Mathis Rousseau’s Calmness, Consistency Provides Net Gains for Canada

By Will MacLaren

Team Canada enters this year’s World Junior Hockey Championships in Gothenburg, Sweden as one of the tournament favorites. Not a shocker. What is head turning, however, is the almost complete roster turnover the squad has undergone. In these situations, trust and calming influences become more critical than ever. Fortunately, there’s a guy between the pipes for the Canadians who offers up those necessities in spades.

Mathis Rousseau is no stranger to a few things. For example, being told that, at 5’11”, he’s too small. Or going undrafted in the NHL. And, more importantly, ignoring all of this in favor of winning and being arguably the most consistent netminders in junior hockey today. It’s something Halifax Mooseheads Goaltending Coach, Joey Perricone, has been amazed with since his pupil arrived in training camp for the first time in 2020.

“He’s always had that calm, confident demeanor,” Perricone explains. He’s elite mentally and reads the game really well. He’s not the type of guy who, from the first time you see, you say “Wow, this guy is massive and moves so well”. He’s just got a very good presence. He’s quick and smooth but isn’t crazy explosive. And he’s never in trouble.”

In fact, most of the trouble surrounding Rousseau has stemmed from frustrated shooters. In 102 regular season appearances to this point, the 19-year-old from Boisbriand, Quebec, sits with precisely 40 more wins (69) than losses (29). This year, he sits at or near the top among all netminders in GAA (2.07), save percentage (.934%), wins (16) and shutouts (3). That’s after notching 14 wins in the Mooseheads’ march to a QMJHL Final appearance last spring.

His new Head Coach, Jim Midgley, who spent the previous two seasons as an Assistant Coach with the New York Rangers, has already made a strong comparison in praise of his number one netminder.

“I’ve said to a lot of people, he reminds me a lot of (Igor) Shesterkin, not only in the way he plays but the way he’s calm, cool and collected,” Midgley says. “He doesn’t get too high or low and he wants to be in the net all the time. His ability to compete is extremely high.”

Perricone has been with Rousseau’s development over the past three seasons. However, it’s an underlying product of both his play and his demeanour that still leaves him shaking his head after all this time.

“It’s his ability to do it all the time,” Perricone says with amazement. “Some goalies can make the big saves one night and then look like they’ve never played the position the next night. Mathis just doesn’t miss. Every game, he’s so smooth.”

So, what about the knocks on his size? Or his lack of success in the NHL Draft? Does it come up when discussing Rousseau as a team in Halifax?

“He’s very boxy in net,” Perricone points out. “Maybe he doesn’t have the height and guys could pick the corner on him when he’s down but he has elite level hands so it’s not an issue. We’ve never had a situation, as coaches, where we say “we have to make adjustments here” and we’ve never had a conversation about his height.”

Mooseheads’ Assistant GM Allie MacDonald was part of the group that brought Rousseau to Halifax via the 2020 QMJHL Draft. He refers to comments made at that time, as well as a key save made against Team Finland in the tournament opener, when discussing the star netminder.

“If he was 6’4”, he probably wouldn’t be playing at our level right now,” MacDonald explains. “In his (QMJHL) Draft year, he was considered the best goaltender below 6’4”. He proved that right away with us. His mental approach is something you don’t see very often. And he wants that net. Even as a raw rookie, he was looking for more time in net.”

“His skill at reading plays is remarkable,” MacDonald goes on to say. “He didn’t cheat to make that save (against Finland) but he was ready for the pass. He’s focused and sees exactly what’s going on in front of him.”

The results speak for itself. And there have been plenty of them. But all that has been seen by those who follow the ‘Q’ the past few seasons and what the country has witnessed the past few weeks can best be distilled into these words by Perricone.

“He makes everyone around him calmer,” he concludes. “We know he knows what he’s doing.”

Words that are music to a nation’s ears as the quest for a three-peat rolls along.