Boulanger shutting the door in Olds
Red Deer goaltender has Grizzlys rolling
Two months ago, the 2009-10 season for the Olds Grizzlys looked to be in complete and utter disarray.
The club couldn’t win for trying, and were mired in last place in the AJHL’s South Division. Things have certainly changed since then.
The Grizzlys, sparked by standout goaltender Marc Boulanger, finished the pre-Christmas schedule on a scintillating 13-3-1 run, and once again sit north of the .500 mark as they get set to begin the new year.
“Our guys have really accepted each other,” says Head Coach and GM Kevin Hasselberg. “They’ve bought into a system that’s centered around playing for each other, and when you get everyone on the same page it’s amazing what you can accomplish.”
The catalyst, says Hasselberg, has been Boulanger. The 19-year-old Red Deer native has put together an equally impressive run, upping his record to 12-8-4 this season, including a career high three shutouts.
“Obviously, when you look at team defense it starts with the guy between the pipes. Marc has stepped up and played extremely well. (Shutouts) are a team stat and it’s something we’re all very proud of. Marc certainly leads the way when it comes to team defense and making all those big saves.”
Boulanger first burst onto the scene by capturing MVP honors at the 2007 Telus Cup in Red Deer while backstopping the runner-up Optimist Rebels. A highly touted WHL prospect of the Prince George Cougars, Boulanger instead opted for the Junior “A” ranks, and two short years later it paid off in the form of a scholarship to the University of Massachusetts-Lowell.
“It’s definitely a dream come true” says the third-year Grizzly. “It’s an outstanding school and it’s something I’ve been praying for every day since I started playing Junior. I went on a visit there, and the Boston area is just beautiful. The coaches really seem like they have the team going in the right direction and it was something I really wanted to be part of.
“I’m really excited to be going next year, and I’m really fortunate as well. There are lots of guys that could be committing at that level, but fortunately for me the stars aligned.”
Anytime a player can rise through the ranks and nab a scholarship, it produces the ultimate rush for someone like Hasselberg, who has been with the Grizzlys for the past nine years, running the bench the last five.
“Everything Marc gets out of this level and out of our program is something that he’s earned. He’s worked extremely hard right from his minor hockey days up until his final game here with the Olds Grizzlys, whenever that may be.
“Going into a very good program at U-Mass, he’s going to fight for a number one position and fight for ice time. But all of his life he’s been that fighter and been that guy who has overcome some pretty big odds stacked against him. There is no doubt in our minds that he’s going to be a successful person and a successful goaltender in college hockey and pro hockey when he makes that jump.”
That jump will come next year for the 19-year-old, but for now he’s just enjoying the ride while playing some of the finest hockey of his career.
“The team is playing really well in front of me defensively right now,” says Boulanger. “We’ve really been coming together and we all have something to play for. We’re all playing for each other, so it makes it a lot easier to go down and block shots when you know there are 19 other guys that will do the same. It’s been a lot of fun lately so I hope we can keep it going.”
There has been no shortage of challenges so far in Boulanger’s hockey career. He’s been a diabetic since he was nine years old, but after 10 years of dealing with the illness, he’d rather shrug it off as part of his routine now. Then, unfortunately, he suffered through his first taste of controversy when he decided to come home from Prince George’s camp, instead opting playing in the AJHL. Reaction was less than favorable from the Cougars, who understandably were dismayed at losing perhaps their goaltender of the future.
“It just wasn’t the right place for me,” says the soon to be U-Mass Lowell River Hawk.
“I had decided early on that I wanted to go the NCAA route and I tried to explain that actually a couple times, but they blew it out of proportion like it was a slap in their face. I truly didn’t mean for anything to go wrong there. It’s too bad things didn’t work out better for them, but I had made that decision early in my career.”
Obviously, the decision ended up being the right one, and Boulanger now has a college career and education to look forward to. First though, comes the second half of his final season in Olds, trying to lead the Grizzlys to the promised land.
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