(Buffalo) Olivier Nadeau already knew he would miss the rookie tournament. The Buffalo Sabers prospect had shoulder surgery in July and isn’t expected to return until the holidays.
Posted at 7:00 a.m.
But he knew he would still be in town for the tournament, to follow up on his operation. And that he would also have the chance to have a bite to eat with his old friend Joshua Roy. That was the plan, until the Canadiens announced that Roy would stay in Brossard to treat a minor hand injury.
The ties between the two attackers are close. “He’s been my best friend since I became an atom,” says Nadeau, in an interview with The Press during an intermission. I started playing pee-wee with him, but before that, we used to play summer tournaments together. We never let go. Pee-wee, bantam, midget, we did it rain or shine. I still train with him, I see him all the time, he’s really my best friend. I’m disappointed that we miss the tournament, I would have liked to play against him! »
Nadeau and Roy walked together in the Beauce-Appalaches hockey structure. “Already, in the pee-wee, they dominated,” recalls coach Mathieu Turcotte, who led the two players at this level, but also with the Lévis Knights in the midget AAA.
Nadeau and Roy were indeed a team in this formidable 2018-2019 edition of the Knights, the one that signed a record by winning 34 games in a row (!) in the season.
With 88 points in 42 games, Roy was the club’s leading scorer. Nadeau had 52 in 31 games.
At the end of this season, Roy had been claimed first overall in the QMJHL draft, by the Saint John Sea Dogs. Nadeau came out four rungs lower, claimed by the Shawinigan Cataractes.
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, PRESS ARCHIVES
Joshua Roy at the Montreal Canadiens rookie camp in 2021
Two years later, Nadeau passed his friend in the NHL draft, selected in the 97e rank by the Sabers. Roy meanwhile waited at 150e rank. After two checkered seasons, the hope of CH exploded last season, which it concluded at 1er rank of QMJHL scorers.
“If the repechage had to be redone, that would change a lot, believes Nadeau. I had no doubt he would bounce back. The summer after his draft was our biggest training summer. »
A complete striker
As with all sports, the world of hockey is essentially a funnel. From one level to another, players continue to dominate, while others are gradually eliminated.
Judging by their draft rank, Nadeau and Roy weren’t seen by NHL scouts as future stars. But they have nevertheless taken a step that is far from automatic for players claimed in the middle of the repechage. They both landed entry-level NHL contracts.
Roy achieved this thanks to the fabulous 119-point season he has just enjoyed, a result of the seriousness he put into his physical form. “He ran into the wall in his first year as a junior. He himself said it, he took over his nutrition and his training, recalled Mathieu Turcotte. Hockey-wise, I always knew he was ahead of the guys his age. So getting back on his feet, it’s no surprise that he’s had success in junior. »
Nadeau didn’t fill the scoresheets as much, collecting 78 points in 65 games. But he helped Shawinigan win the President’s Cup and participate in the Memorial Cup.
He did so as an assistant to the captain, despite a shoulder injury that led to the operation mentioned above. He had been dragging this injury since mid-April, but was not going to forfeit during a playoff run. Not only did he play injured, but he even took face-offs despite his condition.
“Olivier is a great competitor. His way of staying ahead of the competition is to work harder than the others,” underlines Turcotte.
The next step for Nadeau will be in Gatineau, the Olympiques having acquired him this summer. “Olivier can do anything,” describes his new head coach, Louis Robitaille. He’s a guy coaches like to lead. He can play the tough minutes. He is very good along the ramps, in front of the net. He still needs to improve his speed and explosion, but sky is the limit for him. »
It remains to be seen how the two buddies will continue to adapt to continue their way down the funnel.