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Long before he was known and recognized for his work with goaltenders, Stéphane Waite played baseball.
First at the junior level, and then at the senior level. And it is in this caliber where he had his best years. The level of play was high, from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s, in Estrie.
And the rivalries are intense. It is the least we can say.
And who often lit the fires? You guess it.
This passion for the ball emerged quickly. In fact, as quickly as it was for all the young boys growing up in the 1970s.
“I started when I was eight, I think. My summers were devoted to baseball, and my winters to hockey. It was automatic, for this generation. And we looked forward to the changing seasons. Today, young people play hockey for 10-11 months; when the season starts again, they are no longer hungry. I encourage young people to do other sports. In our time, as soon as school was over, it was baseball at Marie-Médiatrice Park, in the west of Sherbrooke,” he recalled.
The Montreal Expos, a fledgling franchise within the major baseball leagues, already had a lot of influence among young Quebecers, who tried to imitate their prowess on local fields.
“I liked to compare myself with the Montreal Expos players; My interest in sport comes from the Expos. I’ve always loved baseball strategy. I played with the Sherbrooke Apollos, from the atom category to bantam, then with the midget, major junior and senior Athletics.”
He loved it so much that he launched a senior club, the Athletics of Sherbrooke.
“Everywhere I go in Sherbrooke and Estrie, people still talk to me about those years. These were the big years of senior baseball, in Sherbrooke, there were incredible rivalries. I started Senior Athletics in 1988, after my junior internship. It became very, very popular, overnight. We were lucky to have several media following us, and not just once a week. There were articles or reports the day before the matches, the day of the matches, the day after. La Tribune, La Nouvelle, CKSH TV, CHLT, CJRS, the press gallery was too small to accommodate all the journalists,” he laughed.
Make trouble
Stéphane Waite, most of the time, found himself in turmoil. He knew the shocking declarations.
“I loved it, causing a bit of trouble! And for two reasons. First of all, it motivated me, it forced me to give the best of me. When you talk a lot, your boots have to follow your lips, otherwise you look thick. But also, it was to bring people, create rivalries and fill the stadium! I was one of the guys who had to pay the bills if it didn’t happen at the end of the year! The rivalries with Coaticook, Drummondville, Granby, Acton Vale, Victoriaville, were incredible, all these clubs hated us. And each club brought its supporters to see the matches in Sherbrooke.
Ironically, Waite subsequently played with Coaticook’s Big Bill for nine seasons. The Coaticook organization even retired its number!
Waite was reacting, therefore. But he found a way to deliver the goods. Which could sometimes cause him some small security problems.
“I remember, at the dawn of a playoff series against Coaticook, I declared that we were too strong for that team, that they had no chance of beating us, even if they had a very good team. The people of Coaticook are very proud, and it’s tight-knit there. They didn’t really take it well!” he laughed.
“In the first game, the stadium was full, and at the very end, I hit a home run for the victory, a home run that was hit far, far away, against their best pitcher, Richard Poulin, a left-handed pitcher. I went around the bases, and it took a very long time. I took my time! At home plate, people started throwing beer bottles at me. To go to our locker room, at the time in Coaticook, we had to cross the street and go to the arena. It took us a police escort to get there! We won the match. I had my best matches when things were tough.”
Stéphane Waite has dozens of baseball-related memories. This is why he did not hesitate when the Sherbrooke Expos (Quebec Major Baseball League) asked him to be the honorary president of their 2024 season.
Baseball never far away
Even when he was goaltending coach with the Blackhawks or the Canadiens, baseball was never far away for Stéphane Waite.
“In Chicago, whenever I had the chance, I went to see the Cubs, in the spring and in the fall. I had the honor of participating in the team’s batting practice on one occasion. An incredible moment. After winning the Stanley Cup in 2010, we were invited to Wrigley Field by the Cubs. Hawks president John McDonough was also the former president of the Cubs, and he got me this favor, he knew I was a baseball maniac.
“When I was with the Canadian, with a few players, we had the chance to go hit balls with the Blue Jays, at the Olympic stadium, when they came to play exhibition games in Montreal.”
A new life that he adores
Stéphane Waite loves his new life. He comments on NHL activities for Cogeco and RDS, after leaving Carey Price and the CH, a little abruptly it must be said, in 2021.
“I love what I do. I’m close to retirement, I have a year or two left. I don’t see myself returning to the ice, or to the road, every day. I did 18 years in the NHL, that’s 18 years on the road, with no weekends, endless hours. You don’t realize it until you get out of it. I don’t have that energy anymore. I’m lucky, I’m talking about hockey! I watch matches and talk about them on different platforms. I also love my position as a goaltending consultant in the QMJHL. I still have my hockey schools, and I still love working with young people. I’m very busy, but at my own pace.”
Two Stanley Cups, and nearly 20 years spent with two of the NHL’s original franchises, that enhances a CV. But not to the point of returning at any price, indicated Stéphane Waite.
“I talked to a few teams, but it didn’t stick. For a fit question or a salary question. Some teams weren’t offering the big deal. Two teams contacted me last summer. There is also a new generation of coaches who are growing. Me, I’m old school. And in the NHL, coaches who have a lot of experience become a liability. We seem to be looking for younger players, with new ideas, closer to young players. That’s how I also got into the NHL, ironically.”
Waite and Bergevin made peace
Stéphane Waite and Marc Bergevin have spoken again since the Sherbrookois’ dismissal in the middle of a CH match, in February 2021.
“We spoke three or four times. I never had a problem with Marc, nor with the fact that he wanted to give Carey a new voice, after eight years. Which was totally justified. Marc always told me that he regretted having done it like that. He thought that would allow me not to face the journalists afterwards, after the match. He did it with good intentions, but in a bad way. There is no one perfect,” conceded Stéphane Waite.
His protégé then had a roller coaster season. Health problems, among other things, forced the CH goalkeeper to hang up his call shortly after.
The two men, who rubbed shoulders with each other every day – or almost – are still in contact. Price and Waite text each other regularly. They find out about retirement, family, and holidays.
“We saw each other again last summer, we went to dinner together in Brossard. He looks very good, he misses the game, but not the daily training and treatments! He is happy, mentally and physically, he is doing well. That’s what’s most important.”
2024-04-15 22:02:51
#passions #Stéphane #Waite #show
