Ève Gascon’s career in men’s hockey is coming to an end. What could be better than finishing him at the top of the collegiate league goalie standings?
“I’m really happy with my season,” Gascon said on the phone Friday morning, hours before the Saint-Laurent College Patriots’ first playoff game.
Satisfied, the Cerberus has every reason to be.
After overcoming a serious ankle injury last summer, the Terrebonne native showed up with the Patriots in the fall for her third and final college season before heading to Minnesota, where she will play next year. next with an NCAA Division 1 women’s team.
Gascon had the best season of his young career; she finished first among league goaltenders with a remarkable .922 save percentage, 2.30 goals-against average and 16 wins in 23 games. For all these reasons, she was named to the RSEQ First All-Star Team.
The word “satisfied”, therefore, appears to us here as an understatement.
“Right from the start, I had some good games. I had the confidence of my coaches too, explains the young woman. I worked hard all year in practices and in games. »
The 19-year-old has been working on being “more patient, bigger goalie, slower butterfly.” She therefore gives fewer goals in the top of the net, she notes.
Last year, her father Stéphane Gascon told La Presse that “her percentage of efficiency, she [came] sick”. At the mention of this sentence, the main interested party laughs.
“I’m less worse,” she said. I sure do watch that a bit! I compare myself a lot, that’s still what motivates me too. But I want to play for the team and even if I win 6-5 I will be happy. »
Still, she can be proud of her stats this season too.
Next August, therefore, Gascon will no longer be a Patriot. She will be a Bulldog. A Bulldog from the University of Minnesota at Duluth. And for the first time in her life, she will play a full season with a women’s team. In a town where she knows “absolutely no one”.
It will be, she knows, “an adjustment, both on and off the ice.” On the ice, she will have the pleasure of discovering a different “type of game”. She chose her university wisely.
“I have a good relationship with the coaches, it’s a hockey town, it looks really nice. They are in a good conference too, they face big teams. There’s also the fact that it’s not a team where the goalkeeper gets 15 shots per game. I was also interested. »
Playing full-time with women will give her a different experience which, she says, may allow her to “be better in the [national team] camps as well”.
For the rest, she will discover it on the spot.
“Since I was very young I’ve been playing with guys. I know the atmosphere, what it’s about, etc. With girls, I have no idea. […] I have no doubt that I will get on well with everyone. »
The last two years of Gascon’s life were busy. After experiencing the disappointment of not being drafted into the QMJHL three years ago, she was hoping to get an invite to a camp. An invitation that didn’t come until a year later.
Last season, in 2021-22, she played two games on the Quebec junior circuit with the Gatineau Olympiques; at the first, she received a standing ovation from a packed house, and at the second, she picked up her first victory. She has not been recalled this season, but she will remember these precious memories.
“Just because you’re a girl doesn’t mean you can’t. If we take talent, regardless of gender, that’s what will allow us to have more girls. There are still mentalities to change, but it’s part of the journey of hockey. »
As she has often said, Gascon dreams of one day representing her country at the Olympics. Last summer, she took part in training camp for the U22 and senior teams, but her ankle injury prevented her from playing games; she was at “30%” of her form. Because of this, she was not selected for the U22 squad.
“This summer I really want to train hard, have a good ethic to come to camp ready, show what I can do, be 100%,” she said. Last summer, I did too many things, I played a lot of dek hockey. Maybe that’s what didn’t help either. It’s the little things that matter.
“This summer, I would like that, make the team. »
Goals are set. It only remains to do everything to reach them.
To his surprise, Ève Gascon is eligible for the draft… in the NHL 2023 video game! “When I first found out, I was like: There’s a mistake there! she exclaims. “Honestly, it’s still weird!” I have a friend of mine who drafted me into the game, she adds. […] I did not expect that ! »
