“Chemistry on the ice isn’t forced. You can’t just decide that players are going to work well together. It happens naturally, and when you see players working well together, playing smart, and reading the ice well, that’s all you can ask for as a coach,” says Joe Young, head coach of the St. Paul Canadiens.
Young has led his through a phenomenal season so far. There are plenty of crucial aspects that make up a team as successful as the Canadiens, who are 22-3-1 in the 2016-17 season, and it can be difficult to single out what makes a team effective. But Young isn’t afraid to speak highly of two specific players that make up a large part of the Canadiens’ winning ways.
Zach Bendall and Brayden Goulet are both new to the Canadiens this year. Bendall began his hockey career in Athabasca, and has since played hockey in Morinville and Fort Saskatchewan. Goulet, on the other hand, is from a bit closer to home. Born and raised in Bonnyville, he played hockey there and in Cold Lake.
The two forwards ended up on the same team in Lloydminster, where they saw tremendous success last year. They led their team to regional and provincial titles before heading off to compete at a national level.
“Playing in nationals, it was a really good learning opportunity,” says Bendall. “It was awesome to be around a winning atmosphere last year, and it has helped me to want to win more and expect to win more.”
Goulet agrees with Bendall, stating that his time at nationals in New Brunswick, “was incredible. We got to see other parts of the country that not everyone gets to see, and we got to play with, and against, some of the very best players our age.”
The duo, who are also linemates on the Canadiens, have brought that experience and winning attitude to St. Paul. Once you get that winning feeling going, you are never satisfied whether you win or lose,” said Bendall. “You always want to be able to feel yourself improving, and that’s something that we’ve both tried to do since we came here.”
But just how valuable is the pair of rookies to the Canadiens? Invaluable. Bendall is currently leading the St. Paul Jr. B team in assists (20), points (31), and game-winning goals (3). He is third on the Canadiens in terms of goals, with 10 to his name. Goulet is just ahead of Bendall on the goal sheet with 12. He is second in points (25), and also has 13 assists this season.
“You don’t see too many first year guys be as dominant as they are in this league,” said Young. “They’re especially valuable on our special teams, performing exceptionally well on the power play and on the penalty kill. They seem to know where each other are at all times on the ice, and that’s a huge benefit.”
One of the most impressive aspects of the Canadiens’ game this season has been their ability to quickly change the pace and tone of a game to suit their needs. Coach Young says that he often relies on Bendall and Goulet to do this very thing.
“I consider them leaders, both on and off the ice. You can turn a shift around they sending those guys out onto the ice. They pump up the rest of the team by working hard, getting pucks deep, and making plays. It may not always be a goal that changes the pace of the game, but you know that when they need to help out that they are going to deliver.”
Goulet’s mindset may be one of the reasons that he and Bendall are so effective in this role.
“We both have always been energy-building kind of guys. Every shift you have to be bringing something positive. If you’re not scoring, you’ve gotta do what you can to get into a position to help your team. Whether that’s on offense and defense, you’ve gotta always be helping your team.”
Whatever Bendall and Goulet are doing, it definitely seems to be working for them, and for the team. “We have high hopes for the rest of the reason,” said Bendall. “We’re in a great position to be able to win the season, which is what we really want.”
Goulet agrees, but takes it even further.
“We have a provincial berth already since we’ll be hosting, but we definitely want to prove that we belong there and ideally win there, too. Before that, though, Bendall’s right. We definitely want to pick up our game and win the league, that’s what everyone in the room is focused on now.
The Canadiens are poised to do just that. They are currently second in the league, sitting five points back on league leader Wainwright. And with two games in hand on the Bisons, St. Paul’s work ethic and determination, combined with the skill of Bendall and Goulet, might just be enough to take them all the way.
