Draft ‘steal’ Gaudette paying off
2015 fifth-rounder trades on work ethic as he secures third-line role on Canucks
Adam Gaudette commanded one short summation as a fifth-round selection in the 2015 NHL entry draft.
In a whirlwind weekend for the Vancouver Canucks, landing a prized prospect in Brock Boeser was tempered by the failure to recover a second-round pick in the Sven Baertschi trade acquisition.
That made headlines, not a tall and slight centre from the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders of the USHL. He wasn’t the story. He was a footnote.
Boeser was taken 23rd overall, became front-page news and would evolve into a Calder Trophy finalist. However, the Canucks tried in vain to add a second-round pick. The San Jose Sharks were dangling a 2016 second-rounder in a potential Kevin Bieksa swap. Not the 39th overall pick in 2015.
The Canucks could land only a third-round 2015 pick — which became Guillaume Brisebois — and a seventh-rounder in 2016 from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for expendable goalie Eddie Lack. The Flames took defencemen Rasmus Andersson with the Baertschi pick (53rd) and the Canucks didn’t have a shot at coveted blue-liners Brandon Carlo (37th) or Oliver Kylington (60th).
And through all of that, Gaudette was labelled “the steal of the draft” by exuberant NHL television analyst Pierre McGuire.
“I don’t know if he was just saying that because he’s good friends with coach (Jim) Madigan from Northeastern, or that we met a couple of times — but I did see that,” Gaudette recalled with a chuckle Tuesday from Goshen, N.Y., where he and his fiancée are riding out the paused NHL season.
“It was great to hear because I was somebody who nobody really knew coming up and worked my way into the scene. And it was good to hear it from somebody of that stature because it gives you more confidence to get better.
“To have somebody rooting for you, you want to prove him right and prove everyone else wrong.”
Gaudette expected to go in the fifth round, but to the Chicago Blackhawks.
“We had a lot of talks and contact with them and I was their pick before the Canucks drafted me. Gaudette went 149th and the Blackhawks selected Slovakian winger Radovan Bondra two selections later. He has yet to play an NHL game and was in Slovakia this season.
That fifth round also yielded Connor Garland (123rd) of the Arizona Coyotes, Ethan Bear (124th) of the Edmonton Oilers, Christian Jaros (139th) of the Ottawa Senators and Rudolph Balcers (142nd) of the San Jose Sharks, who was later traded to the Senators.
As for the Canucks, fast-forward a bit and, in Gaudette, they have their third-line centre for the foreseeable future.
Gaudette parlayed a strong pre-season into a roster spot last fall. And while he played only three of the first 12 games, injuries to Brandon Sutter and Jay Beagle allowed him to stay in the centre-ice mix and then remain a roster fixture based on merit.
Gaudette’s 33 points (12-21) in 59 games were based largely on a willingness to play and stay in the tough areas as much as releasing an underrated wrist shot.
“I always want more and I’m never really satisfied with points or playing time,” added Gaudette, a restricted free agent who was only eighth among club forwards in shots but owned the third-best shooting percentage. “I want to be a guy who can be relied on, and that motivates me.
“I made the team out of camp and a lot of people didn’t think I would. But I can do more as my body matures and things come a little easier.
“I’ve kind of solidified my spot and feel comfortable that good things will happen.”
A snapshot of his season came during a 4-3 overtime win in Montreal on Feb. 25.
He started the scoring sequence on the tying goal for his first of two assists, but the most impressive aspect of his second helper was how Gaudette battled down low to set a screen. It allowed an Alex Edler wrist shot from the point to go through a maze of players and beat a startled Carey Price to the glove side.
On Feb. 22 in a 9-3 rout of the Boston Bruins, the Hobey Baker Award winner of 2018 — for being the top NCAA Division 1 player — showed another side. His quick release in tight quarters off a Quinn Hughes feed found the top corner to trigger one of his wild goal celebrations.
“That’s always been my game — 100 per cent every shift — and it got me to where I am,” said Gaudette, a 23-year-old Braintree, Mass. native. “If I don’t sell out, I’m not going to be an efficient and productive player — which kind of sucks.
"I wish I could buzz around like Sidney Crosby with that skating ability and not have to work my ass off just to keep up.
“My a-ha moment was this season. I can play. I can put up points and put up more points each year. But I have to get stronger and faster to do that because I have things to work on.
“But it’s easy for me. If I put in the work I have nothing to worry about.”