Wildcats' goalie draws interest of NHL club
Published Thursday August 14th, 2008
Nicola Riopel invited to Montreal Canadiens' rookie camp
After being passed over in two National Hockey League drafts, Moncton Wildcats goaltender Nicola Riopel has finally received his big break.
The Montreal Canadiens have invited him to their rookie camp, which begins on Sept. 15. He will be with Moncton for its first two games of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League regular season on Sept. 12-13 and then head to Montreal for an undetermined period of time.
"The rookie camp is four days and I'm sure it's going to be a great experience,'' said Riopel. "I'm really excited about this opportunity. You never know, if things go really well for me there I might get invited to their main NHL camp.
"Right now, I'm focused on making sure I'm ready for Wildcats camp (which begins on Aug. 29 at the Tim Hortons 4-Ice Centre). I want to get off to a strong start there and carry that over to the Canadiens rookie camp.''
Riopel, 19, is preparing for his third QMJHL season. He posted a 3.04 goals-against average, .910 save percentage and 15-29 record last season, solid stats considering Moncton was a last-place club that missed the playoffs.
He caught the eye of Montreal goaltending coach Rollie Melanson, a Shediac native, this summer. It kind of happened by accident.
"I had Nicola at my Pro Tek Hockey goalie school in Montreal in early July to work as a guest instructor,'' said Wildcats goaltending coach Frantz Bergevin-Jean. "Rollie Melanson was also there as a coach.
"One day I asked Nicola to put on his full gear to be a demonstrator for the kids. He took a lot of shots and Rollie was impressed with him in terms of his speed and work ethic. Rollie talked to (Montreal director of player development) Trevor Timmins about him and they invited him to the Canadiens' development camp in July.
"Nicola did very well at their development camp and got invited back for their rookie camp in September. It's a great break for him to get that exposure and just to have a crack at it. It's great for him to go to a pro camp, see what it's like and see where he is in his development.''
Saint John Sea Dogs goaltender Robert Mayer also attended Montreal's development camp on a free agent invitation.
Riopel, a first-round pick in the 2005 QMJHL draft, played for Team Quebec when it captured the gold medal at the 2006 World Under-17 Hockey Championship. He also suited up for Team QMJHL in the 2007 ADT Canada-Russia Challenge.
"It's a long time that I've been waiting for something to happen,'' he said. "I went through two NHL drafts and then didn't receive any phone calls afterward to offer a free agent invitation to training camp. It was good for my confidence to go Montreal's development camp and get invited to their rookie camp.
"It gives me even more motivation to keep working hard in my training. I really wanted to go to a pro camp to see where I am in my development. They told me they were impressed with how I did in development camp so that was good for my confidence.''
The Wildcats goaltending coach believes that Riopel is finally getting some due recognition.
"I think it's a great confidence booster for him, but at the same time it's a result of his hard work,'' said Bergevin-Jean. "He's a hard worker, a real keener in his training. He dealt with the disappointment of not being picked in two NHL drafts, kept his focus and now he's being rewarded for it.''
More Sports
Search Articles
More CE Network Sites & Partners:
