Ice Hockey Camps

Beaulieu close attention now paying off

Saint John Sea Dogs defenseman Nathan Beaulieu gained a love for ice hockey at a very impressionable age.

In addition to tagging along with his dad, Jacques, who was his hockey coach in pee-wee and bantam, he would meet many professionals and watch closely how they prepared for games while his father also coached in the Ontario Hockey League.

It was addictive, actually.

"My dad coached Rob Schremp and I'd watch him tape his sticks up in the stands before every game," Beaulieu told NHL .com.

Beaulieu was an assistant coach with the London Knights when Schremp was named OHL rookie of the year in 2003-04 and then scored a league-high 145 points in 2005-06.

"I'd just talk to (Schremp) and he was always good to me as a young kid," Nathan said. "I had to be annoying at times, asking all those questions. Another guy I used to love to watch was Corey Perry (with London in 2004-05). Corey went on the ice before every game and he'd fire pucks around. He has some pretty sick hands, so it was pretty neat to be up front and close to watch these amazing hockey players at work."

Beaulieu has been working diligently ever since to create quite an impressive hockey resume of his own leading up to the 2011 Entry Draft in St. Paul, Minn., on June 24-25.

As the top-rated defenseman in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, and No. 5 among North American skaters in NHL Central Scouting's final rankings, Beaulieu has become the player everyone else is following these days. In 65 regular-season games with the Sea Dogs, Beaulieu had 12 goals, 45 points and a plus-44 rating. He had 11 multiple-point games.

He kept that strong play going in the postseason. In 19 QMJHL playoff games, he was third among all defensemen with 17 points (4 goals, 13 assists) while sporting a plus-6 rating. His 68 shots were second on the team. He had a goal and 2 assists in a six-game league final series triumph against the Gatineau Olympiques to help the Sea Dogs to their first President's Cup championship in their six years of existence.

Beaulieu is one of nine Sea Dogs on Central Scouting's final list of North American skaters. The club tied the QMJHL record for most wins in a season with 58 and went undefeated at home in regulation (32-0-1-1) to enter the 2011 playoffs as the top-seeded team in the QMJHL.

Of those nine Sea Dogs, Beaulieu is second only to Jonathan Huberdeau in Central Scouting's rankings. He's also the No. 2 defenseman on the board. It seems NHL scouts and general managers no longer are hesitant to take a chance on an offensively-gifted, defensively-responsible blueliner from within the QMJHL. The Phoenix Coyotes drafted Moncton's Brandon Gormley at No. 13 just last June, so Beaulieu is holding out hope that he's held in similar regard.

Penguins to Hold First Girls Hockey Camp - Pittsburgh Penguins - News

The unique camp – open to girls in three age groups from 5-19 – will feature three accomplished female instructors: Brianne McLaughlin,  former Robert Morris goaltender and member of the 2010 USA Olympic Team; Valerie Chouinard, former star at Mercyhurst College who played for the Canadian women’s national team; and Marianne Watkins, the Pittsburgh Penguins’ skating consultant. “We’ve been very encouraged by the dramatic increase in participation in girls hockey in the Pittsburgh area,” said Rich Hixon, the Penguins’ Executive Director of Strategic Planning, who oversees all youth hockey activities. “Our other camps always have been co-ed, and we’ve had girls take part, but we thought it was time to develop a camp focused specifically for girls – with some great role models as instructors.” are trademarks of Lemieux Group, LP.  NHL and the word mark and image of the Stanley Cup are registered trademarks and the NHL Shield and NHL Conference logos are trademarks of the National Hockey League. All NHL logos and marks and NHL team logos and marks as well as all other proprietary materials depicted herein are the property of the NHL and the respective NHL teams and may not be reproduced without the prior written consent of NHL Enterprises, L.P.  Copyright © 2010 Lemieux Group, LP and the National Hockey League.  All Rights Reserved.

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