Xavier Simono: The Canadian will not regret

Quebec striker Xavier Simonneau has done well in the Canadian rookie camp, so he will be taking part in the real Montreal training camp that begins on Wednesday.

It’s a great move for the 21-year-old skater, who was selected in the sixth round by the Habs in the 2021 draft. For Voltigeurs de Drummondville general manager Philip Boucher, who knows him well, it’s a well-deserved call. Because he’s 5’6′ (According to the list of Canadians), Simono often had to go to great lengths to convince the hockey world of his worth.

“Xavier deserves to be there, he’s a great captain, a guy who did everything to play hockey,” Boucher told JC on Tuesday.

“We questioned him because he was a dwarf, so young, that too, that too, but he was so good for us with the Voltigeurs, he was so good in Charlottetown, a team that made it to the final,” he added.

One thing is for sure, those who know Simono well tend not to doubt him.

“He’s a guy (former CH coach) Dominique Ducharme wanted to bring in, he worked hard for two years to be recruited by the Montreal Canadiens, Boucher revealed. He was finally drafted at 19 and the Canadian won’t regret it.

However, Boucher cautioned that Simoneau is not necessarily at the gates of the NHL despite excellent training at the junior level.

“Will we see him wearing the blue, white and red uniforms in the National League in the short, medium or long term, I don’t know,” he admitted. But one thing is for sure, he will do everything in his power to be a good hockey player, stay at Laval, influence the team and help the youth there, and continue his progression towards the National League. “

There was also talk, during Boucher’s intervention, of Sean Couturier being injured with the Flyers, as well as the retirements of Zdeno Chara, BK Suban and Keith Yandel, which were announced Tuesday at the start of the day.

Watch the full conversation in the main video.