One of the candidates most often mentioned to succeed Gilles Courteau as commissioner of the QMJHL, the current general manager of Hockey Quebec Jocelyn Thibault, does not close the door. Important reflection is needed, however, before officially submitting one’s candidacy.
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The QMJHL officially launched its recruiting campaign on Tuesday by making the job offer public. In the morning, Thibault had not yet had time to consult it, he who participated in the press conference revealing the main lines of the next Tournoi international de hockey pee-wee de Québec.
Photo Martin Chevalier
Gilles Courteau. QMJHL Commissioner
“To be honest, I’m not closed to the idea. Do I feel like, right now, rushing headlong into the process? The answer is: I don’t know. I was taken by surprise by Mr. Courteau’s announcement and therefore did not have time to go very deeply into my reflection, but I am not closing the door. »
Behind the scenes, many are hoping that Mr. Thibault will submit his candidacy. Publicly, even, his name is among the most popular.
“My name came out pretty quickly,” he admitted with a laugh. I expected Mr. Courteau not to stay another 20 years, but it happened very quickly. I’m not closing the door, but I’m not there yet. »
HAPPY IN HIS JOB
In office since 2021 at the head of Hockey Quebec, Jocelyn Thibault assures that he always feels good in his mandate. However, he recognizes that the various incidents that occur across the province, such as the U15 category coach who rushed at an opposing player during a game played in a Beaupré arena on December 18, are part of of its major challenges.
“I have fun in what I do. On the other hand, certain unfortunate incidents that we experience in Quebec, that’s what gets me the most juice, as a good Quebecer. This is what I find difficult, in my role, to have to deal with, to see pass or to have to insert myself in certain files of the genre. I find it really difficult. For the rest, what motivates me is to have the chance to have an impact on hockey in Quebec. We will never strike for 1000, but to be able to humbly move things forward, that stimulates me a lot. »
AN INCREASE ?
Have these “unfortunate incidents” to which the boss of Quebec hockey refers been on the increase in recent years? A difficult question, if not impossible to answer for the moment, he underlines.
“It’s not easy to measure. We ask ourselves the question every day. Does it feel like there’s more because we’re talking about it more? I do not know.
“I dare to think there are fewer, but every event like this [celui de Beaupré] is one too many. […] We hope that this case will be accompanied by an exemplary sentence, as everywhere in Quebec, ”he believes, adding that the pandemic could have been an aggravating factor.