Samuel Girard: Working to Surprise
The defenseman admits that initial NHL scouting rankings hit him hard
SHAWINIGAN – With 67 points in 65 games, Samuel Girard, only 17, dominates the stats as one of the best scorers among QMJHL defencemen – 8 more points than his nearest rival. Looking at the national level, this small d-man from Roberval sits in 4th spot overall, behind 3 WHL players. These are impressive stats to be taking into the coming NHL draft that will be held in Buffalo this coming June.
‘A year of experience has made a big difference… but still, I didn’t think I was going to have this good of a season. To find myself among the national leaders, that was beyond my hopes. Still, I worked non-stop last summer, and that work is bearing fruit,’ he explained, smiling.
In fact, you have to go back as far as the 1995 season to find a defenceman under the age of 18 that has a better point per-match average. That year, the Toronto Maple Leafs’ Stéphane Robidas, then with the Shawinigan Cataractes, had an average of 1.17 points per game.
Up to now, Girard has 1.03 points per match.
‘It’s a great achievement for me. It’s my job to contribute offensively; but I have to give a lot of credit to my teammates. Whether its on the power play or 5 on 5, I’m lucky to be playing with some excellent players who score a tonne of goals,’ emphasized the defenceman who is drawing the attention of NHL scouts.
In its preliminary rankings, the NHL’s central scouting listed Girard as a hopeful who would probably go somewhere between the 4th and 6th rounds of the draft. It was an evaluation that surprised a lot of people who had seen the small defenceman play, and who knew his mobility and game sense.
‘Sure it bothered me a little when I saw that…to see myself so far down the list. I told myself, there is no way to go but up, so that became a source of motivation.’
An Offensive Awakening
After a few worrying stretches, one of which cost the head coach, Martin Bernard, his job, the Cataractes would seem to be back on the right track. On Wednesday, they thrashed the Rimouski Océanic 7-1 before prevailing over the powerful Val-d’Or Foreurs on Saturday.
‘Our problem, is that we’ve only played 20 or 40 minutes out of 60, since the start of the season. Wednesday, for once, we played a complete game. And the payoff was there.’
Girard admits it was hard to see Martin Bernard go, but recognizes the fresh air ushered in with Claude Bouchard.
‘They’re two very different coaches. Claude is really active behind the bench and keeps us paying attention during the whole game. He has us playing hard and we need that. We’ve heard talk that certain teams hope to meet us in the playoffs, because we’re known has a team that doesn’t work hard. It’s insulting. Wednesday, we proved that we can do it…and we’re going to work just as hard for the rest of the season,’ he promised.
Translation: Richard Dumas
