carabins and were executing their zone entries perfectly. With four minutes left in the frame, Stingers captain Claudia Dubois wired home a one-timer to give the Stingers the lead.
In the second period, the Carabins flipped the script.
A power play goal four minutes in, and an in-tight goal with two minutes left in the period gave the Carabins all of the momentum.
Blaming the refs for a loss is never the answer, but it should be said that there were some extremely questionable calls on both teams. Take the Stingers tying goal for example. A seemingly innocent shot from Audrey-Ann Rodrigue squeaked past Carabins goalie Maude Trevisan, but the puck fell right behind the goalie, but never cleared the goal line and was clearly still in the blue paint (I asked four other media members who all said that the puck didn’t cross the line).
Chaos ensues after the ref calls the play dead, the refs convene at centre ice, the Stingers fans go crazy while waiting for the decision. The refs finally decided that the shot went in (it didn’t). It really seemed like the refs were peer pressured by the crowd to make that call.
Mix in some blatant missed calls on both teams, and you’re left with a game that wasn’t exactly decided by the refs, but their handprints are there. Chu has never been one to make excuses and that didn’t change after this game.
“It went both ways,” said Chu. “For us we always talk about controlling what we can control. The big part of what we do control is our ability to work hard, execute and do the little things really well. Unfortunately I think we got away from that a little bit.”
The Stingers struggled to generate momentum and chances in close against Trevisan. They were outshot 28-23 by the Carabins, and Stingers goalie Alice Philbert had to bail her team out a couple of times.
Graphic by Matthew Coyte
Shortly after tying the game up in the third period, the Carabins re-took the lead. A shot towards the front of the net took a strange bounce, the puck popped up and dropped right behind Philbert and into the net. Philbert would make 25 saves on 28 shots. Trevisan would make 21 on 23 shots.
Credit to the Carabins though, after getting outskated in game two, they came out and stuck to their game plan; heavy hockey. The Carabins won key puck battles, blocked a hell of alot of shots, forechecked hard and took advantage of their chances.
This ending is especially heartbreaking for Dubois. This was her last game in a Stingers jersey. The captain was lights-out all season and during this playoff series. Dubois is the defining player of Chu’s tenure as head coach. The same way Phil Hudon represented a new era of Stingers’ men’s hockey, Dubois embodied the winning culture that’s been built at Concordia over the past five years. The coach had nothing but praise for her captain post-game.
An emotional moment between women's hockey head coach Julie Chu and Claudia Dubois as she takes her final strides in maroon and gold.
“She’s the one who’s going to make me cry when she leaves,” said Chu. “When she came [into the program], we were still figuring out how to win, how to build a culture, how to take things to the next level. She’s a huge reason why we got to this next level. Every day, from when she came in as a first-year, to this last game, she’s given us everything. She’s prepared, she works, she wants to win, she’s gritty. For us, that’s become the core of who we are. She’s the one who leads the team and she’s the strongest voice in that locker room. We’re going to miss her.”
This is a disappointing finish for the team. Not many people would have expected a 2020 U Sports national championship without the number one ranked team. Despite this, this season was important for the Stingers.
“Our biggest thing is to hold our head up high,” said Chu. “It’s going to sting for a while, but that’s okay. When we care about what we’re doing, we’re passionate, we put in the time and effort, it’s going to hurt when we don’t get the results we want. We wanted [the team] to feel like they should be proud of everything they’ve given up. They’ve given into this program this year. We’re really proud of them.”
The Carabins will play the McGill Martlets in the RSEQ finals later this week. Both teams will also advance to the U Sports national championship taking place in P.E.I. in March.
Notes:
The Stingers have been the most exciting Montreal hockey team this year. It’s sad to see them end the season this way, but you’ll never hear anyone say that they didn’t put their heart into every single game.
Claudia Dubois and defender Erica Starnino are the only fifth-year players on the Stingers. That means that most of the core that made the Stingers so deadly will be returning.
After the Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team lost in game one of the RSEQ semi-finals to the Université de Montreal Carabins on Thursday, head coach Julie Chu promised that the game plan wasn’t about to suddenly change.
“I was really happy with how we played on Thursday,” says Chu. “We had a good reset day yesterday. Our players knew what was on the line. We just stayed the course.”
The first period of game two at UDEM’s CEPSUM arena didn’t start out great for the Stingers. The outlet passes weren’t hitting sticks, the Carabins were forechecking their way into long offensive possessions and the Stingers weren’t able to generate much momentum.
With six minutes left in the opening frame, defender Brigite Laganiere changed that.
Laganiere had a very strong regular season, putting up 18 assists while being relied defensively as the top defender on the team.
Despite the effort and consistency, Laganiere wasn’t able to score a goal.
During some neutral zone confusion, Laganiere took off alone against two Carabins players, wound up, and wired a clapper over the glove of Maude Trevisan.
From there, the Stingers took off.
Stéphanie Lalancette and Léonie Philbert added goals in the first period to extend the Stingers’ lead to 3-0 going into the second period.
“We weren’t putting in pucks 5-on-5,” said Chu. “That was a really important aspect that we had to find. Get to the net, create chaos, win some of those netfront battles. Being able to get there, maybe getting some of the bounces that go in.”
After the first period tallies, the Stingers promptly welcomed Carabins goalie Maude Trevisan to the second period when Belzile finished a nice lil saucer pass from Emmy Fecteau just 44 seconds into the frame. The Carabins would replace Trevisan with Aube Racine after the goal.
“Playing a fast game is always helpful,” said Chu. “We talk about transitioning quickly both ways. We’ve got talented teams in this league. The way you make teams or anyone uncomfortable is by using speed, taking away time and space.”
Olivia Atkinson would push the Stingers total to five goals early in the third. The Stingers would rattle off 32 shots. The Carabins would score a goal in the second and make a push with two goals late in the third period, but the Stingers lead never seemed in doubt.
Stingers goalie Alice Philbert stood out tonight, stopping 20 of 23 stops. In-between fighting for looks through traffic and making a fleury of in-tight
“Alice, and all of our players, do a great job of reseting and refocusing,” said Chu. “She’s been going out there and playing some big, awesome hockey for us”
“We’re really pumped for tomorrow, to get a chance to play hard against a great cross-town rival.”
Game three of the RSEQ semi-finals will take place on Sunday, at the Ed Meagher Arena at 3 p.m.
Notes:
Julie Chu is playing her cards close to the chest on her plan for game three. “Staying the course” might be an accurate retroactive slogan for the Stingers 2019-20 season.
It’s not unusual for Carl Neill to spend plenty of time handling the puck—he’s the Stingers’ top defenceman.
Even for a defenceman, in the first period against the Nipissing Lakers, his teammates were making sure to feed him the puck as much as they could.
Finally, near the end of the period, the puck went from Neill’s stick to the back of the net. It was a powerplay goal, like many he’d scored before. But this time, the celebration by his teammates was something special.
“I’m really, really proud of him, we all are,” said Neill’s coach, Marc-André Élement.
Neill’s goal was his 84th point as a member of the Concordia Stingers. He had just moved into first place, as the highest scoring defenceman in Stingers history.
“It’s a great honour,” said Neill, who sits just one short of the team’s all-time assist record as well. When he learned he was approaching both records after just three seasons with the team, the stingers alternate captain was shocked.
Carl Neill reflects on his three years as a Concordia Stingers
“I know Concordia’s been around forever,” said Neill. “I imagined there’s some guys a couple hundred years back that must have got a few points so I never really thought of that.”
Maybe he was surprised, but anyone that’s watched him over the last three seasons shouldn’t be. He’s dominated the university game since day one. He’s been one of the country’s best blueliners and made his mark in the Stingers’ history books.
In his three years Neill has collected awards on and off the ice, all-star nominations, and a collection of impressive stats that any player would be proud of.
He has played overseas representing his country, gone to the national university hockey championships, and done it all with the flare to his game that’s allowed him to be one of the top players in the league.
Neill joined the Stingers with a shining resume in junior hockey. He was captain of the Sherbrooke Phoenix in the QMJHL, where he set records just like he’s started to do with the Stingers.
His 178 points rank fourth all-time in Phoenix history while his 139 assists are second overall. Among defencemen though, he is the sole leader in both, along with goals (39).
Sherbrooke was also where he would end up meeting his best friend, future roommate and Stingers teammate Chase Harwell.
The two played three seasons together with the Phoenix and joined forces again a few years later at Concordia. Harwell’s face lights up with a big smile whenever the topic of his teammate and former captain comes up.
“He’s my best friend,” said Harwell. “We grew up together. He’s a great guy, I’m just so happy to see him have that success. He deserves it.”
Chase Harwell and Neill have played together as teammates for six seasons at the junior and university levels combined
His impressive junior career was enough to get him drafted into the NHL. In the fifth round of the NHL entry draft, the Vancouver Canucks chose Neill. He went on to play in several professional training camps before deciding to take the U Sports route and earn a degree before trying to head to the pro leagues when things didn’t work out in terms of the NHL.
Looking back, there’s no doubt in his mind that he made the right choice by going down the U Sports path.
“I made the right decision coming here,” said Neill. “Coming out of junior, not knowing much of what U Sports is Marc told me it was a good program here. I had faith in him and he had faith in me. It coupled well. I’m really happy about my decision. I’m happy I didn’t go to McGill [instead].”
While it’s been gaining traction and notoriety, U Sports isn’t a league that every player knows about coming out of junior. Neill was entering a completely new world and system of hockey. He’s become a major advocate for the league now, but three years ago, it was a leap of faith.
From the moment Neill walked into the Ed Meagher arena, the expectations were sky-high for him. He was the marquee rookie of a strong class of first years. His coach expected him to come in and become a number one defenceman early on.
“He’s going to be the guy who leads the power play, he’s going to be the quarterback,” said Élement just before Neill’s rookie season in 2017. “I’m pretty sure he’s going to be one of the top defencemen in the league.”
Despite any internal or external pressure to come in and be a top player in a new league, Neill played like a veteran from his very first game.
A cerebral player, he was a key contributor in what would be an explosive offense that season. He showed the vision and ability to rush the puck up ice that earned him NHL attention and became an instant player that opposing teams had to gameplan for.
“He certainly lived up to the expectations,” said former stingers captain Philippe Hudon. “He never second-guessed his decision to play U Sports hockey, and coupled with his desire to become a better hockey player, he was an immediate impact to our team and has done wonders since then.”
Neill would end up leading the entire country in scoring by a defenceman with 31 points in 28 games. His team was one of the top eight in the league, earning a trip to the national championship for the first time in over 30 years for Concordia.
Neill has been the back bone of the Stingers’ defensive group since he joined the team back in 2017
While Neill and the Stingers ended up losing, the defender was rewarded for his impressive rookie season. He was named to the OUA East first all-star team as well as the U Sports all-rookie team.
Off the ice, he was presented with the Guy Lafleur award for his combination of success in the game as well as in the classroom. All in all, a good start to his university career.
His second season, the team lost their top two scorers, including league MVP Anthony Beauregard. Instead of an offensive step back, or sophomore slump, Neill kicked it up a notch. Despite a less productive team, he upped his season totals to 33 points, good enough for second in the country among defencemen. He was named to the OUA East all-star team and earned OUA defenceman of the year honours.
On top of that, he was selected to the FISU games to represent Canada in Russia once his season ended. He was among the team of top university players that won bronze at the tournament.
At the start of the year though, another of Neill’s talents was recognized. He was named an assistant captain for the team and his leadership became a major part of his role on the team. The message constantly repeated by teammates is that Neill takes care of people.
As much as his sarcastic prodding and joking are a part of him, he is someone who truly cares for the wellbeing of his teammates.
He helped recruit former teammates like Harwell and Hugo Roy and made sure they and their fellow rookies were brought into the fold immediately and never had to feel like outsiders.
“Obviously he’s an amazing hockey player but on the other side he’s just a great dude,” said Harwell. “If a guy needs a ride, he picks them up. If a guy is having trouble at home or with his girlfriend, he’s there for you. He’s the guy you want on your team.”
Neill’s goal was always to make the guys comfortable, to show them the ropes and have his teammates enjoy an environment where they felt supported and relaxed.
“It’s important to have that on a team,” said Neill, listing past teammates like Hudon who helped him as a rookie. “I came here my first year, not really knowing what was going on. It’s good to pass the torch and help the boys along.”
He’s the kind of player that teammates light up when asked to talk about him. The respect for Neill in the Stingers locker room is evident.
While this past season may not have been as statistically dominant as the last two (20 points in 25 games), Neill had plenty to celebrate.
He played a preseason game as a member of a Quebec U Sports all-star team against the top prospects of the Montreal Canadiens and etched his name across the Stingers record books.
“All the credit goes to him and his work ethic,” said Élement.
Neill now sits 12th all-time in scoring in Stingers history in addition to sitting second all-time in assists and leading among defencemen.
And for the first time, his Stingers future is uncertain. Neill has turned down pro offers every season. He has focused on finishing his degree before turning to the professional world.
Where he’ll be next year, whether it’s at Concordia or on a new team in the pro sphere, is unclear.
If he is wearing a non-Concordia jersey next season, those around him think he’ll be just as successful in that league as he has been in U sports.
“I certainly think he can bring that same impact at the pro level,” said Hudon. “He has tremendous hockey sense. [He’s] capable of effectively fending off attackers as much as anchoring the blue line. Not to mention his high skill level and smooth skating abilities.”
If it’s Neill’s last run with the Stingers, there would be no better way to cap it off than another run to nationals. Despite an up and down year for the team that has been plagued by injuries, the Stingers are red hot heading into the postseason.
Neill called the mood in the room similar to the excitement of his first year where they made their run to nationals.
He definitely has his mind set on getting back there and his teammates can tell.
Neill amassed 84 points in 81 games as a member of the Concordia Stingers
“He wants it bad, he’s pushing even harder,” said Harwell. “It motivates the guys to go even harder as well.”
Looking back to the end of Neill’s first season, when asked if he felt like he was a number one defenceman as his coach had suggested, the rookie said not yet, but maybe next year.
Since then he’s become a franchise leader for defensive scoring, collected all-star nominations, academic awards, represented his country, and made his mark on the team.
When asked the same question at the end of this season, he had a similar answer.
“I don’t know, there’s a lot of number one defencemen in our league. I guess it depends on the night,” said Neill.
After all of this, it is probably safe to say that Neill can call himself not only a number one defenceman, but one of Concordia’s all-time greats.
