“You’re too small. That’s a phrase many hockey players have heard. Nikolas Hurtubise wants to prove that “greatness is irrelevant”. “Since I was young, that’s what I’ve been doing. I’m underrated, proving I can do the job. »
Posted at 7:00 a.m.
The 5-foot-10, 161-pound goaltender won the President’s Cup with the Victoriaville Tigres last year, then the Memorial Cup with the Saint John Sea Dogs this year.
Behind these conquests, there is a goalkeeper who has always had to prove himself. First in minor hockey.
“In my first pee-wee year, I was told that I was too small, when we are all about 3’4” tall! “, he launches at the end of the line.
“It followed me quite a bit throughout my entire life and I’m still being told that. »
For a young boy of 12, 13 or 14 who couldn’t do anything about it, it was frustrating.
” This is [une excuse] which is not hard to say for a coach. I compared myself, I thought it was boring because, to be honest and realistic, I don’t think I was worse than anyone else. I passed second quite often. »
After the Victoriaville Tigres made him their fourth-round pick in the 2018 draft, Hurtubise returned to Midget AAA, like most 16-year-olds. That year, he had a 2.88 goals-against average and a .928 save percentage in 23 games. He hoped to make the jump to the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (LHJMQ) the following year, in 2019-2020.
But the Tigers have decided to keep their goalkeeping duo from the previous year. Hurtubise thus began the campaign in the junior AAA, with the Princeville Titan.
I saw the other goalkeepers my age making a place for themselves, even if I was perhaps more ready than them to play in that league. It was flat, but at the same time, the Tigers were really correct with me in there […] and I understand the reality of junior hockey.
Nikolas Hurtubise
cup number one
When the Tigres traded Tristan Côté-Cazenave to the Quebec Remparts at the 2019 Holidays, Hurtubise was added to the team full-time. However, he suffered an injury that sidelined him for two months, so he only played 10 games in total with the Victorian squad before COVID-19 broke out, in march.
But the following year. Oh, the following year… Hurtubise had a .908 save percentage in 16 playoff games to lead the Tigers to their first President Cup title since 2002.
“This entire organization believed in me. I liked it a lot because it’s rare that an organization that goes there for the Cup is going to trust an 18-year-old guy in the net. »
At the same time, it was an opportunity for him to show that he was “one of the best in this league”. Because he believed it.
“I found the opportunity really fun to [prouver]. And it ended well. […] It goes better when you’ve earned something other than stats. It gave me a bit of the recognition that I think I would have deserved earlier in my life, ”he argues without pretension.
Due to the pandemic, the Memorial Cup tournament did not take place last year. But Hurtubise found another way to get his hands on the big trophy a year later…
Cup number two
The Sea Dogs, a team that seriously aspired to top honors, acquired Hurtubise last January. It was also the host team for the Memorial Cup. The Maritime team did not have the expected run in the QMJHL playoffs, losing in the first round, while Hurtubise was only used in one of the five games.
But a month later, he kept goal for the four games of his team’s conquest of the Memorial Cup, in addition to being named to the tournament all-star team.
PHOTO DARREN CALABRESE, THE CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Nikolas Hurtubise was named to the Memorial Cup Tournament All-Star Team.
“I didn’t even play in the playoffs for X reasons, but [la Coupe Memorial] was a chance to show that no matter what happens and no matter how much time you have between challenges, when you just failed something, you can pick yourself up fast and accomplish something great fast. »
In life, winners win. If you think you’re a winner, you find a way to win. I was glad I did.
Nikolas Hurtubise
Now, the 20-year-old hopes he’s done enough to earn at least an invitation to a National Hockey League (NHL) development camp after the draft.
“What is difficult for me is my shape. This is my reality. But I do my best to try to show that greatness is irrelevant. I had a good showcase, in the sense that I had the chance to play for teams that trusted me. I had the chance to play well on big stages. »
“I’m just asking for a development camp, not a contract,” he says.
Because once the invitation is there, all you have to do is prove yourself. And Hurtubise is used to getting there.
“For me, being a little underestimated is more motivating. It gives you a goal every morning, more than pressure. »