It’s still brewing in the den of the Lions of Trois-Rivières.
Indeed, barely two months after taking over from Marc-André Bergeron as general manager and head coach of the Trois-Rivières team, the new driver, Pascal Rhéaume, is already leaving the den to pursue his career in the American League of Hockey.
It will, therefore, be his new assistant, Ron Choules, former head coach for the Shawinigan Cataractes in the QMJHL, who will now occupy the two positions left vacant by Pascal Rhéaume.
It must be said that since taking office, Coach Rhéaume has done a lot of work to build a team to which the supporters would be able to reconnect. Several players, crowd favorites, who had left doubts about their future with the organization, had finally decided to return to the organization. Not to mention all the new players who have decided to join the felines.
Pascal, therefore, leaves a very good base for his successor, Ron Choules.
Who is Ron Choules?
Choules joins the organization after spending the last two seasons as head coach of the Lac St. Louis Lions from the Quebec midget AAA level. It will be his first experience as a coach at the professional level.
The 60-year-old also spent 13 seasons behind the bench in the QMJHL in various roles for the Victoriaville Tigres, Acadie-Bathrust Titan, Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, Gatineau Olympiques, and Shawinigan Cataractes between 2005 and 2021.
In his playing days, Choules was a left winger who was drafted in the 12th round, 228th overall, by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1983 NHL Entry Draft. His professional career lasted 31 games in the AHL and the IHL.
A New Season, a New President, and a New Owner?
The season is right around the corner. Trois-Rivieres is making a lot of great signatures with the help of Laval Rocket.
But, management-wise, the team still is missing a President of Hockey Operations. Deacon Sports and Entertainment are telling us that it’s a long process, but things are going in the right direction.
In Trois-Rivieres, the rumors are back in full force about the possibility of DSE of selling the Lions to some local interest, just like they did with Iowa Heartlanders.
So, there are still a lot of questions to be answered here, but the fans are getting increasingly excited about the season to come! In my opinion, the team is one of the most improved teams in the division, and we can dream of a Kelly Cup Playoff run this year.
