The metaphor Jocelyn Thibault uses to describe his stay at Hockey Quebec is full of meaning. “I felt like I was in a rowboat, with no oars and rough seas.” Thibault managed to get back to the dock, but in a miserable state. When one is mentally exhausted, everything follows. We are completely empty. Thibault preferred to give up before he lost his life.
Thursday was a hard and long day for him. First, he announced his departure to the association's employees, a team he enjoyed working with. He then held a press conference with journalists who cover amateur hockey.
I called him within an hour of that meeting. He answered immediately.
By the sound of his voice I felt him liberated.
If this is the case? I asked him.
“Yes, I’m relieved and disappointed too,” he replied.
Missionary job
When he joined the Hockey Quebec executive board in November 2021, Thibault expressed his desire to see regional associations and smaller hockey players finally come together to work together. He was like a missionary preaching the virtues of good understanding.
The challenge was huge, but we thought he might be successful because of his different training than his predecessors. He was not a civil servant by profession. His past as a former player at the minor, junior and professional levels had instilled in him the virtues of team spirit. He had the profile to change things.
This was the goal he set for himself. No one could doubt his sincerity.
He could have stayed home and benefited from the financial security that his successful 15-year career in the National Hockey League provided him.
No doubt there were people who told him that he was in a cutthroat environment.
But like he did with the Sherbrooke Phoenix, Thibault wanted to give something back to hockey in Quebec. He was full of good intentions. He wanted to take actions that would change the management of minor hockey.
Are you thinking about the youth?
Unfortunately, reality hit him hard. He quickly became disillusioned.
After only two years and three months of service, he returned to the dock in his rowboat, which had holes all over it, and dropped anchor, disillusioned with his experience.
When I ask Jocelyn if regional managers know that their priority is working for young people, he pauses briefly.
“I don't know. I dare to believe it,” he said.
It means what it means.
It is incomprehensible that Thibault failed in his mandate.
There are people in this jungle who boast of their power. They abuse it and no one can stop them. This is the biggest problem in the world of sports associations.
Everyone takes the camouflage to their side and imposes the course of action they like.
Good luck, Stephane!
I can't wait to see how Stéphane Auger, Jocelyn's successor, will navigate these polluted waters. His training as a referee may help him. I wish him all the best. He is also a good man.
It would be sad if his mandate ended in the same way as Thibault's.
That would mean Hockey Quebec is ungovernable. Like the government apparatus, the ministries of health and education and so on.
We form study committees to prepare reports and we hear nothing more.
By the way, what happens to the recommendations of the Quebec Committee for the Development of Ice Hockey?