(Brossard) Jocelyn Thibault does not begin his mandate as general manager of Hockey Quebec with the pretension of having the solutions to all the problems. However, his mission is to change the culture of the company that reigns throughout Quebec minor hockey.
The former guard officially took office on Monday. Thibault succeeds Paul Ménard, who will however accompany him in the transition.
“One of the important jobs at the federation, and I want to tackle it now, is to change the tone in minor hockey, to change the folklore element,” Thibault said at a press conference at the Bell Sports Complex. I saw recently that we are losing players, officials and referees. My mandate is to bring young people back to the rink, bring back the fun, rethink the development of players and bring Hockey Quebec into the modern era. ”
For someone who played in the NHL from 1994 to 2008, and who was more recently general manager of the Sherbrooke Phoenix in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, this change will be made by first getting his head out of the sand.
“We agree that we have all seen more great experiences than less good ones, but we have to talk about it,” he said. There is a crisis of officials, we recently experienced a lack of refereeing.
“If we don’t tell each other the real things, that won’t change. This is why I got involved. ”
The last few months have been trying at Hockey Quebec. A Radio-Canada survey published in December 2020 had lifted the veil on a toxic work climate, while several employees left the sports federation.
A mediation process has since been put in place.
“The essence of the discussions I had this morning is that I hope that working for Hockey Quebec will be an element of pride,” said Thibault, returning to the first official contact with his new work team. Me, I am proud to get involved with the federation, to have an impact and an influence on our national sport.
“I wish our employees would once again be proud to be a part of the effort when they come to the office. ”
Thibault also stressed that he wanted to promote the expertise of the employees.
“I am the coordinator,” he recalled. I am the leader of the organization, but not all the ideas will come from me. I want employees to be part of the solution. ”
A return to the elite
Thibault also wishes to address the challenge of bringing Quebec back to the elite in terms of player development.
He said he was aware of the issues at this level. Year after year, the QMJHL is the least popular Canadian major junior league in the first round of the NHL Draft. Only three Quebeckers were selected for the Canadian women’s hockey team at the most recent World Championship.
“I was at the Canada Games in Red Deer (Alta.) Two years ago because my daughter was there and I wanted to watch the 15-year-old guys as well,” said Thibault. The guys won the gold and the girls won the silver. So we are doing good things.
“There aren’t just two or three adjustments to be made, but I want to see how to bring the kids in respect and fun to a crescendo as they approach their prime. I don’t have the answer, but I have a team that will help us. ”
Thibault also pointed out that arguments with school hockey programs were unnecessary. He added that he rather saw the situation between civilian hockey and school hockey simply as a different offer of service.
Everything indicates that Thibault will benefit from a certain wave of sympathy when he takes up his post at Hockey Quebec because of his status as a former player and his notoriety. Now 46 years old, and with his three daughters no longer at home, he believes he is ready for this challenge thanks to his passion for hockey, which is still the same.
“I felt challenged by my passion for hockey. I want to bring the hockey community together and bring our federation to a level where it will be a benchmark, not only through Quebec sports federations, but across the world, ”he concluded.