I was checking out some of the other Deep Dives from around the SMJHL and saw that not a lot of people are talking about the Quebec City Citadelles. A newcomer to the SMJHL, Quebec City was part of an expansion to the league in S58 that included the Nevada Battleborn. Five years in, we really see a tale of two teams. In five (and a half) seasons in the league Quebec City has proven themselves to be a contender, finishing first in the league with in three seasons and winning the Four-Star Cup a year later in S58. These achievements come in stark contrast to Nevada, who have finished no higher than 5th in league and has never won a playoff game.

The quick success can be attributed to a stellar first draft class in S55, with defensive powerhouse Yerlora Petrov drafted 24th overall (brothers with Boris Petrov and Bobov Petrov drafted later?), leader Jasper Maximov drafted 20th and of course, future S58 MVP, scoring leader, and point leader, Zdenko Berkanek. Even in the first season with the league, they finished 10th, 1 point ahead of the Detroit Falcons and 5 points ahead of fellow expansion team Nevada. The following season saw improvement of that core S55 draft class, as Quebec City finished 9th, but with a positive +8 goal difference. An improvement of +87 goal differential from the year prior. Nevada did finish 5th this season, but it would be S57 that would set these two teams apart.

S57 saw Quebec City winning the entire league. The S55 draft class had hit their prime and were tearing apart the league, finishing with an incredible 107 points (a record at the time). The missed out on a trip to the 4 Star Cup final by a goal to Anchorage, but that only left Quebec City hungry for more.

S58 Quebec City finished 2nd in the league, an incredible 12 points ahead of 3rd place division rivals Newfoundland. They missed out on back-to-back first place finished to a dominant Kelowna Knights team, who broke their points record by 1 win (109 points). Quebec City would get their revenge in the playoffs as they beat Kelowna 4-1 to advance to 4 Star Cup Finals where glory awaited them. Quebec City remembered the bitter taste Anchorage left them with in S57 and went on to trounce another top SMJHL team 4-1 to win Four-Star Cup. A championship had come to Quebec City in just four seasons.

S59 saw the core of the epic S55 draft class leave for the SHL, however Quebec still finished 6th and advanced to the semifinals of the playoffs where they lost to Anchorage as they did in S57 (as a side note, S58 and S59 playoffs saw the same top 4 teams, pretty interesting). With the S55 draft class gone, Quebec City seems to have settled into the usual grind of the SMJHL, a good mix of SHL drafted players with a solid core of active rookies. Currently 7th in S60, Quebec City is certainly in a position where they could cause some ruckus in the post season again with lethal Right Wingers Mew Two and Brian Davenport and solid defense lead by Kappa Kappa and Shane Duffy Jr.

Quebec City will certainly have division rivals Newfoundland looking over their shoulders has we come to the second half of S60. Anchorage may also want to be careful come playoff time, as these two teams (who are the furthest apart from each other than (almost) any other team) may face each other again in the playoffs this year and there is a lot of history between these two teams.

@Aleris GRADED! +5 TPE