LHSAAAQ

When the story of a team’s desired relocation broke on February 11th, it seemed like the City of Shawinigan was in for a hockey treat- a second team. There were discussions between a prospective Senior AAA team and the city, but there was a catch: an exclusivity agreement between the local QMJHL team and the city. Over the past week, the issue has become a bit of a flashpoint in the city and its hockey community.  When the BSR ownership group purchased the La Tuque Wolves fra

Photo from Le Hebdo du St-Maurice when announcing the move. It was only a few weeks ago that we asked the question of whether or not the 3rd time would be a charm in Nicolet. The answer has arrived, and it’s a hard no. On February 12th, the team announced that it was in discussions with the town of Shawinigan for relocation. Today, we look at the specifics of the deal.  First, Nicolet: The town has been drawing Triple A Teams since 2018. In the case of BSR, it turned out to b

The LHSAAAQ is rolling into the final weekend of its regular season. It was a fantastic season in terms of the talent on the ice and the visibility and reach of the league with its new streaming partner. Before we move on the playoffs, let's look back at the memorable and not so memorable performances of the 2025-26 season,  The Good:  We can’t talk about anything good without talking about the Granby Bison. The team that hoisted the cup last Spring had all the makings of a d

Since evolving to its current form in 2016, the LHSAAAQ has had several constants, including the movement of teams in and out of Nicolet. The Condor existed for two seasons, followed by REEQ for three more, and now BSR is coming to the close of its first. What is the attraction, what has changed, and will the 3 rd  time be the one that brings it all together are questions worth looking into. Nicolet is one of the league’s small markets. Located on the South Shore of the Saint

With hockey’s ever increasing cost, it’s nearly impossible for small markets to get in the game, let alone succeed. Unless, of course, you’re the Bellechasse Bucks. Since joining Quebec’s Senior AAA League in the Fall of 2024, the Bucks appear to have cracked the code by succeeding, and even trendsetting, in the league’s smallest market. When it was first announced in Le Voix du Sud in June of 2023 that AAA hockey was coming to Saint-Anselme, everything seemed to make sense;

Starting from the NHL and working down through every level of hockey, leagues have made efforts to reduce or remove fighting. In the case of the LHSAAAQ, they’re making the effort to remove the violence. The move is far from simple semantics or word play, and so far seems to be satisfying players and fans, as well as sponsors. Per game, the league still enjoys an entertaining quantity of fights but has done so by establishing certain boundaries. Historically, the league wasn

The LHSAAAQ Offseason included a brief round of musical chairs, with the sale and relocation of the Nicolet franchise to Trois-Rivieres and the subsequent sale and relocation of the La Tuque franchise to Nicolet. The teams offered varying degrees of visibility to their new identities in the weeks leading up to the draft, but the league’s July 4 th  event served as their official introductions. The two teams unveiled new names and logos and made roster moves that helped define

We’re just under a week away from the 2025 LHSAAAQ Draft. The event can provide lots of information about where the league is going. Looking at previous drafts, recent initiatives and team movement, as well as making comparisons to other provincial leagues, we can draw some indications on the league’s future or, at a minimum, things to watch for. Visibility: The fact that the draft is taking place at a public venue versus a closed arena shows that the league is continuing to

The LHSAAAQ’s off season is well underway, and franchise movement has been a part of it. While the recent news of the sale and relocation of the LaTuque Wolves was quite a splash, the league taking another shot at Trois-Rivieres has been the big story.   The Coliseum has been attracting teams in various leagues since the departure of the QMJHL’s Draveurs in 1992, mostly without any lasting success . The list of leagues includes the LHSAAAQ as recently as 2023. What and where

With their finals being broadcast on ApexLiveTV, the LHSAAAQ went from low visibility senior hockey to something of a minor league in appearance overnight. This is a massive win for the league and couldn't have come with a better match up than the one going on right now. For those not in the province, it can’t be said how good or bad the hockey was, or how much it’s improved, as it couldn't be seen. In a world where visibility matters, the league was completely off the radar.