(Buffalo) Decidedly, the agricultural community is a rich vein for the 2023 draft of the National League.
Cataracts defenseman Jordan Tourigny told us about his work on the family farm in Victoriaville earlier this week. Another prospect, forward Easton Cowan, told us he was washing tractors and heavy machinery on land in Mount Brydges, London area.
Bradly Nadeau, an Acadian from Saint-François-de-Madawaska, also lived on 30 acres. But in his case, the family farm is doubled by an excavation business, and it is above all this sector of activity that occupied Nadeau.
“I did excavation with my father, he taught it to my brother and me, tells us the New Brunswicker, at the National League evaluation camp for the draft. We spent time with family and worked at the same time. »
His role ? “I was the shovel, the digger, and I drove the sand trucks. It’s not too complicated, but I had to do it on private property because I didn’t have my licenses! »
PHOTO PROVIDED BY JOHN NADEAU
Bradly Nadeau
The father, who had just returned from Montreal for a purchase of machinery when he answered the call of The Press, estimates that Nadeau began operating machinery “around the age of 10”. “He and his brother, pretty much everything you make them do, they’re good,” says John Nadeau. They heated shovels and bulls. And they were making hay. There are not enough hours in a day on the farm! If you want to start off on the right foot, you have to work. I too was raised on the farm. You get up, you work! »
And this learning, was it useful in hockey? “I think so because working is not a burden for them. »
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In his corner of the country, Bradly Nadeau was far from the NHL, literally and figuratively. At 539 km, Montreal is the closest market to his home. That’s why he has, to date, attended only one Bettman Tour game in person.
And minor hockey in Saint-François, a village of 470 inhabitants as of 2016, obviously offers limited possibilities. Up to the atom level, he played recreational hockey with all age groups. From the pee-wee level, he had to register in Edmundston, a 40-minute drive away.
“When he fell bantam, it was three hours round trip to go to training in Perth-Andover, estimates John Nadeau. We did average mileage! But it wasn’t hard because he liked it. I would pick him up at school at 4:30 a.m., we would come home at 11 a.m. »
We traveled fifteen hours a week. It’s funny, I see parents who have to drive 20 minutes to drop off their child and they find it far. If I had to start over, I would do it again, because our children don’t stay young all their lives.
Bradly’s father, John Nadeau
These heavy logistics did not prevent Bradly Nadeau from developing, because here he is, at 18, the top scorer in the BCHL, the British Columbia Junior B circuit, with 113 points in 54 games for the Penticton Vees. His statistics are comparable to those obtained by Tyson Jost (104 points in 48 games) in his draft year. Jost is the highest drafted player in Vees history (10e in 2016), but he is slow to take off in the NHL.
“He can hurt you as much with his shooting as with his creativity. He’s always around the puck. He’s a good player on 200 feet, ”notes an NHL scout, speaking on condition of anonymity.
At 2e BCHL scoring rank: his big brother, Josh. If they went through Penticton, it’s because they opted for the NCAA. Both are expected at the University of Maine next season. At 5ft 8in, however, Josh was passed over in the 2022 draft, the first he was eligible for.
“Growing up, I always wanted to play in the major junior, explains Bradly Nadeau. Coming from New Brunswick, I wasn’t thinking of the NCAA. But the year of my junior draft, I weighed 140 lbs, I was small. I had heard that the NCAA allowed more time to get physically stronger and grow. »
He still needs to gain some chest, at 5-foot-10 and 161 lbs. But his progress places him today among the interesting hopes of the repechage.
NHL Central Scouting ranks him 17e rank of North American skaters, and most experts expect it somewhere in the second round, if not at the end of the first round.
“I don’t really have any expectations, second or third round, he admits. I don’t want to set my hopes too high or too low. »
This week, he was meeting 25 teams, including the Canadiens. He will leave Buffalo on Saturday, like everyone else, and return to Penticton to complete his school year and graduate from high school. Before heading to British Columbia, however, he was invited to the home evaluation camp organized by the Maple Leafs, holders of the 28e choice, in Toronto.
If the Leafs – or any other team – do not select him, the Canadian will have two opportunities to do so: at the very end of the first round (choice of the Panthers) or with his own choice at 37e rank.