It is well known, to advance in hockey it is often thanks to who you know. Adrien Lemay knows a lot about this and has done so for several years now. He can even cite himself as an example for at least two very specific cases.
Thanks to his network of contacts, the goaltending coach of the Acadie-Bathurst Titan and the Aigles Bleus of the Université de Moncton has just been invited to the development camp of the Detroit Red Wings which will take place from 10 to July 14 at the Belfor Training Center.
According to Lemay, it was his friendship with Frantz Jean, the Tampa Bay Lightning’s goaltending coach, that allowed him to develop a bond with Red Wings head of recruiting and goaltending development Phil Osaer. It must be said that Osaer was already intrigued by Lemay’s work with the team’s young prospect, Jan Bednar, of the Titan.
“Phil started talking to me about the possibility of inviting me to development camp in December. But it was only last week that he called me to confirm everything. He thinks I did a good job in developing Jan. This invitation is a good opportunity for me.”
“What helped me a lot is that Phil Osaer is a good friend of Frantz, who he worked with a few years ago at the Tampa Bay Lightning. Frantz is so generous. I remember he called to tell me that he was going to be in Detroit and that he intended to speak well of me to Phil. It sure helped me. I know that without Frantz I would probably not have received this invitation”, says Lemay.
“I owe him a beer or two,” adds Lemay with a laugh.
The fact remains that the work of the Acadian with Jan Bednar certainly did not harm. The big Czech, who the Red Wings drafted in the fourth round in 2020 (107th overall), has been solid this season with the Titan. He posted a 2.72 goals-against average and a .912 save percentage. His 28 victories were second only to the 29 of Thomas Couture of the Saint-Jean Sea Dogs. He also represented his country at the World Junior Championship.
“Jan has improved a lot over the past season. Since returning from training camp with the Red Wings last fall, he has been the hardest worker of any Titan player. This is an aspect that he has greatly improved. He’s the most professional guy in his way of doing things that I’ve seen in the major junior,” says Adrien Lemay.
What are his goals with the Red Wings development camp?
“I’m going there with three things in mind. First, I want to make sure I’m on the same page as everyone else on the development of Jan, who I should probably see again as a 20 next season in Bathurst. Second, I want to take this chance to learn more. I’m going to be a real sponge. And finally, I want to improve my contact bank even more. It’s fine to be good and hardworking, hockey is also a matter of contacts,” he said.
“For example, I had the chance to know Judes (Vallée) who is a good friend of Mario Durocher. Without my friendship with Judes, I would never have had the job in Bathurst”, underlines the Dieppois.
A little anecdote at the end.
Adrien Lemay founded four years ago, with his good friend Mathieu Martin, the Atlantic Sport-Arts-Studies Academy. It is also his main livelihood.
Well do you know who was his first goalkeeper at the Academy?
Samuel LeBlanc, the doorman of the Moncton Flyers who have just won the Telus Cup, emblem of men’s hockey under the age of 18 in Canada.
“I’m so proud of Sam. We only had one goalie in the first year of the Academy and that was him. It’s quite a feat that he has just accomplished by winning the Telus Cup. He’s a real big-time player and he should, in my opinion, play in the QMJHL next season,” said Adrien Lemay.