2457 words, 2x WJC

After going over Cormier’s first full season in the SMJHL, and the subsequent SHL entry draft, today will be a little bit of a change of pace as we shift focus to his international career. Much like his SMJHL eligibility, his time in the World Junior Championship is soon coming to a close with just 1 final tournament in store before he moves on to the IIHF to play against the best of the best. While his international career definitely hasn’t been as illustrious as his first junior season, it’s still a facet worth exploring and cashing in on.

Season 69 World Junior Championship

With Cormier’s first full season in the books with Quebec City and a cup on his resume already, the idea of international play was actually really exciting to me. I’ve never been very invested in any of the international tournaments we’ve had over the years and I wanted that to be different with this player. I was hoping that my S69 World Junior experience would be the start of a different level of engagement with the tournament but unfortunately, that wouldn’t exactly be the case. I didn’t really even find out I was in the tournament until a few days in. A little disappointed with the start of the international journey, I decided not to let it ruin the rest of the experience in an attempt to enjoy Cormier’s first appearance on the world stage.

Growing up in Gatineau, Canada, Cormier was destined to be playing for one of team Canada or North America. The former being much harder to make given the wealth of Canadian talent, it was no surprise he’d end up on North America for his first tournament. After a relatively impressive 53 point season for a rookie, Cormier was excited to see if he was able to help an international team make an impact. He knew he’d have to work for it, and that his opportunities would be limited as more experienced players were prioritized for ice time, but he was going to make the best of it nonetheless.

In 12 games for Team North America, Cormier finished second in team scoring, putting up a whopping 11 points with an average of just over 13 minutes of ice time per night. In fact, despite being 2nd in scoring, and only 1 point behind the team lead, only 3 players on the team played fewer minutes than Cormier. If his SMJHL season was impressive, this was certainly making a case to continue the narrative that Cormier was going to be a threat for years to come at every level. Now it was time to see if he was able to handle the nerves in his first ever single elimination game.

Unfortunately for Team North America, their tournament would end rather abruptly as the single elimination games started when they lost to Team Canada 5 to 2. While North America had faired pretty well for a team of players that aren’t typically deemed good enough to play for their Nation, it really wasn’t a surprise that Canada came out as strong as they did. A lot of the North American kids were playing in their first tournament and didn’t have the mental and physical fortitude built up they would need to endure the international post season. With a dominant performance across the board, Canada took their 5-2 win to immediately face a similar fate as North America against the United States, losing that contest 7 to 1.

In the loss to Canada, Cormier failed to register a point and while his tournament was impressive up until that point, he wasn’t able to find the extra gear to withstand the Canadian Offense. With that, his first international tournament came to an end and he was bound back for Gatineau as he waited for the Citadelles training camp to open for Season 70.

Season 70 World Junior Championship

With his first tournament in the books, our sights shift to the following offseason. Cormier now had two full seasons under his belt, and while it may have not been as successful for him or the Citadelles, he still gained some very valuable experience in ways he really wouldn’t have had the chance to get on a team that’s constantly on top of the world. More about that in another article, but for now let’s take a look at how the Season 70 World Junior Championship shaped up for Cormier.

Having played for Team North America in the previous tournament, there were a lot of questions about whether or not Cormier would be making a return or if would get the call for the main Canadian squad. Apparently, he got the call for Team Canada this time, but I wouldn’t know until the tournament started, continuing the trend of not having been contacted by the team that rostered Cormier, and once again making it seem increasingly difficult to connect myself to the tournament on a personal level despite my best efforts.

After watching the tournament unfold, it was probably for the best that I didn’t know Cormier was on Team Canada. In 12 games the Canadian team managed to put together a single victory and an embarrassing 5 points. No other team won less than a single game in the entire tournament. Despite the disastrous team performance, however, Cormier found himself being able to lead the team in scoring and tallied a respectable 7 goals and 8 points. His point totals weren’t quite as prolific as the previous season, but Cormier was asked to play a much bigger role on his team this time around, logging 18 minutes and 45 seconds of ice time on average per game, the most of any right wing on the team. He was put in a position to lead the way, and did so to a certain extent while failing to be the difference maker the team really needed most of the time. While the trend of good performances continued, some were starting to wonder if Cormier was just a good player and maybe not a gamebreaker, at least on the international level.

Team Canada did not play in the single elimination this tournament and Cormier ended up going home even earlier and even more empty-handed than in season 69. He was enjoying a lot of highs in the SMJHL but it was definitely starting to annoy the young star that he wasn’t able to find any international success on a team level, having only played in 1 elimination game in 2 years, and losing that game pretty decidedly. Back in Canada for the offseason now, Cormier got to work to try and ensure he could be the player Team Canada needed in season 71.

Season 71 World Junior Championship

Time was flying by for both myself and Cormier. 3 seasons done already, only 1 to go. It was a lot of the same for Quebec in season 71 as it was in season 70, but expectedly so. Cormier knew he sort of had his dues to pay in the j to get through the season, but as usual, his eyes were set on international play and trying to make progress on the elusive elimination round win. Cormier had been the team’s top player the season before in terms of points and ice time, so this coming tournament was bound to be his best chance yet to break out on the biggest stage….right?

In a bit of a shocking and inexplicable turn of events, Cormier seemed to have slept with the coach’s significant other or kicked their dog, as the Canadian star who was just coming off of leading the nation in points, and who had the most ice time at his position for the team was suddenly relegated to 4th line duties. Having recently reached the new tpe cap, it was a little shocking to see a star who had only improved on his skills get such a harsh demotion. From 18 minutes and 45 seconds per game and 8 points, down to a mere 12 minutes and 13 seconds on average, and a woefully unimpressive 3 goals and 5 points. On a personal level, it was very difficult to see this utilization, especially knowing that my time in the World Junior Championship was quickly going to be coming to a close and once you age, that’s it. There’s no going back.

Although the tournament may have been disappointing on a personal level, it’s hard to deny the success the team earned. After finishing in dead last the season before and only winning one game, Canada turned a new page, putting together 6 wins and 18 points to solidify themselves in the middle of the pack at 6th place after the round robin. They would actually get to play some elimination games this season after missing the opportunity in season 70, and Cormier would get a 3rd chance at winning a game after the round robin, despite his limited role with the team.

The tournament isn’t all bad news for Cormier, as he did manage to get his first world junior championship victory in a win against Sweden in the first round of elimination games. However, that would end up being the only win Cormier and Team Canada would get for the rest of the tournament. The team proceeded to lose in the 2nd round to the United States, and subsequently to Finland in the bronze medal game. Nonetheless, it was undoubtedly an improved season for the Canadian squad, going from dead last to the bronze medal game and ultimately finishing in 4th place. Cormier just wishes he could have had a chance to help Canada take home some hardware. In all 3 post round robin games, Cormier only had a single assist, registering zero goals and 39 total minutes of ice time for an average of 13 minutes per game.

The Transfer

With 4 seasons and 3 tournaments now come and gone for Cormier, we truly are coming to the end of a road and the end of Cormier’s journey through the SMJHL and the world junior championship. He will only play in one more tournament, and will then begin a new adventure as he moves himself and his family to New England. There were a lot of questions clouding Cormier’s mind regarding his current situation with his international team, and the situation he wanted to put himself in moving forward. It became clear to Cormier that he wanted to value the future more than the present, and his main objective became to find a home he would be happy with for the rest of his international career. He didn’t want to have to find out the tournament started after the fact, and look up boxscores to know what team he was on. He wanted to play for a team that would respect his long term commitment and that he could grow into a prominent role with over time. When the Transfer window opened for Season 72, Cormier let it be known to those who cared to inquire that he was interested in a transfer, as he had not received any communication from the Canadian IIHF team and wanted to avoid a repeat scenario of his world junior’s experience.

The choice seemed obvious to Cormier, whose parents were French immigrants, and as the smjhl post season came to a close he declared for France’s international team for IIHF play. It wasn’t just his heritage that led to this being an easy decision for Cormier though. Just looking at the roster, you can see that this is going to be a very competitive team for a very long time. It takes a careful amount of planning and dedication to plot a path to success on the international stage, but looking at the roster and what is coming through the pipelines soon, it’s easy to see that France’s management has a complete grasp on what it takes. From top to bottom the roster is filled with promising talent and stand up people; an often underrated quality on international teams. While France may not be in a position to contend right away, they are far from the worst team and their outlook will make the middling seasons all the more worth it. Cormier likely also has a year until he joins the IIHF team so it will be interesting to see what kind of steps the team can take as everyone progresses. On Cormier’s end, he’ll be doing everything he can to make sure he’s ready when he gets the call, and to make sure he can be a player that matters for the French team for many tournaments to come.

Season 72 International Play and Concluding Thoughts

Cormier may have figured out what the future looks like for the IIHF but his last season of eligibility in the world junior championship holds a lot of questions. With his recent transfer, there is a possibility that he could be playing for his 3rd international team in 4 tournaments, though given roster submission deadlines there’s also the possibility that he could find himself back on Team Canada for a third and final season. Time will tell for Cormier where he plays out his final tournament, but all he wants is to have a chance to lead whichever team he plays for on the ice in his last hoorah. After an incredible season in Maine with 97 points in 66 games, Cormier has proven everything there is to prove in the SMJHL and will be looking for a shot to do it in the WJC. After all, it will be his last shot to do so and he has yet to not play on the 4th line while at 425 TPE at the international level.

After having gone through the last few seasons again and looking back at my wjc/iihf goals going into this player, I do have to say I’m very disappointed in my WJC experience thus far, though that has been fairly par for the course with most of my players. The IIHF has always been a bit of an afterthought and getting people to care about it has always been rather difficult. The WJC faces similar yet even more exaggerated problems in my opinion, probably due to the nature of roster and management turnover at that level. It hasn’t exactly been the couple of tournaments I had been hoping for, but I’m hopeful that the future can be different for Cormier as he makes the transition to the IIHF. I remain optimistic that my transfer to France will help engage me in international play on this site for the first time in seven and a half years.

Article doesn't mention me 7/10 too much Cormier not enough Sawschuk

CURRENT PLAYER

Thomas Sawschuk || C || Nevada Battleborn
Birthplace: Oshawa, Canada
Jersey Number: 9
Height: 6ft 2in || Weight: 190 lbs


         

FORMER PLAYER

"Captain" Jean-Paul Boivin || LW || Edmonton Blizzards
Name: Jean-Paul "The Boi" Boivin
TPE: 1454
Age: 26
Birthplace: Toronto, Canada
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 200 lbs
Number: 67
|| Accomplishments || 
S48 SMJHL Four Star Cup
S49 23rd pick in SHL Draft to Edmonton
S49 SHL Champions Cup
S50 WJC Silver Canada
S51 WJC Gold Canada
S56 IIHF Gold
100 Hits Club: S49, S50, S51

Authorized Bash Brother
|| Captaincy || 
WJC Canada  A. Captain: S49
WJC Canada Captain: S51
Vancouver Whalers  A. Captain: S49

Vancouver Whalers Captain: S50, S51 
Edmonton Blizzard Visiting A. Captain: S53, S54, S55
Edmonton Blizzard Captain: S56 

Article doesn't mention me 7/10 too much Cormier not enough Sawschuk

I have added a singular Sawschuk, if you can find it I'll split the pay with you

Nice one!

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Ekaterina Valieva - Baltimore Platoon
Co-GM - Maine Timber


Thanks @xjoverax for the sig!