Laval – Frédéric Brunet has difficulty explaining why, but he has not had a start to the season that meets his expectations.
However, he felt in full control of his skills at the Bruins training camp, during which he took part in two preparatory games. His performance reflected the level of effort he put into his summer preparation. A linear progression, like all athletes dream of.
“But I find that my start to the season is a bit slowlamented the 21-year-old defender Friday morning at Place Bell. I don’t know if I’m being hard on myself, but personally I think I started a little slow. Sometimes I play little games that I no longer did at the end of last year. I fell back into my old habits. »
When this unexpected step back finally affected his morale, Brunet did not turn to a coach, a teammate or a sports psychologist. The most reassuring ear he found was, as usual, that of his big brother.
Cédrick Brunet is a high-level speed skater. A member of the Canadian national long track team, he recently failed in his attempt to qualify for the next season on the World Cup circuit. He is not the same age as his brother and does not play the same sport, but his professional status is similar.
“You said it well, we are really in the same situation,” corroborates Frédéric. I’m trying to break through to the next level and so is he. I think that being at the same stage of our careers, it really helps to talk about how we feel, the difficult stages. It’s pretty much the same stuff. »
But the connection between the two brothers goes far beyond any sporting parallels you can imagine.
“Our parents instilled great values in us,” recognizes Cédrick. He’s your brother, he’s going to be your best friend for life. I think it has remained, and I hope it will remain throughout my life. Since Day 1, my parents wanted us to be together all the time. I brought my brother with my friends, he brought me with his friends. We hung out together all the time. This makes our relationship even stronger today. »
“We rise together”
The Brunet family is originally from Gatineau. When Frédéric’s junior career took off with the Rimouski Océanic, his parents moved to Quebec to be closer to his son. They thus killed two birds with one stone since Cédrick was training at the Sainte-Foy Ice Center.
The eldest, who already had an apartment in Quebec, eventually moved into the new family home. In the summer, the clan is reconstituted with Frédéric’s return to the fold. The two brothers do not train together, since their respective programs are not compatible. “But mentally, we push ourselves so much,” says the Bruins’ fifth-round pick in 2022. “Sometimes maybe one morning it doesn’t tempt me, but I see my brother getting up at 6:30 a.m., I say to myself “Okay , yes…” We are both in the same situation. We push each other when one is having a bad day and the other is having a good day. We rise together. »
A few days ago, after missing out on his goals in the ring, Cédrick received a call from his brother. “I brought out the bad guy and then we immediately changed the subject! » What do a speed skater and a hockey player talk about when they want to cheer each other up? From their football pool! “Our conversations tend to boil down to that a lot these days! », he laughs.
Shortly after this courtesy call, the big brother decided that a little road trip was necessary. On a whim, he took the seven-hour drive to Rhode Island. “It changed our minds so much, you have no idea,” he says happily.
“We played on Wednesday, I feelais so much better, confirms Frédéric. I had a lot less weight on my shoulders. It really helped that he came to visit me. Sometimes, just small things can really help a season and even a career. »
Cédrick won’t stop racking up the miles for his brother. On Friday, shortly before 3 p.m., he was preparing to enter the gym for a workout. Immediately afterwards, he planned to head to Laval for the two games that the Bruins farm club was scheduled to play there this weekend.
Another “bad weekend” in perspective for the Brunet brothers.
