QMJHL Proud to Launch 42nd Season
Published on September 8, 2010 under Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) News Release
MONTREAL, Wednesday, September 8, 2010 - The Commissioner of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), Gilles Courteau, today officially launched the League's 42nd season in Old Montreal.
"The QMJHL is proud today to launch its 42nd season under the theme: The Pursuit of excellence," shared the Commissioner in his opening statement. "The theme describes perfectly how the QMJHL has evolved over the course of its 42-year history. We can proudly state that we have become a league which gives players every opportunity to excel, not only on the ice, but in the classroom as well. For example, our young players benefit from fantastic on-ice and off-ice environments in which to push their abilities to their limits without sacrificing the pursuit of their academic endeavours."
This year, several players projected to be first round draft picks at the next NHL entry draft recognized the numerous advantages of pursuing their apprenticeship at the QMJHL. Sean Couturier, a potential first overall selection, Jonathan Huberdeau and Xavier Ouellet are only a few of the many young athletes whose talents are catching the attention of NHL scouts; players who chose the QMJHL on the merits of being the best option to balance a high performance sporting environment with academic achievement.
The arrival of Louis Leblanc
Louis Leblanc, the young student from Havard University, this season becomes one of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League's most brilliant ambassadors. "Louis is another great example of a young man who chose to further his hockey development without sacrificing the demands of higher learning. The choice he has made demonstrates the quality of our hockey program and the numerous possibilities that it offers. It is something that we are very proud of. By pursuing his goals in the QMJHL, Louis Leblanc will join the more than 100 former student-athletes who, every year, benefit from our generous grant program. Last season alone, more than $400,000 was divided amongst 112 of our former players. Grants were awarded to Frédéric St-Denis, Félix Petit, Alexandre Demers, Matt Eagles and Wes Welcher to name but a few."
A quest for excellence that continues for the QMJHL
"More than ever, the QMJHL is continually improving itself on and off the ice. Over the past several months, our executives have looked at ways to improve the quality of the game that is offered to our fans. We created committees comprised of Governors, General Managers, Coaches, Officials as well as Marketing resources, asking them to study our product and make recommendations in order to heighten the overall experience for our fans. We reviewed the style of play, the officiating standards and the development curve of our players. We defined our philosophy, our vision, our identity and our conclusion is that the QMJHL is a development league in which players are taught a fast-paced, intense and physical style of play. It is of the utmost importance that we communicate these goals to our fans over the course of the season."
Significant projects
The Commissioner also shared his thoughts on several important projects which promise to pique the interest of QMJHL fans. "With another promising and exciting season only a few hours away, several incredible endeavours are about to come to fruition; projects which will propel the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League towards a new era rich in innovation. In the next few days, the Canadian Hockey League will launch a completely new online platform designed by MRX which will regroup the CHL, its three regional leagues and its sixty member clubs under a unique umbrella. The new CHL network will represent the most important online sharing platform ever created within the sports industry. Although certain adjustments will need to be made through the opening stages of the season in order to get familiarized with the functionalities of the new tools, I remain confident that the new online platform will be an important asset. Without a doubt, the QMJHL is on the cusp of embarking on a new and exciting journey which will bring our fans closer to our teams and to our players with the help of new and entertaining content and applications."
Partnership with EA Sports
The QMJHL will certainly not go unnoticed during these next few months. As was announced at the 2010 MasterCard Memorial Cup, EA Sports yesterday launched NHL 2011 in which gamers can experience the thrill of playing with their favourite teams and players in any of the sixty Canadian Hockey League arenas.
"The new partnership between the Canadian Hockey League and EA Sports, the gaming industry's sports leader, brings a whole new dimension to major junior hockey, enabling hundreds of thousands of fans to learn more about the best developmental hockey league in the world," stated the Commissioner. "Once again this year, the Canadian Hockey League led the way at the NHL Entry Draft held in Los Angeles with nine of the first ten players picked coming from Canadian Major Junior Hockey. In total, 107 players were chosen from the CHL (51%). As time goes by, more and more players are realizing that major junior hockey is the best alternative for their development. Our academic structure has grown substantially over the past few years. Combined with our outstanding study grant program, we have become recognized as the industry leaders."
TELUS and the QMJHL prolong their partnership
The QMJHL and TELUS were also eager to announce the extension of their partnership until the end of the 2013-14 season. Through this exclusive partnership, TELUS has invested more than 7 million dollars over the past ten years and is committed to pushing that sum to 11 million dollars by the end of 2014. These investments are part of TELUS' strategy to support the development of our young hockey players and amateur sports. TELUS will present all 612 regular season games and playoffs on the web site telus.com/lhjmq while also broadcasting games live on TELUS TV.
"Junior hockey is at the very heart of our culture and continuing to contribute to the development of our national sport is extremely important to us. It is our pleasure to support our young hockey players, but also all hockey fans as we have done for almost 85 years," stated TELUS Vice-President Communications Marketing, Patrick Corneau.
"The extension of our partnership with TELUS, our major sponsor, opens whole new horizons for the QMJHL and enables our fans to follow us on the web throughout the regular season and the playoffs. It is excellent news for our fan base, our eighteen franchises and our League," added Mr. Courteau.
The QMJHL continues the fight against breast cancer
The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League reiterated its commitment to fighting breast cancer.
"Over the past several months, the QMJHL and its teams have been hard at work with SP Apparel developing eighteen prototype pink jerseys which will be worn by players during a home game during the month of October; Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The special jerseys will then be auctioned off with the funds generated going towards the fight against breast cancer," said the Commissioner.
TELUS will also be joining the fight against breast cancer to help Hospitals acquire state-of-the-art equipment which will help diagnose and treat breast cancer. The company will donate $25 to the Fondation Universitaire de Québec et à l'Hôpital général juif each time a pink smart phone BlackBerry Curve 8530 or a pink BlackBerry Pearl 3G is purchased.
For a sixth consecutive year, the QMJHL will walk alongside its Veterans during Veterans Week. Our Veterans' heritage is rich in pride and history and the League and its teams feel that it is very important to remember the sacrifices they have made for our great Country. Puck-drop ceremonies to honour our Veterans will be held during QMJHL games with Veterans partaking in the celebrations.
Esteemed partners
In closing, the QMJHL is happy to announce the addition of a new corporate partner: Cordon Bleu- Tomassa.
"Cordon Bleu is the leading supplier of niche quality innovative entrees and meal components with differentiated branded and private label offerings, superior service capabilities, tailored to specific customer channel needs, with a relentless sense of values, human respect and dignity and we are extremely excited to count on their support," said Gilles Courteau.
Finally, the Commissioner underlined his appreciation for the unwavering contributions of the QMJHL's loyal partners including Reebok/CCM, Old Dutch Foods, All Weather Windows, Subway and Comfort Inn.
Of note, the regular season kicks off tomorrow with the Acadie-Bathurst Titan travelling to Moncton to face the defending President Cup champion Moncton Wildcats.
Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League Stories from September 8, 2010
- MAINEiacs Announce 2010-11 Roster - Lewiston MAINEiacs
- QMJHL Proud to Launch 42nd Season - QMJHL
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