NHL Draft | The apple often falls near the tree

Does being born into a family of athletes improve the chances of being drafted into the National Hockey League?

If I ask the question, it’s because among the top 100 prospects in the next draft, there are many, many, many sons of sportsmen. Almost thirty. The closer to the top, the higher the ratio.

Examples ?

The fathers of Joel Kjellberg and David Spacek played for the Canadian. That of Vinzenz Rohrer, on the ATP circuit. Adam Ingram’s father was one of Canada’s top golfers, and Denton Mateychuk’s mother won a half marathon.

This trend is also very strong among Quebec hopefuls. The parents of Noah Warren, from the Gatineau Olympiques, both excelled in swimming. His father, Claude, as a coach at Laval University and the University of Montreal. His mother, Magalie Boutin, as an athlete. “She still holds regional records in Saguenay,” he says proudly. She competed in national championships, and she almost made it to the Canadian team. »

Maveric Lamoureux, of the Voltigeurs de Drummondville, also comes from a family of athletes. “My father played in the QMJHL, with the Granby Bisons, then in the senior, with the Laval Chiefs. My mother was a gymnast. After her athletic career, she coached girls at the national level. Sport has always had a big place at home. »

Nathan Gaucher, of the Quebec Remparts?

“My father played in major junior, and he is still in hockey, as assistant general manager of the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies. My brother plays hockey. My mother and sister have always been athletic. It showed me the way when I was young. »

As for the parents of Frédéric Brunet, from the Rimouski Oceanic, they met at the Nagano Olympics in 1998. Michel Brunet was a figure skater. Brigitte Gauthier, physiotherapist for the Canadian freestyle ski team. Frédéric’s uncle, Dominick Gauthier, was also in Japan, as an athlete, in mogul skiing.

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Should we be surprised by this phenomenon?

” Not really. »

The man speaking is Pierre Allard, assistant coach of the Munich Red Bulls. Before moving to Germany last year, he was director of sport science and performance for the Canadiens. He participated in draft prospect evaluations during the reigns of Marc Bergevin and Trevor Timmins.

“In our interviews, we wanted to know the player’s family history. We wanted to know if there was a history of top athletes in his family. »

Several scientific studies, notably those of Claude Bouchard and Louis Pérusse, have demonstrated the importance of heredity in elite athletes. Genes have a major impact on height. On muscle mass. On resistance to physical effort. Along the length of the trunk, arms and legs.

“Having parents from the sports world helps,” explains Pierre Allard. These young people usually have good genes. Among the Finns, for example, we often see the sons of cross-country skiers or endurance athletes. Lots of sons of hockey players, too, like Jesperi Kotkaniemi. »

“It is certain that the genetic background counts for a lot,” adds Jean Lemoyne, professor in the department of physical activity sciences at the University of Quebec at Trois-Rivières.

“But there are other factors besides genes. Parents with an athletic background have a better understanding of the elite sport environment. They know what awaits their child. They know the best development programs. Mr. Lemoyne also points to the high salaries of former NHL players, which allow them to rent more hours of ice and hire the best private coaches.

In addition, most top athletes pay attention to their weight. To their body. To their food. They are perfectionists. A study has shown that children often try to reproduce this character trait.

And what value do NHL clubs place on family baggage?

“A certain importance, confirms Pierre Allard. But it is difficult to quantify. I know that in other sports, basketball in particular, this data is fed into algorithms, which help recruiters make better decisions. But in the NHL, we are not there yet. The players come from several different leagues, and it’s very, very difficult to weight all the elements. »

For the record, did I tell you who has already completed 12^e at the European Swimming Championships?

Juraj Slafkovsky’s mother…

Athlete parents, hockey children

Owen Beck: David, father, soccer player

Frederic Brunet: Michel, father, figure skater; Dominick Gauthier, uncle, freestyle skier

Logan Cooley: Tom and John Mooney, uncles, hockey players (NCAA)

Jorian Donovan: Shean, father, hockey player (NHL)

Samuel Eklund: Per-Erik, father, hockey player (NHL)

Josh Filmon: Greg, father, basketball player

Nathan Gaucher: Yannick, father, hockey player (LHJMQ)

Marc-Andre Gaudet: Denis, father, hockey player (OHL)

Cutter Gauthier: Sean, father, hockey player (NHL)

Conor Geekie: Craig, father, hockey player (WHL)

Alexis Gendron: Martin, father, hockey player (NHL)

David Goyette: Michel, father, amateur boxer

Francesco Iasenza: Giovanni, father, hockey player (LHJMQ)

Hugo and Mattias Havelid: Niclas, father, hockey player (NHL)

Hunter Height: Steve, father, hockey player (OHL)

Marek Hejduk: Milan, father, hockey player (NHL)

Adam Ingram: Derek, father, golfer

Mark Kasper: Peter, father, hockey player (JO)

Joel Kjellberg: Patric, father, hockey player (NHL)

Kevin Korchinsky: Larry, father, hockey player (WHL)

Brad Lambert: Ross, father, hockey player (AHL); Lane, uncle, hockey player (NHL)

Maveric Lamoureux: Patrick, father, hockey player (LHJMQ)

Mats Lindgren: Mats, father, hockey player (NHL)

Denton Mateychuk: Keela, mother, runner

Rutger McGroarty: Jim, father, hockey player (ECHL)

Liam Ohgren: Andreas, father, professional hockey player

Vinzenz Rohrer: Stefan, father, professional tennis player

Reid Schaefer: Jeremy, father, hockey player (WHL)

Juraj Slafkovsky: Gabriela, mother, swimmer

Jimmy Snuggerud: Dave, father, hockey player (NHL)

David Spacek: Jaroslav, father, hockey player (NHL)

James Stefan: Patrik, father, hockey player (NHL)

Adam Sykora: Roman, father, hockey player (NHL)

Antonin Verreault: Serge Brunet, grandfather, hockey player (LHJMQ)

Noah Warren: Magalie Boutin, mother, swimmer