In hockey, a certain amount of turnover is expected year over year. Especially in a junior league, where you're essentially acting as a feeder league - a buffer between youth hockey and pro hockey.
The Drummondville Voltigeurs (QMJHL) are in a bit of a different situation when it comes to this season's roster, in that the club was absolutely victimized by a mass exodus of sorts, with 16 of their top 18 scorers, each of their top-4 defensemen and their starting goalie all moving on from the team.
When a team endures such a high rate of roster flux, typically any struggles that the team incurs is chalked up to new personnel needing time to become acclimated to a new system and new linemates and, as a result, any rough patches or blowouts can be easily dismissed.
The strange thing about this case is that even with all of the turnover, not only on the ice, but also behind the bench, in a season that was expected to be a lost cause, the Volt's have not missed a beat. Drummondville has no less than twleve rookie skaters on their roster. TWELVE. An additional nine players have been brought in to fill out the roster as well, totalling 21 new players in all.
What this proves is that you don't always need to replace experience with experience. Sometimes the right mix of players and coaches will suffice and that's just what new General Manager Philippe Boucher has provided in Drummondville.
“I was asked to deliver a plan,” he said. “You can put a plan down on paper, but it doesn't skate. You have to see the players on the ice. I just wanted to watch them play for a while to see what would happen, then read and react.”
Boucher also had a decision to make behind the bench. Should he retain the team's existing coach? Or should he aim to move into the new season with a new team and hand pick a new coach to be Steve Hartley's successor with the Voltigeurs?
“We had a decision to make with [Head Coach] Steve [Hartley],” Boucher recalls. “We made the decision to keep him with us, but we also made sure to surround him with a quality staff of assistants. It's important to have the right people in place.”
So who were some of the notable departures? Well, Detroit Red Wings prospect Joe Veleno for one. There were some other recognizable names vacating the roster, including Maxime Comtois, Pierre-Olivier Joseph, Nicholas Beaudin and Olivier Rodrigue.
Rodrigue, an Edmonton Oilers prospect, was traded to the Moncton Wildcats and remains in the QMJHL, while Veleno, Beaudin and Joseph are all with the AHL affiliates of the respective clubs who drafted them. Comtois started the same way, but has since been recalled by the Ducks and is now playing in the NHL.
Dawson Mercer is one of the returning players, a third-year center. If the name seems familiar, it's because he recently earned an invite to Team Canada's selection camp for the 2020 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship, along with his former teammates Rodrigue and Veleno.
Mercer was a believer, right from the word "go". He knew coming into this season that the Volts were capable of doing something special.
“With the returning group that we have, we knew we were capable of bigger things,” Mercer said. “Then, Steve [Hartley] and Philippe [Boucher] brought in the right group of new guys. Us veterans set the pace in camp and the new guys stepped up very quickly.”
Boucher, a former QMJHL and NHL defenseman is no stranger to adversity, but what he sees in this group is a team that is capable of big things, even with such a radical off season roster change.
“I always thought we could fight for home ice, that was kind of the goal,” commented the GM. “I really like the group we have. They have such a love for the game. They come to the rink and have fun. It's just a solid group of quality people.”
Although his team may be exceeding early expectations, Boucher knows how quickly things can turn from good to bad. His focus will be on how his team can continue to evolve and get better moving forward.
“Make no mistake, there are things we'll have to address during the upcoming Christmas break,” says Boucher. “But like I've said before, you don't have to hit rock bottom to build things back up again.”
Drummondville currently sits 2nd in the Western Conference and 6th overall in the QMJHL standings with 42 points so far this season.
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