By: Angelina Berube

Superstition and pregame rituals run deep in sports. Hockey is no exception. But ask Scott Sabourin, the 22-year-old Manchester Monarchs forward from Orleans, Ont. if he does anything special before hitting the ice and he’ll say no. He just tapes his sticks a certain way and does certain things at a certain time.

He’s not superstitious.

One pregame ritual that Sabourin does partake in with teammates is the soccer game. He’s become such a force to be reckoned with that his teammate Kevin Raine dubbed him the best player.

 “I would agree,” Sabourin laughed. “But I don’t know if he’s trying to mess with me saying that trying to get in my head for next game.”

The soccer game is all in good fun and a way to stay loose before each game. “It’s fun to kick it around with the guys,” Sabourin said. “It gets us ready for the game. It gets your legs going and your hand-eye-foot coordination ready.”

 That doesn’t mean there isn’t healthy competition among the team. “There’s a little chirping here and there,” Sabourin said. “If one guy gets another guy out so many times in a row, the other guy will be gunning for him the rest of the night.”

In his second season of pro hockey, Sabourin has proved himself as a team leader for the Monarchs. His teammates can count on him offensively to chip in a goal and help on the forecheck. They also know he has their backs and will drop the gloves in their defense when a fight is necessary. He has nine points this season and is a team player who strives to help his team wherever he can. Sabourin is a prime example of heart and grit night in and night out.

It’s no surprise Sabourin is one of the better soccer players on the team. Growing up he played soccer along with basketball, football, lacrosse and hockey.  He began skating at age two when his parents put him on skates and, like his father who played the sport before him, hockey was the one that stood out.

Much like his approach in playing several sports, he did not limit himself to only one position. In youth hockey, Sabourin played forward in the winter and defense in the summer season, rounding out different aspects of his game.

In junior hockey, Sabourin went undrafted. In 2010, he joined the Oshawa Generals as a free agent and played three seasons for the team, collecting 30 goals and 20 assists in his final year. In his last playoff game with the team, he scored on his final shot on ice.

As with the Canadian Hockey League draft, Sabourin found himself overlooked again in the NHL Entry Draft. Being undrafted did not deter him. “I wasn’t on any radars early, but I kept working on my game,” Sabourin said. “I was getting better and then finally as a 20-year-old in the OHL, I got the chance to play some good minutes and got the chance to prove myself.

 “It obviously would have been nice to have gotten drafted, but at the end of the day it’s not the ‘be all end all,’” Sabourin said. “There are a lot of guys who are undrafted or unsigned that make careers and get the opportunity that they want.”

As an undrafted free agent, Sabourin signed a two-year amateur contract with the Monarchs in April 2013. He saw the LA Kings’ winning attitude as an organization as the right fit for him, crediting their style of play as what he needed to improve on in his game.

“They play a physical game and a good systematic game and so I think there were a lot of things I needed in my hockey game,” Sabourin said.

Sabourin’s physical style was a good match for the Monarchs. In his last year of junior, besides collecting 50 points offensively, he racked up 142 penalty minutes. Sabourin sees his role of protecting his teammates as an important contribution on the ice.

 “There have just been more situations that I see arising this year where someone needs to step up and sort of handle that aspect of the game,” Sabourin said. “If I think the game is getting a little chippy or they are taking liberties at our skilled guys, then I like to try to step in and help them out. I don’t go looking for it, but a lot of the time it’s there.”

Sabourin even fought now teammate Ryan Horvat in a preseason rookie game versus the Anaheim Ducks in September 2013. He laughed about the fight being a good ice breaker and instant bond with Horvat.

“We joked about it when he first came to the team,” Sabourin said. “That was sort of an easy way to get a bond with a guy – to have fought him the summer or season before.” As a veteran, Sabourin maintains a good bond with the rookies, even if that bond comes from a previous on-ice fight. He knows he was in the same position the year before.

Although he is in his second AHL season, Sabourin knows he has to keep improving his game to play each night, working on consistency and executing the minor details and little plays effectively. As with any player, he continues to round out all aspects of his game. He strives to improve his defensive game. “You learn the habits of being a pro hockey player and what you have to do on a nightly basis to stay in the lineup and contribute,” Sabourin said.  “Second year you come in with a little more confidence, but at the same time you can’t change your game.  You’ve got to stick to what got you there.  Two years in the league isn’t a long time so I’m definitely still learning every day.”

One thing he has learned to adjust to is an injury early in the season. In early December, Sabourin suffered a knee injury and did not return to the lineup until mid-January. “With hockey, as with anything in life, there’s always going to be adversity and there’s always going to be ups and downs,” Sabourin said. “You have to stay positive and things will work out the way they should. At the end of the day you try to work through it and try to get better every day.

“It was tough with the injury coming early, but it’s a good learning year and I’ll take a lot away from it,” Sabourin said. “There are still some games and hopefully a long playoff run to keep improving and to get better.”

In the final stretch of the season, the Monarchs sit atop the Atlantic Division and were the first team to clinch a playoff spot. Last season was a similar story. They won the division, but found themselves eliminated in the first round against the Norfolk Admirals. “Last year we had a good team as well, but we ran into a hot goalie in [John] Gibson in Norfolk and they had a pretty veteran team,” Sabourin said. “This year I think we’ll be ready. We have a very good team. We are sitting in first place right now. We just have to be ready right off the get go. We can’t let any games slide and have to be engaged the whole way through.”

Sabourin hopes to contribute his physicality during the playoffs. “I think I’ll be a good help for the team,” Sabourin said. “In the playoffs when you’re going deep on a run, you need some grit and some guys who are going to do all the little things and be physical.”