AKWESASNE, ONT. – The mission statement of the single-A Federal Hockey League includes the idea that player development in order to advance up the level ladder is among the most important concepts. One of the unwritten missions for each team is to build a successful franchise on the ice through winning.
The Akwesasne Warriors have established themselves as the team to beat in the FHL, having raced to first place and staying at or near the top for much of the league’s inaugural season. The right combination of the desire to win, style of play and goaltending ability have contributed to the team’s success.
Owner/Team President Basem Awwad and Head Coach Angelo Sanseverino believe that there is much more to where the Warriors are today. They are in agreement that experience and leadership, specifically the veteran presence on the roster, have been just as if not more important to the team’s quick start.
“One of the reasons we’re so successful is just because of all the experience that we have in the room,” Sanseverino said.
As the season started, Akwesasne had a roster peppered with tested veterans including former NHL right winger Pierre Dagenais. Currently, the Warriors’
Akwesasne forward Pierre Dagenais (PHN photo by Wendy Hull)
“I think we have the talent for sure,” Awwad said. “It probably helps a lot when you have a guy like Pierre Dagenais who is a proven scorer in the NHL.”
Dagenais’ early success in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League led him to being drafted in the second round of the 1996 NHL Entry Draft. Following three years with the Albany River Rats in the AHL, Dagenais made his NHL debut with the New Jersey Devils during the 2000-2001 season. He would bounce up and down between the AHL and NHL over the next four seasons with stops in Albany, Utah, San Antonio and Hamilton in the “A” and New Jersey, Florida and Montreal in the NHL.
When the 2004-2005 season was lost to a lockout, Dagenais followed many other NHLers to Europe to play. After the lockout, he returned to Montreal for the 2005-2006 campaign and once again split time between the Canadiens and Hamilton. In all, he played 82 games for the Habs, scoring 22 goals and adding 17 assists. He then went back across the Atlantic, spending five more seasons in leagues in Finland, Austria and Russia where the wide-open style of play was more to his liking.
“As a professional for 12 years, I went up and down in the AHL for over eight years. I was in the NHL for four years,” Dagenais said. “I made that decision to go there (Eurasia) to have fun and play the game.”
Late last summer, Dagenais made a decision to not return to the KHL’s Traktor Chelyabinsk team. After two years of playing for the team located in the Ural Mountains between Europe and Asia, he said it was not an ideal situation for him because he had to leave his wife and two children in Canada. While his choice meant that he would be there for his family, it also meant that he would be without a job.
“First, I didn’t accept to go (to) Russia because my daughter started school. That’s the main thing because I left last year without them for a couple of months and that was very tough for me,” he said. “In the end it was too late to find a job.”
So Dagenais found himself wanting to head back overseas but needing a way to stay in game shape until the opportunity came along. There were offers from teams in the double-A Quebec senior leagues to consider. Then the FHL and the Warriors came along. For Dagenais, it was the perfect fit because if he played at Akwesasne, he could stay in shape and be close to his family in Blainville, Quebec.
“I went there because I wanted to stay in good shape. I wanted to help. It was close to my house,” Dagenais said.
It also helped that Dagenais knew someone on the Warriors’ roster. Patrick Deraspe had played summer pick-up hockey with Dagenais. He was the one who told Dagenais about the Warriors and suggested he call Basem Awwad about playing. Awwad offered a deal that gave Dagenais flexibility and the player offered his considerable talents that instantly gave the Warriors and the FHL respect.
The simple fact that Dagenais was willing to play for the Warriors was a very pleasant surprise for Awwad.
“Somehow, some way, by luck he ended up playing for us in the FHL. It was a big surprise that he was interested in playing for us,” Awwad said. “He’s a natural scorer. If you’ve watched any games he’s played in, he can shoot that puck.”
Dagenais’ time in the FHL was short. He stayed for 23 games before leaving in late December for Norway and the Valerenga Ishockey team. While he wore a Warriors’ uniform, he tallied 26 goals and 28 assists for 54 points. All of those numbers were at the time league-leading stats. It took nearly two weeks after Dagenais left for the points total to be surpassed by Rome’s Tibor Varga and until January 16th for Alex Goupil of the Thousand Islands Privateers to eclipse Dagenais’ goal mark.
Even though he is in Europe, Dagenais’ impact on the Warriors is still being felt in the Warriors’ locker room. One of the first things that the former NHLer wanted known was that he was just one of the guys, one of 18 guys.
“Pierre is a very good player but he is not the Akwesasne Warriors. Nine forwards, six defensemen and two goalies – that’s the Akwesasne Warriors,” Sanseverino said. “He didn’t want to be the show. He didn’t want to be the center of attraction. He didn’t want that. He wanted to be respected, no difference between any other player. He’s was just a hockey player whenever he was on the ice.”
Dagenais used his extensive experience to assist Sanseverino, working with the younger players on the finer points of their positions. He taught them how to anticipate where the puck was heading instead of where it had been as well as how to focus on their individual roles and how they all fit together.
Awwad said that the younger players looked up to Dagenais both as a mentor and as a teammate.
“Having him was such an asset for the other players on the team. There’s probably a good six or seven guys who looked up to him, listened to everything he said and followed everything he did. A lot of the guys were really excited about coming out to the rink every night because they knew Pierre Dagenais was on the team,” Awwad said. “He set aside time with each and every one of them to explain to them what it takes to be a professional hockey player. I think it was inspiring to the younger guys.”
Dagenais was quick to note that he was not the only experienced player of the team and that experience would continue to set the tone on the ice even after he left. He said that the continuity of leadership would continue to foster a winning attitude and stand the Warriors in good stead come playoff time.
Sanseverino agreed with Dagenais, noting that the willingness of the veterans to teach and the younger players to learn would continue long after Dagenais’ last shift.
“I know it’s a developmental league but there are players who can teach other players. There are many, many leaders on this team. That’s why we are so successful,” he said. “Everybody is having fun (playing hockey together. That’s how the guys are going to win without Pierre Dagenais.”
With Dagenais’ help, the Akwesasne Warriors have established themselves as a force in the FHL through skill, hard work, experience and leadership. As they head for the post season, the lessons learned from Pierre Dagenais continue to motivate and push the players to excel with the goal of an FHL championship within reach.
And if that league title comes to fruition, Dagenais might just have to consider a coaching career in his future.
Contact the author at wendy.hull@prohockeynews.com
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