Shawinigan Cataractes head coach Daniel Renaud understands the challenge of a matchup against the Remparts. However, he assures that his team will arrive in Quebec without complexes.
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The 40-year-old first praised the depth of the Red Devils when he spoke to The newspaper Monday morning.
“Basically, once in the semi-finals, there are four excellent teams left. That said, Quebec finished first in the standings for obvious reasons. They have excellent training and I like their depth in all positions. We’ve heard a lot about Theo Rochette, Zachary Bolduc and Nathan Gaucher this year, but I don’t think these deep guys get enough credit. Even those fourth line guys like Zachary Gravel and Xavier Filion are really efficient and play great hockey. »
The recipe against a formation such as that of the Remparts is rather simple, adds Renaud.
“We will have to be consistent throughout the 60 minutes of play. In the end, I expect a long series and it is the details that will make the difference. »
However, Renaud believes that that of the Cataracts is not stung with worms either.
“I have enormous confidence in our depth. We won our three games against Gatineau by one goal [le match no 2 s’est terminé 3 à 1, mais le dernier but a été inscrit dans un filet désert, NDLR] and during the last game, we were playing five against six at the end of the game and it was Alexis Bonefon and Jacob Lafontaine, two 16-year-olds, who were on the ice. They are also our first pair on the penalty kill. »
MATURE GROUP
Although Bonefon and Lafontaine are young, the Cataractes are a mature team.
“We have several players who arrived here at 16 and they suffered together,” notes Renaud.
One of the club’s veterans, striker William Veillette, is approaching a return to play for the Cataractes. Injured since 1er May, the Lévis native started skating again a week ago; we can expect to see him again in the series against the Remparts. He hasn’t taken part in either of the first two rounds so far.