Drouin and Duclair Living Out Childhood Dream with Islanders

Anthony Duclair and Jonathan Drouin go way back, 20 years to be exact. Duclair, a Pointe-Claire, Quebec native, and Drouin, a Ste-Agathe, Quebec native, remember running around the rink and skating together since they were about nine or 10 years old.

The close friends became teammates on the Lac St. Louis Lions Quebec elite Midget AAA team. They loved to play on the same line, but there was one issue, they were both natural right wings - but they found a fun way to settle who would play where back in their midget days.

“We both really like the right wing, so we’d do rock paper scissors before the game to see who would get to play right wing,” Duclair said. “We had a lot of competitive battles like that.”

Flash forward to the present day and both 30-year-old forwards are playing on the wing, living out their dream every day together in the New York Islanders locker room.

“When we were kids, we wondered about what it would be like to play in the NHL someday,” Duclair said. “It’s nice to look back and talk about those memories. Doing it now, we’re living our dream.”

The pair won a championship together back in the day when they teammates on the 2011-12 Lions squad that won the Jimmy Ferrari Cup, awarded to the Quebec Midget AAA champion. The two hoped to continue as teammates in the short-term, but ended up on opposing teams in the QMJHL (Quebec Major Junior Hockey League). Drouin played for the Halifax Mooseheads and Duclair laced up for the Québec Remparts. Over the years, they’d skate together in the offseason and still keep up the friendly banter.

“We spent our summers together when we were younger,” Drouin said. “Always nagging each other back then, we’re a little more mature now, but it’s still there.”

They reached their ultimate goal of being drafted into the NHL in 2013, but went to different teams. Drouin was selected third overall by the Tampa Bay Lightning, while Duclair was drafted by the New York Rangers in the third round (80^th overall). For over a decade, they garnered more respect for each other as opponents in the NHL, before their exact childhood dreams officially came true when Drouin signed a two-year deal with the Islanders on July 1.

“When he first got here, he was wondering where to live and what the best restaurants are,” Duclair said. “I’ve been helping him out a little bit but now he’s got a good grasp of Long Island. He’s been here for a little bit now and he’s finding his way.”

Drouin is gelling with his new team – recording five points (1G, 4A) in seven games for the Isles – while Duclair has three points (2G, 1A) in eight games.

Ahead of their first season as teammates, Drouin and Duclair got to take a walk down memory lane ahead of training camp. Drouin’s #27 and Duclair’s #10 were retired by the Lions over the summer, when they were one of five NHL players to receive the honor in a pregame ceremony at the Dollard Civic Centre on Sept. 5.

“It was super cool, that was a great night for us but our parents too,” Drouin said. “They put a lot of work in for Anthony and I to have hockey careers and be where we are today. It was a fun reunion, a special night for everyone.”

Now their parents get to watch their sons reunited on the same team, this time in the NHL for the Islanders, where they don’t have to squabble over who gets to play right wing anymore.

“Right now, we’re not on the same line so we don’t have to rock paper scissors or anything,” Drouin said with a laugh. “But it’s a dream come true to be finally playing together on the same team again.”