(Kamloops) Jared Davidson spoke about his parents when asked why he never gives up.
“That’s how I was raised,” said the Seattle Thunderbirds forward and Montreal Canadiens prospect. They taught me to never give up no matter what I was doing. »
“Whether it was school, hockey, any sport, they didn’t want me to quit. They want me to try to surpass myself, to work hard, and if I do that, the result will come by itself. »
Davidson was skipped twice in the NHL Draft before being selected in the fifth round, 130th overall, by the Canadiens in 2022. Playing his fifth season with the Thunderbirds, he will look to help the team win the Memorial Cup for the first time. He has had one goal and five assists so far.
Davidson’s approach is the same among all of his teammates, who were prompted by a loss in the WHL Finals last year.
“I don’t know what else to say about this team. They’re a resilient group, Davidson said. Whenever an opportunity presented itself to us, we delivered the goods. »
The Thunderbirds will cross swords with the Quebec Remparts on Sunday. The Remparts are aiming for a third Memorial Cup title, and their first since 2006.
The Remparts had the best 3-1 over the Thunderbirds in their preliminary game last Monday. Since then, the Thunderbirds have defeated the Kamloops Blazers 6-1 to reach the semifinals and the Peterborough Petes 4-1 to advance to the final.
For their part, the Remparts have been on leave since Tuesday, when they lost to the Petes when they were already assured of a place in the final.
“They’re a big challenge because they’re a great team,” Thunderbirds head coach Matt O’Dette said of the QMJHL champions. After our loss to them, we worked in hopes of being able to face them again.
“We have accomplished this task, but there is still one last effort to be made. »
O’Dette is hopeful that the scenario will be different in the final on Sunday.
“I think we had a good game,” he said at first, looking back to Monday’s duel. But they had done a great job of protecting the front of the net. We hadn’t generated much from the danger zone.
“It will be something that we will have to achieve. We have not scored enough, we will have to have a better presence in front of the net in the hope of generating more chances, in addition to hindering the work of the goalkeeper. »
Davidson believes the key will be the Thunderbirds’ start to the game.
“If we can win a little earlier, a little faster… They had scored quickly and we had to run behind them,” he recalled.
“We’re going to have to impose our style of play from the start. »
