McGill’s Marc-André Dorion wins Guy Lafleur Trophy

May. 27, 2009

MONTREAL – The Montreal Canadiens and Molson’s Brewery announced Wednesday that Marc-André Dorion, a defenceman with the McGill University Redmen, has won the Guy Lafleur trophy as the Quebec university player who best combines hockey with academic success. The award is accompanied by a $6,000 bursary over three years.

Dorion, a 22-year-old native of St. Hubert, Que., becomes the 13th McGill player in 25 years to win the award – which is accompanied by a $6,000 bursary over three years – since it was inaugurated in 1985. Among the former Redmen who have won the honour was Guy Boucher, who recently coached Drummondville to the QMJHL championship, and Mathieu Darche, who skated for Portland in the American Hockey league this season after playing in the NHL last year with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Dorion was recruited out of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, where he played five seasons for Acadie-Bathurst (2003-2006) and Baie Comeau (2006-2008). He was a QMJHL all-star and earned a tryout to the Dallas Stars rookie camp before joining the Redmen last fall.

On the ice, the 5-foot-11, 184-pound rearguard scored five goals and 28 points in 39 games overall with McGill last year. In regular season play, he merited OUA All-Rookie team honours and posted a 1-17-18 record in 27 contests, the third-highest scoring defenceman among rookies in the 18-team OUA hockey league.

In the classroom, Dorion achieved Academic All-Canadian honours in addition to making the Principal’s Student-athlete Honour Roll. The physical & health education freshman achieved a cumulative 3.75 grade-point average out of a possible 4.0, the equivalent of a 93.8 per cent academic average. He earned seven A grades to go along with a pair of Bs.

“Marc-André is a defenceman with impressive offensive skills who also excels defensively, “said Martin Raymond, head coach of the Redmen. “He had a plus-minus rating of plus-22 this past season. He possesses a good skating stride, sees the play well and has an above-average ability to anticipate a play. He also has a good attitude and is an individual who is much appreciated by his teammates. He has become a solid member of the Redmen family and we are very proud of him.”

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Changing face of hockey
By PAT HICKEY
The Gazette
May 28, 2009

The changed face of Quebec university hockey was on display at the Bell Centre yesterday as Molson and the Canadiens handed out the annual Guy Lafleur Awards for Excellence on the ice and in the classroom.

The big winner was Marc-André Dorion, a first-year physical education student from McGill. He collected a $6,000 scholarship as the top player from the university ranks. He made the rookie all-star team in the Ontario University Athletic Association, while posting a 3.75 GPA in the classroom.

Dorion is part of the growing rank of players making the jump from major junior hockey to university. And, while French-speaking players were once a rarity at McGill and Concordia, they now represent a majority.

When McGill head coach Martin Raymond was asked how many francophones played for the Redmen this past season, he smiled and said: "It might be easier to count the English kids on the team." Raymond noted the scholarship plan offered by the QMJHL and the CEGEP system in Quebec made it easier for the city's English universities to recruit players from the predominantly French QMJHL.
"Most of the kids in the Q spread their CEGEP education over three or four years and they get pretty good marks," said Raymond, noting that his roster includes players who combine hockey with demanding disciplines like law, medicine and engineering.

"Kids in the Ontario or Western hockey leagues have it a little tougher, because they're asked to do Grade 12 in one year while playing hockey and they have a tougher time getting good marks," Raymond said. "They're 18 years old and they still have that dream of playing in the NHL foremost in their minds."

Dorion had that dream when he started playing major junior hockey five years ago. But he also recognized the importance of education and he knows 5-foot-11 defencemen aren't in great demand in the NHL - even if they were first-team all-stars in the QMJHL.

"When McGill recruited me, I knew it was an opportunity to get a good education and continue to play hockey at a high level," said Dorion, who interrupted the start of his university career last fall to attend the Dallas Stars rookie camp.

"I expect to play at least three more years there and then it won't be too late to see if there's a spot from me in the (American Hockey League) or maybe in Europe."
Concordia head coach Kevin Figsby said he has 14 francophones on his team, including Marc-André Element, who was one of the finalists for the Lafleur award, along with Jean-Sébastien Bréton from the Université du Québec a Trois Rivières. They each received $1,000.

Figsby also might be welcoming Maxim Gervais next season. Gervais, who played for Collège Français, was given the Lafleur award as the top student-athlete in the Quebec Junior Triple-A League. He's the younger brother of New York Islanders' defenceman Bruno Gervais.

"He's been accepted into the John Molson School of Business, but he also has the option of playing one more year of junior and being the team captain," Figsby said.
The other award winner yesterday was Welland, Ont., native Payton Liske, a 6-foot-5 defenceman for the Saint John Sea Dogs, who was honoured as the top student-athlete in the QMJHL. He has started his university career at the University of New Brunswick, but he's expected to give pro hockey a shot next season.