GRANBY, Québec – The Sherbrooke Saint-François is engaged in a wild race for first place in the Ligue nord-américaine de hockey. But coach Éric Dandenault thinks his team is now as good as any other in front of the net.
A couple of weeks ago, Sherbrooke signed goaltender Maxime Daigneault after a trade with the Saint-Georges CRS Express, who had the rights on him. Daigneault, 25, said Sherbrooke was the only place he wanted to play in the LNAH.
An all-star goaltender with Val-d’Or in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, Daigneault was drafted in the second round by the Washington Capitals in 2002. He played in the ECHL and in the American Hockey League but never fulfilled his dream to play in the National Hockey League.
Daigneault has not had a contract since the end of last season. He agreed to the Sherbrooke offer after he was unsuccessful finding a position with either an American minor pro hockey club and or overseas in Europe.
“People are excepting a lot from Maxime because he has a very interesting resume”, said Éric Dandeneault in La Tribune daily paper. “But we don’t live in the past here and we’ll see what he’s going to give to us.”
Daigneault had his first start in the Sherbrooke uniform last Friday. He stopped 23 shots in a 4-3 Saint-François overtime win over last place Pont-Rouge.
But Daigneault, said coach Dandenault, will have to earn his ice time. Louis Ménard, who was the winning goaltender in eight of Sherbrooke’s first 13 victories, did nothing but a good job since the beginning of the season.
“The best one will take the net”, said Dandenault.
Saturday, with Ménard between the pipes, Sherbrooke lost 5-1 in Saguenay.
“I’m happy with my performances so far the season”, said Ménard, who played for Rochester Institute of Technology in the NCAA for three years. “Maxime has quite a reputation and I see this as a great challenge for me. Bottom line, he wants the net, I want it too, so it’s going to be great for the club.”
Goaltending is the name of the game in the LNAH and team owners are spending big bucks on those positions. Number one goaltenders Frédéric Deschênes (Saint-Georges), Olivier Michaud (Thetford Mines), Loïc Lacasse (Rivière-du-Loup) and Luc Bélanger (Pont-Rouge) all have some American League experience.
Now let’s see how far the Daigneault-Ménard duet can bring the Sherbrooke Saint-François.
NOTES: At the Christmas break, Trois-Rivières and Saint-Georges are tied for first place with 33 points. Sherbrooke, with 31, and Saguenay, with 30, follow… Saint-Georges’ coach Carl Fleury is surprised to see his team at the top of the standing after 25 of the 44 games schedule. “I could never imagine this when the season began”, he said. “For sure, it will be some nice Holidays!”… Tough guy and defenceman Joël Thériault, maybe the most popular player in the history of the LNAH, is training with the Pont-Rouge Lois Jeans and should play his first game in January. Thériault, who once spent 515 minutes in the penalty box in 39 games, has played previously in Saint-Laurent, Verdun, Saint-Georges and Saint-Hyacinthe.
Contact Michel.Tasse@prohockeynews.com
