World Juniors Preview: Canada vs. Switzerland
His path to Canada’s junior national team may differ from that of his teammates, but Brett Brochu has always managed to find the silver lining
If there’s one thing Brett Brochu learned during his hockey journey, it’s to be more patient and not stress out about the unknown.
That’s easy to say, but it becomes increasingly difficult when faced with adversity like Brochu did after Ontario Hockey League (OHL) Draft.
The 19-year-old goaltender was selected 114th overall by the London Knights in the sixth round of the 2018 OHL Priority Selection. When he was looking for a team to play with the following season, he had trouble finding one.
“I tried it for like five or six different Junior B teams and got kicked out of all of them,” he says. “In the end I found my way into a junior C team in Dresden.”
Despite the difficulties, Brochu found a bright spot in the situation. He says his time in the state junior hockey league helped his development because he played almost every single game with the Dresden Jr. Kings.
“I was just trying to convince myself that if I just keep doing what I’m doing, work hard and stick to the process, everything would work out,” he says. “But of course it was quite difficult to get left out of so many teams knowing I wanted to play for the Knights next year.”
Daren Machesney, the Knights goalkeeping coach, first saw Brochu play while he was away.
“We liked him, but the problem was obviously the size problem,” he says. “When we were watching Brett he was probably 1.70m tall and that’s pretty short for a goalkeeper. We wanted to see if there was a chance for him to grow.”
However, the more Machesney saw Brochu play, the more captivated he was by his skill. The goalkeeper also experienced a small growth spurt to bring his height to 1.67m.
“We kept watching him and [were] Every time we saw him, we impressed him more and more,” he says. “We were thrown other people’s names, and Brett played against these other guys, and he would stand out. We always put his name at the top of our list…I couldn’t say no.”
Aware of Brochu’s talent, Machesney continued to advocate for the Knights’ future netminder.
“I think a lot of teams kicked themselves for not trusting our words,” he says. “It just didn’t matter where he played, he just takes every opportunity and he did it for every team.
“I remember talking to his junior C team and they said, ‘This is way better than advertised.’ And they kept telling us, ‘You guys are getting a damn good goalie.’”
With a contract officially signed with London at the start of the 2019/20 season, Brochu achieved his goal of playing in London. All he did in the pandemic-shortened season was to lead all OHL goalies in goals-against-average (2.40) and earn a spot on the OHL First All-Rookie Team.
He was looking forward to building on that success with the Knights in 2020-21, but COVID-19 prevented that. Amid the uncertainty and eventual cancellation of the OHL season, Brochu was again looking for a place to play.
“I have a good chance of coming [to National Junior Team selection camp in
November 2020]so that got me on the map for some [American Hockey
League] teams for this season,” he says. “It worked in my favor where I was able to develop at Wilkes-Barre all year. But it was definitely tough not playing a lot of hockey games where I didn’t really know what was going to happen.”
Brochu transitioned temporarily to the Wilkes-Barre Penguins of the AHL for this season. Although he again had a team to practice and train with, he was limited to just one start during the season.
In the face of adversity, it can be very easy to feel down. But Brochu still looks back on the experience positively.
“If you look back on it now, it really helped my game and I think it helped me get a lot better,” he says. “In the end everything works out. I really think so.”
The Belle River, Ontario native had a stellar start to the 2021-22 season, leading the OHL in save percentage (.921) and wins (16) while also posting a 2.48 goals-against average before the IIHF World Junior 2022 featured championship in December. By the end of the campaign, Brochu was among the top OHL goaltenders in terms of wins (29, T-3rd), goals conceded average (2.75, 7th), and save percentage (.911, T-3rd).
Although its first time on Canada’s junior national team suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic in December, he stopped 20 of 22 shots in his international debut against Austria a day before the tournament was canceled. His path to World Juniors may not look like that of his Team Canada teammates, but he again shares the honor of wearing the Maple Leaf on his chest 2022 IIHF World Junior Championship when the tournament returns to Edmonton.
“I never really thought I’d be sitting here, but I definitely dreamed of it,” he says. “I wouldn’t come down if I wasn’t on this team just because I knew how things have turned out for me so far. But this is a dream come true.”
Machesney is looking forward to his Netminder as well. Even though he’s only three years into his coaching career, he says he’ll never forget that moment.
“I mean, there have been some pretty cool moments in my life. Of course, my children will be born and all that stuff. But for hockey and coaching, [Brochu
joining Canada’s National Junior Team] would be right up there,” he says. “It has been a pleasure coaching him and as good as he is as a goalkeeper, he is just as good a person. These are the guys that really cheer you on. If he gets an opportunity, I think the Canadian fans will be pretty impressed and he’ll be one of the fan favorites.”
As the reshuffled World Juniors begin, Brochu’s goal remains the same: win gold. In addition, he has his sights set on his next goal: to play in the National Hockey League.
“[It has] It never crossed my mind that I don’t think it’s not possible for me,” he says. “I definitely think about that every day. That’s what motivates me.
“What I want to do for the rest of my life is play professional hockey.”