Grouchy ready for big year with Isles
Labrador City native hopes to be a go-to player for QMJHL team; 12 Newfoundlanders on Q rosters to start the season
It’s a big year for Charlottetown Islanders centre Matthew Grouchy, and he knows it.
“It’s a good opportunity to show the team and the scouts that I can play in this league and hopefully make an impact,” said the Labrador City native.
Grouchy, 18, is into his second full Quebec Major Junior Hockey League season with the Islanders.
The 18-year-old year is typically an NHL draft year for a player, but Grouchy has the added weight of being one of the revamped Islanders’ go-to players following the departure of several veterans this year, including snipers Daniel Sprong and Filip Chlapik, who are turning pro this season in the Pittsburgh Penguins and Ottawa Senators organizations.
Grouchy knows as his ice time goes up, so do the expectations, so he’s relying on the solid formula he concocted last season with linemates Pascal Aquin and Keith Getson to live up to those heights.
“We have a really good chemistry and (hopefully) be a good year for us. We have to step up to the plate,” he said.
Former Islander general manager Grant Sonier selected Grouchy in the sixth round (101st overall) of the 2015 QMJHL draft.
Grouchy came to training camp that year, but left to maintain his NCAA eligibility.
He returned last season, committed to the Isles and had a solid year with 11 goals, 28 points and finishing plus-16 in 62 games.
He added three points in 12 playoff games.
This season, Isles head coach Jim Hulton expects a jump in the 6-1, 189-pound Grouchy’s play because he’s bigger, stronger and more confident after a full season in the Q.
“Matthew has shown a lot of maturity as a player and a person on and off the ice. His play is exactly what we expected,” said Hulton, who doubles as Isles GM. “He’s a little heavier, but he’s a work in progress because of his body type. His confidence is high and when you’re confident you play faster and think faster because you’re sure of yourself.”
The Islanders opened a new season last weekend with a pair of games at home. They lost 3-1 to the Moncton Wildcats on the season-opener Friday night, and 3-2 to the Halifax Mooseheads the next evening.
Grouchy, who left home at 13 to pursue the NHL dream, started the chase at the Canadian International Hockey Academy in Ottawa, playing under current Isles associate coach Guy Girouard.
That dream is a bit closer now, and Grouchy can see the possibilities
this year might bring.
“I doesn’t seem real. It’s surreal. I’m trying to get the opportunity to get invited to a combine, or get drafted by an NHL team,” he said. “With the coaching staff helping me here and my agent (working for me), I think they can help get me in the right direction.”