On Sunday at noon, Brandon Gignac’s name was put on waivers by the Montreal Canadiens with the intention of sending him to the Laval Rocket. Two days later, after participating in a first practice session with the Laval team, Gignac appeared calm about the turn of events and gave himself a very clear mission for the upcoming season.
“Getting cut is part of hockey,” Gignac replied when asked how he had experienced the last few days.
“I would have liked to have more chances to prove myself, but in another sense, they know what I’m capable of. I’m pretty consistent on the ice, I know what I’m worth, I come to Laval with a positive attitude. The best moment here, deep down, will be to help the youngsters grow,” he said. “We’re going to help them become better players and better people and live the life of pros.”
Sitting in the press conference room, in the chair that head coach Pascal Vincent will occupy more often than not when he meets the media after games, Gignac spoke like a captain in the making. That position is now vacant following the departure of Gabriel Bourque.
When the remark was made to him, he couldn’t help but crack a smile.
“We’ll see. I’m not putting any pressure on myself about it. If it happens, great; if not, I’ll be the same person,” he said.
Asked about Gignac, Vincent implied the Repentigny forward could be a candidate to consider.
“We’ll see who will wear the letters, who will be captain. We haven’t decided that yet. We’re evaluating the leadership aspect. I know that with his natural abilities as a person and as a hockey player, he will be in the conversations,” Vincent said.
“He’s a player that I really enjoyed watching play, from the outside. But there, inside, I’m going to get to know him. We’ll see,” added the new Rocket head coach, who replaced Jean-François Houle.
According to defenceman William Trudeau, the Rocket has several players capable of showing leadership.
“There are a lot of new guys arriving, who have been leaders in other teams, too. When they are more comfortable in the locker room, they will do their part too.”
Whether he is named captain, assistant captain or given no such role, Gignac hopes his fourth season in a Laval uniform will start differently than the previous three.
“In all three years, we have never had a great start to the season, and that’s always when we have trouble making the playoffs,” he said.
“This year, from Day 1, we’re going to make it clear that it’s going to be extremely important to win as many games as possible at the beginning. That way, at the end, if we need to bench players, rest them for the end, we’ll arrive in the playoffs much fresher and more ready.”
The Rocket had a particularly difficult start to last season, with only five points after 10 games (2-7-1).
Then, between Nov. 17 and Dec. 8, the Rocket lost nine consecutive games, including five in regulation, bringing their overall record to 5-12-5 for a meagre total of 15 points in 22 games.
Ultimately, the Rocket finished in seventh and last place in the North Division (33-31-8, 74 points), six points behind the Toronto Marlies.
“We definitely don’t want to be in the same position as last year. We don’t want to start like last year,” Trudeau said.
“We’re going to have to be ready to go from the first game and know what our job is.”