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Canadiens defenceman Noah Dobson was an amazing all-around athlete whereas rising up in Summerside, P.E.I.
In Grade 8 at
Summerside Intermediate Faculty,
Dobson earned an ideal 100 per cent mark in bodily schooling. However the phys-ed instructor who gave him that grade remembers Dobson as way more than only a nice athlete.
“Noah bought 100 as a result of Noah was that form of child,” Trevor Bridges, who has taught phys-ed for greater than 25 years, recalled in a telephone interview this week. “He was the perfect athlete. He was the nicest child. And he was actually good at every part he did.
“You by no means needed to self-discipline him,” added Bridges, who now teaches at
Stonepark Intermediate Faculty
in Charlottetown, P.E.I. “You by no means needed to discuss to him twice. Lots of these hockey gamers nearly really feel like they’re higher than different folks at instances. They’ve that hockey mentality is form of what we are saying round right here. They’re not that good on a regular basis. However Noah was by no means like that. He at all times was a very good child. It didn’t have an effect on the best way he was. A few of these guys they’re simply not like that … they’re not as good and real as he’s. There’s a lot of them which might be, however not all of them. He was only a real, good child on a regular basis.”
Dobson is the final phys-ed pupil to earn an ideal grade from Bridges, who famous the curriculum has modified through the years, incorporating extra well being research with written exams, making it harder to get 100 per cent.
Dobson chuckled not too long ago after I requested him about his good mark in phys-ed.
“Rising up, I wasn’t a lot of a scholar in class, however when it got here to phys-ed time it was enjoyable,” he stated. “(Bridges) was an amazing man, an amazing instructor.”
Dobson stated he tried to play loads of sports activities as a child rising up.
“Soccer in the summertime and stuff,” he stated. “I believe it’s necessary as children even now rising as much as be an athlete. I believe it helps you develop. On the ice you’re simply being extra athletic.”
Dobson began to focus solely on hockey after Grade 8 when he left P.E.I. and attended
the Pink Bull Academy in Salzburg, Austria,
which has specialised hockey and soccer growth applications for promising athletes from all over the world between the age of 14 and 20.
Dobson was the sixth general choose on the 2016 QMJHL Draft by the Acadie-Bathurst Titan. He received back-to-back QMJHL championships and Memorial Cups with the Titan in 2018 and the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies in 2019 and was chosen by the New York Islanders within the first spherical (twelfth general) of the 2018 NHL Draft.
Dobson hasn’t forgotten his roots and holds a HockeyFest street hockey occasion each summer season in Summerside.
“He was an early grower, so he was an enormous, robust child for his age,” Bridges recalled about Dobson.
“I can nonetheless keep in mind we had been enjoying flag soccer (in highschool) and he was enjoying defence,” Bridges stated. “And each time the quarterback threw the ball he picked it off. He’s used to having everybody in entrance of him (as a defenceman), he knew the place the ball was going and he knew easy methods to learn the play. He was a type of children that simply bought it. There’s some stuff that he had you don’t educate. He had that, plus he was a tough employee, plus he was an enormous child. He had every part, however it didn’t go to his head. That’s a part of the rationale he’s been as profitable as he’s.”
Canadiens president of hockey operations Jeff Gorton and common supervisor Kent Hughes have put an emphasis on bringing “good folks” into the group. The soft-spoken Dobson, who’s at all times considerate and well mannered in interviews, definitely appears to suit the invoice.
“They hit the jackpot with Noah,” Bridges stated.
Bridges stated he hasn’t spoken with Dobson in fairly just a few years.
What would he say to him now?
“That it’s good to see that every one the exhausting work paid off,” Bridges stated. “And that from what I can inform you’re the identical particular person you had been once you had been in junior excessive. The success didn’t go to your head from what it looks like — and that’s refreshing to see.”
Instances are altering
It’s powerful for teenagers to turn into good all-around athletes right now for the reason that concentrate on one sport 12 months a yr can begin early.
Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis stated he didn’t actually play hockey in the summertime, enjoying soccer as an alternative.
“I believe rising up it’s good to attempt to turn into an athlete, not only one particular sport,” St. Louis stated. “Nevertheless it’s exhausting as a result of 99 per cent of the youngsters they’ve early specification. And for those who’re the one one who’s making an attempt to be an athlete and making an attempt to get higher in your sport, you is likely to be behind simply due to what all people else is doing. It’s actually exhausting.
“However I believe we might most likely create higher hockey gamers if we had been creating athletes first,” St. Louis added. “However I don’t know … I believe the practice is up to now down the street proper now I don’t know if that’s going to be potential. However I believe I’d undoubtedly encourage each child to combine in another sports activities.”
The Canadiens’ Brendan Gallagher performed baseball till he was 16 and joined the WHL’s Vancouver Giants.
“It was my mother’s sport,” Gallagher stated about baseball. “My dad was a lacrosse participant, so he had me in lacrosse fairly early. However he bought me out of that when he realized I used to be getting beat up just a little bit an excessive amount of. In order that they put me in ball and it was just a little bit higher suited to the summers.”
Gallagher was a catcher and shortstop in baseball and likewise performed just a little centre area. He encourages younger children to play multiple sport.
“I believe it’s tremendous necessary — not solely mentally to vary it up,” he stated. “However I believe there’s so many expertise you could take from different sports activities, hand-eye coordination, primary athleticism. There’s one thing in each sport that carries over into hockey and it’s going that can assist you with hockey. Clearly, you dedicate loads of your time there, however I believe it’s so necessary to play different sports activities and actually broaden your athleticism.”
The Canadiens’ Joe Veleno performed soccer till he was 11 and his household moved to Kirkland on Montreal’s West Island.
“Simply an excessive amount of travelling,” he stated. “It was fairly powerful. I actually loved enjoying soccer, particularly within the summers simply being outside. Made loads of connections and friendships by way of enjoying soccer. It form of took my thoughts off of hockey just a little bit, particularly as a younger child. You play a lot hockey that typically you simply wish to get pleasure from one thing else, so my dad and mom put me in soccer.
“At a sure level, I needed to understand I’ve to make a full dedication to enjoying hockey,” he added. “That’s what I needed to do and I beloved enjoying hockey greater than I beloved enjoying soccer.”
Studying from the perfect
Mike Matheson’s father wouldn’t let him play hockey previous Might 31 as a younger boy rising up in Pointe-Claire on Montreal’s West Island. Matheson performed some soccer, however most popular
soccer
and was named the
offensive
MVP as a working again with the mosquito Triple-A Lakeshore Cougars in 2005.
“
You might at all times inform once you bought to (hockey) camp once you had been youthful the youngsters that performed all summer season may need had a little bit of a step early in camp, however there was no pleasure,
” Matheson recalled. “
It was simply one other follow and the youngsters that had taken the entire summer season off couldn’t wait to get on the ice, which I believe is the purpose of sports activities. It must be enjoyable, particularly at that age.
”
Matheson began to actually concentrate on hockey and low season coaching when he was 15 and joined the midget Triple-A Lac St. Louis Lions.
At age 31, Matheson stays one of the vital match gamers on the Canadiens and leads the workforce in ice time as soon as once more this season with a mean of 24:21 per sport. Final season, Matheson averaged 25:05 per sport to rank seventh within the NHL.
Matheson stated he discovered so much about conditioning through the two seasons he had Sidney Crosby as a teammate with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
“His means to maintain his physique, he’s so dialled in on every part,” stated Matheson, who developed an in depth friendship with Crosby. “He undoubtedly has his routine, however I believe he’s at all times open to new issues, too, and in order that form of opened my eyes into persevering with to work on it as an alternative of simply form of have your beliefs set. So I undoubtedly discovered so much from him in simply how he approaches off-days and when to skate, when to not skate, all that form of stuff.
“So simply a type of different issues that make it so particular to play with these guys, like (Kris) Letang, who’ve finished it for therefore lengthy,” Matheson added.
Matheson flashed an enormous smile after I requested if he had heard hypothesis about Crosby probably becoming a member of the Canadiens in a commerce with the Penguins.
“Yeah,” he stated. “Who is aware of?”
Residence away from house
St. Louis stated he was shocked when he made his first street journey to Western Canada as head coach of the Canadiens and noticed all of the bleu-blanc-rouge sweaters within the stands.
“However I don’t suppose we go in there and suppose it’s going to be a house sport,” he stated earlier than the Canadiens left on the present four-game street journey that began with a 2-1 extra time win over the Flames in Calgary on Wednesday and a 6-5 loss to the Oilers in Edmonton on Thursday. “However the assist is at all times superior. Shocked just a little bit, however we form of bought used to that and it’s enjoyable to see.”
After Wednesday’s win in Calgary, followers sporting Canadiens sweaters had been singing “Olé! Olé! Olé!” as they left the Saddledome.
That is how we do in Calgary!!! pic.twitter.com/FKk1eKTCsq
— Robert Louis (@robertlouis33) October 23, 2025
The Canadiens will play the Canucks on Saturday in Vancouver
(7 p.m., CBC, TVA Sports activities)
and wrap up the street journey Tuesday in Seattle towards the Kraken
(10:30 p.m., ,TSN2, RDS)
.
Lambert successful at HI/O Summit
The annual Hockey Inside/Out Fan Summit was held final weekend, bringing Canadiens followers from throughout North America and past who observe the workforce on The Gazette’s web site to Montreal for a sport.
The Canadiens misplaced 4-3 to the New York Rangers final Saturday evening on the Bell Centre, however the pre-game get-together at Hurley’s Irish Pub on Crescent St. was an enormous hit with former Canadiens’ Réjean Houle and Yvon Lambert making an look. In addition they introduced an autographed workforce stick that was a part of a charity raffle that raised greater than $4,000 for the Montreal Canadiens’ Kids’s Basis.
Lambert shared some nice tales about his hockey profession, together with how he grew up on a farm in Drummondville and solely discovered to skate when he was 13. He solely began enjoying organized hockey on the midget degree and likewise performed in a storage league, the place he paid $2 a sport to participate.
One other profitable fundraiser for the Montreal Canadiens Kids Basis. @StuCowan1 did a fascinating Q&A and a dwell interview with Habs legends Yvon Lambert and Rejean Houle. All in all we raised over $4000 for the inspiration. Now simply want the Habs to win to cap off the day! pic.twitter.com/Ogpz7t5ccY
— Robert Louis (@robertlouis33) October 18, 2025
After posting 50-51-101 totals and 89 penalty minutes in 52 video games with the junior Drummondville Rangers in 1969-70 as a 19-year-old, the Detroit Pink Wings chosen Lambert within the fourth spherical (fortieth general) of the 1970 NHL Draft.
Lambert was upset after the Canadiens claimed him off waivers a yr later, pondering he would by no means be ok to play for them. He would go on to win 4 Stanley Cups with the Canadiens.
Lambert tells his superb life story in a guide titled
Yvon Lambert, un glorieux au coeur de la dynastie
, that was printed in 2021.
Gallagher studying French
Mon ami J.F. Chaumont, who used to work for the Journal de Montréal and now writes for LNH.com,
had a very good story this week on Gallagher on the NHL’s French web site.
Gallagher spoke about how he’s studying French because of his spouse — Emma Fortin, who’s from Ste-Julie on Montreal’s South Shore — and their daughter, Everly Mona Della Gallagher, who was born in February and is called after her two grandmothers.
“I attempted to study by myself, however with out success,” Gallagher advised Chaumont. “My spouse does her greatest to show me French, however I’m most likely not the perfect pupil. Now, I’m going again to fundamentals by studying alongside my daughter. That’s my new technique.
“At house, I communicate English with my daughter and my spouse speaks French to her,” Gallagher added. “I don’t dare communicate French with my daughter. I’d be afraid of harming her French! Our daughter will quickly communicate each languages. I wish to communicate French with my youngsters someday. However I nonetheless discover it tough.”
scowan@postmedia.com
x.com/StuCowan1
