SEAMLESS TRANSITION
Lukas Cormier showing skill, poise that belies his birth certificate
Lukas Cormier showing skill, poise that belie his age.
Lukas Cormier has proven he belongs.
The 16-year-old Sainte-Mariede-Kent, N.B., native earned his spot on the Charlottetown Islanders out of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League team’s training camp and is now skating alongside No. 1 defenceman Pierre-Olivier (P.O.) Joseph.
“It’s where I’ve wanted to play since I was young,” Cormier said before Tuesday’s practice. “It was a dream for me to play in the Q.”
He said his new partner has provided him with tips as he breaks into junior hockey.
“P.O. has been helping me a lot,” he said. “He’s a very good player and hopefully I can end up being like him, getting drafted to the NHL very high.”
Joseph, a first-round pick of the Arizona Coyotes in 2017, said he was speechless when he returned from NHL camp to see Cormier on the ice.
“He’s an unbelievable defenceman,” he said. “I was just so happy we drafted a good player like him. . . The way he skates, the way he moves, the way he thinks, the way he is as a hockey player and a person. . . He has a great future in front of him.”
Cormier had a great season with the Moncton Flyers major midget team a year ago and helped the squad make the Telus Cup national championship. It was during his time with the Flyers that Cormier came on the Islanders radar.
Head coach and general manager Jim Hulton said Cormier really stood out at the Monctonian all-star game about a year ago.
“He just seemed to do what he wanted to do out there offensively. The mobility and all the things we’re seeing (now) really jumped to the forefront.”
The team also had some intel as its New Brunswick scout Robert Bourque’s son played with Cormier. The team did its homework on the youngster and received rave reviews about him as a person.
As the Islanders prepared for the draft, they had Cormier earmarked
if he was available at No. 4. It received trade offers but the team had set the bar high – first-round picks in 2018 and 2019 and a second in 2018 – knowing what they could have the chance to select. The team really was only going to move the pick if Cormier went in the topthree selections.
“We had him rated as our No. 1 defenceman probably from January on, so there was no way we were going to walk away from that,” Hulton said. “We’re pretty happy in hindsight we stuck with the pick.”
Cormier had met with the Islanders in advance of the draft
and was excited after the first three players were selected.
“I had a good feeling for the Islanders and I was really happy when they drafted me,” he said. “When I heard my name, it was an unreal feeling that I’ll never forget. All the family was there supporting me. It was a fun day.”
He worked hard in the off-season both in the gym and on the ice to be ready for mid-August when camp opened.
Hulton said he came as advertised and possibly even better.
“His compete level is probably even higher than we appreciated,” he said.
The five-foot-eight, 160-pound defenceman uses his speed and positioning to his advantage while often giving up size and experience to his opponents.
“We’ve seen him win some foot races against 19-year-olds. He has a very, very good stick. He’s very smart already at not trying to play a big man’s game,” Hulton said, noting he isn’t afraid to go to the tough areas of the rink to play the puck. “He seems to know his feet are such a good weapon not to engage physically if he doesn’t have to.”
Cormier and the Islanders are in Bathurst, N.B., tonight to play the Titan before playing two
games with the Saint John Sea Dogs Friday and Sunday. Then he will leave for Saint John and Quispamsis, N.B., for the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge.
“The focus is still here for the next week. I’m going to do the best I can for the team and then I’m going to shift my focus to Team Canada after the next three games,” Cormier said. “It’s going to be an honour for me to represent my country, a dream I’ve had since I was young.”
“I had a good feeling for the Islanders and I was really happy when they drafted me. When I heard my name, it was an unreal feeling that I’ll never forget. All the family was there supporting me. It was a fun day.”
Charlottetown Islanders’ Luke Cormier