Acadie–Bathurst Titan

Acadie–Bathurst Titan
City Bathurst, New Brunswick
League Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
Division Maritimes
Founded 1969
Home arena K. C. Irving Regional Centre
Colours Red, gold, and white
              
General manager Sylvain Couturier
Head coach Mario Pouliot
Captain Guillaume Brisebois
Alternates captains:
Mark Trickett
Mark Simpson
Nicholas Blanchard
Jeffrey Truchon-Viel

Website
www.letitan.com

Franchise history
1969–1971 Rosemont National
1971–1979 Laval National
1979–1985 Laval Voisins
1985–1994 Laval Titan
1994–1998 Laval Titan Collège Français
1998–present Acadie–Bathurst Titan

The Acadie–Bathurst Titan is a major junior ice hockey team based in Bathurst, New Brunswick. They are members of the Telus Maritimes Division in the Telus Conference of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). The team plays its home games at the K. C. Irving Regional Centre.

History

The franchise was granted in 1969–70 as the Rosemont National. In 1971, they moved from Rosemont to Laval to become the Laval National, and later the Laval Voisins. In 1985, they became the Laval Titan, and in 1994, they became the Laval Titan Collège Français following a merger with the Verdun Collège Français, and then in 1998, they moved to Bathurst. The "Acadie" term in the team name refers to the city's surroundings, where the Acadian population is a majority.

The franchise has won five President's Cups, one of which (in 1999) came during the team's tenure in Bathurst. In the Memorial Cup that year, the team finished winless in the round-robin. The most famous player that has come through the organization would undoubtedly be Mario Lemieux, who was drafted in 1984 by the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League (NHL). Lemieux played for the team during its tenure in Laval. Other famous franchise alumni include Mike Bossy, Gino Odjick and Vincent Damphousse. Notable NHL alumni from Bathurst include Patrice Bergeron, François Beauchemin, Bruno Gervais and Roberto Luongo.

In the 1999–2000 season, the Titan had the first female to be drafted by a QMJHL team, Charline Labonté, a 17-year-old Quebec goaltender who spent parts of two seasons with the team.[1]

Relocation speculation

On February 7, 2009, amid much speculation, the Titan franchise was given a 30-day relocation application extension by the QMJHL Board of Governors. With the club continuing to struggle with attendance and the recent struggles of the economy in the area, the team was rumored to be on the move if things did not turn around in the foreseeable future. The team's owner, Léo-Guy Morrissette, entertained offers from a group of local investors in the Bathurst area, as well as a group from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. Morrissette eventually decided to sell the team to his daughter Annie Morrissette-Hébert and his son Stéphane Morrissette, who would each own 50 per cent of the club. The move also ensured the team would remain in Bathurst for the 2009–10 season.

At the end of the 2009–10 season, Léo-Guy Morrissette bought back control of the team from his children at their request. He then retained ownership of the team through to April 2013, but after the Titan were eliminated in the first round of the QMJHL playoffs by the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, and with multiple years of consistently-low attendance records, Morrissette began contemplating selling the team. Local investors approached Morrissette about purchasing the Titan to keep them in Bathurst. Morrissette, in part pressured by low attendance figures and personal health issues, opted to sell the club to a group of local investors including steel industry businessman Leopold Theriault, Darrel Stohart and current NHL player Sean Couturier, as well as former Titan alumni and current NHLers Patrice Bergeron, Roberto Luongo, Bruno Gervais and Mathieu Perreault; the investors would all be part of a new 28+ member group led by Theriault. At the time of the sale, the team was reported to be worth just over $3 million.[2]

Current roster

Goaltenders

# Player Position Age ** Shoots From NHL Rights Owned By
31 Canada Reilly Pickard G 17 L Halifax, NS
33 Canada Marc Audet G 19 R Thunder Bay, ON

Defencemen

# Player Position Age ** Shoots From NHL Rights Owned By
2 Canada Nicolas Dumulong D 19 L Varennes, QC
4 Canada Jason Bell D 18 L Montreal, QC Calgary Flames
5 Canada Mark Trickett "A" D 20 L Baddeck, NS
20 Canada Jake Barter D 18 R Hammonds Plains, NS
23 Canada Garrett Johnston D 20 L Winnipeg, MB
45 Canada Elijah Francis D 17 ** L Elsipogtog, NB
55 Canada Guillaume Brisebois "C" D 18 L St-Hilaire, QC Vancouver Canucks
57 Canada Francis Thibeault D 17 * R Val Damour, NB
71 Canada Felix Boivin D 17 * R Quebec, QC

Legend: 1 star = rookie player|| 2 stars = injured player|| "A" = alternate captain|| "C" = team captain

Forwards

# Player Position Age ** Shoots From NHL Rights Owned By
8 Russia Egor Popov RW 18 R Tyumen, Russia
9 Canada Samuel L'Italien C 17 * R Rimouski, QC
11 Canada Christophe Boivin LW 19 L Quebec, QC
15 Canada Dawson Theede C 18 * L Ottawa, ON
16 Canada Jordan Maher C 17 R Gander, NL
18 Canada Emanuel Aucoin C 18 R Iles-de-la-Madeleine, QC
24 Canada Mark Simpson"A" C 20 R Rothesay, NB New York Rangers
25 Canada Jeffrey Truchon-Viel"A" LW 18 L Rimouski, QC
28 Canada Nicholas Blanchard"A" LW 19 L Kentville, NS
44 Canada Cole Rafuse LW 16 * L Kingston, NS
62 Russia Daniil Miromanov RW 18 * R Moskva, Russia
88 Canada Antoine Morand C 16 * L Mercier, QC
98 Russia Vladimir Kuznetsov RW 17 * L Yekaterinburg, Russia

Legend: 1 star = rookie player|| 2 stars = injured player|| "A" = alternate captain|| "C" = team captain

Retired numbers

Note: numbers of players from entire franchise history from 1969 to present.

Note:The Titan retired the number 37, worn by Patrice Bergeron between 2001 and 2003, on September 25, 2011. Bergeron is the first player to have his number retired since the Titan moved to Bathurst. After his QMJHL career, Bergeron went on to win a Stanley Cup in the NHL with the Boston Bruins in 2011, defeating the Vancouver Canucks, who were led by fellow Titan alumnus Roberto Luongo. Bergeron also won an Olympic gold medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics with Canada, alongside Luongo. Bergeron is also a member of the Triple Gold Club, a group of ice hockey players and coaches who have won an Olympic gold medal, a World Championship gold medal and the Stanley Cup.[4]

Note: The Titan retired the jersey number 1, worn by Roberto Luongo between 1998 and 1999, on August 19, 2012. Luongo, a fan favourite in Bathurst and also of New Brunswick, was the second player to have his number retired since the Titan relocated to Bathurst. Luongo has competed for Canada internationally in a number tournaments at different levels. As a junior, he won a silver medal at the 1999 World Junior Championships while being named Best Goaltender in the tournament, his second appearance. He then won two gold medals at the 2003 and 2004 World Championships, as well as a silver in the 2005 World Championship. He also won the 2004 World Cup of Hockey and appeared in the 2006 Winter Olympics, serving as backup to starter Martin Brodeur in both instances. Luongo succeeded Brodeur, however, as Canada's starting goaltender during the 2010 Winter Olympics, winning a gold medal alongside fellow Titan alumnus Patrice Bergeron. Luongo then led his Vancouver Canucks team to Game 7 of the 2011 Stanley Cup Final, which the team ultimately lost to Bergeron and the Bruins.

NHL alumni

Mascot

Season-by-season record

OL = Overtime loss, SL = Shootout loss, Pct = Winning percentage
Season Games WonLostTiedOLSLPointsPct Goals
for 		Goals
against 		Standing
1998–99 704225 3 — — 870.6213152553rd, Dilio
1999–2000 722040 8 4 — 520.3612273114th, Maritime
2000–01 722938 4 1 — 630.4382392813rd, Maritime
2001–02 724518 4 5 — 990.6882572251st, Maritime
2002–03 724421 4 3 — 950.6602761892nd, Atlantic
2003–04 701849 3 0 — 390.2791843145th, Atlantic
2004–05 701842 7 3 — 460.3291632445th, Atlantic
2005–06 704319 — 3 5 940.6712912232nd, Eastern
2006–07 703528 — 2 5 770.5502912695th, Eastern
2007–08 704125 — 2 2 860.6142892413rd, Eastern
2008–09 682035 — 7 6 530.2941872565th, Atlantic
2009–10 682537 — 3 3 560.3682082865th, Atlantic
2010–11 684421 — 2 1 910.6692611972nd, Maritimes
2011–12 683231 — 2 3 690.5072502643rd, Maritimes
2012–13 682635 — 5 2 590.4342322784th, Maritimes
2013–14 682240 — 4 2 500.3681442494th, Maritimes
2014-15 681743 — 6 2 420.3091582716th, Maritimes
2015-16 351319 - 2 1 290.4141141324th, Maritimes

Team records

Team records for a single season
StatisticTotalSeason
Most points992001–02
Most wins452001–02
Most goals for3151998–99
Least goals for1442013–14
Least goals against1892002–03
Most goals against3142003–04
Individual player records for a single season
StatisticPlayerTotalSeason
Most goalsThomas Beauregard712006–07
Most assistsMathieu Perreault802007–08
Most pointsThomas Beauregard1242006–07
Most points, rookiePatrice Bergeron732002–03
Most points, defensemanPhilippe Plante801998–99
Most Penalty Minutes[6]Jonathan Tremblay3162003–04
Best GAA (goalie)Adam Russo2.412002–03
Goaltender = minimum 1,500 minutes played

See also

References

  1. ↑ Canadian Gold 2010, Andrew Podnieks, p. 152, Fenn Publishing, Toronto, Canada, ISBN 978-1-55168-384-3
  2. ↑ CBC News (April 11, 2013). "QMJHL's Acadie-Bathurst Titan sold to local investors". CBC. Retrieved June 5, 2015.
  3. ↑ "Acadie-Bathurst Titan News Article".
  4. ↑ Titan website, Article on the Titan website.
  5. ↑ Season-by-season on hockeydb.com
  6. ↑ Elite Prospects, Top 100 Most Penalty Minutes in one season for the Acadie-Bathurst Titan..

External links

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