The Saint-Hyacinthe Laser were a

junior ice hockey Junior hockey is a level of competitive ice hockey generally for players between 16 and 21 years of age. Junior hockey leagues in the United States and Canada are considered amateur (with some exceptions) and operate within regions of each cou ...

team in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League from 1989 to 1996. They played their home games at

Stade L.P. Gaucher The Stade L.P. Gaucher is a multi-purpose arena in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec. It has a capacity of 2,048 and was built in 1937. It was home to the Saint-Hyacinthe Laser of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League from 1989 to 1996. The arena hosted team ...

in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec, Canada.

History

The Saint-Hyacinthe Laser were born in 1989 after the

Verdun Junior Canadiens The Verdun Junior Canadiens were a junior ice hockey team in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) from 1984 to 1989. They played home games at the Verdun Auditorium, and won the President's Cup during the 1984–85 QMJHL season. History ...

were bought and moved to the city of Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec. The team played for seven years before moving to

Rouyn-Noranda Rouyn-Noranda ( 2021 population 42,313) is a city on Osisko Lake in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region of Quebec, Canada. The city of Rouyn-Noranda is a coextensive with a territory equivalent to a regional county municipality (TE) and census ...

. In the third year of operation, general manager Claude Lemieux was named Executive of the Year (

John Horman Trophy The John Horman Trophy is awarded annually to the Executive of the Year in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (french: Ligue de hockey junior majeur du Québec; abbreviated ''QMJHL'' in English, ''LHJMQ'' ...

). He rebuilt the Verdun Junior Canadiens team that struggled in last place in the QMJHL for three seasons into a club with a winning record, and was awarded for many individual achievements in the next few years.

Richard Martel Richard Martel (born March 23, 1961) is a Canadian politician and former ice hockey coach. He last coached the Grenoble Brûleurs de Loups in the French Ligue Magnus. Martel was elected to the House of Commons of Canada in a by-election on ...

was awarded Coach of the Year in 1993-94 (

Ron Lapointe Trophy The Ron Lapointe Trophy is awarded annually by the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (french: Ligue de hockey junior majeur du Québec; abbreviated ''QMJHL'' in English, ''LHJMQ'' in French) is one of the thr ...

). His assistant coach that season was

Mario Pouliot Mario Pouliot (born September 30, 1963) is a Canadian former ice hockey coach and general manager. He began coaching in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) as an assistant coach with the Saint-Hyacinthe Laser. He later coached the Col ...

Players

The most notable player in the team's history is goaltender

Martin Brodeur Martin Pierre Brodeur (; born May 6, 1972) is a Canadian-American former professional ice hockey goaltender and current team executive. He played 22 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL), 21 of them for the New Jersey Devils, with whom ...

. He played three full seasons with the Laser, being drafted 20th overall in the 1st round of the

1990 NHL Entry Draft The 1990 NHL Entry Draft was the 28th NHL Entry Draft. It was hosted by the Vancouver Canucks at BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, on June 16, 1990. It is remembered as one of the deeper drafts in NHL history, with fourteen of the twenty- ...

Award winners

CHL Player of the Year * ''1991-92'' Charles Poulin CHL Sportsman of the Year * ''1991-92'' Martin Gendron

CHL Humanitarian of the Year The CHL Humanitarian of the Year Award is given out annually to the Canadian Hockey League player judged to have made the most notable contribution to his community in a humanitarian sense. It is chosen from the winners of the QMJHL Humanitarian ...

* ''1994-95''

David-Alexandre Beauregard David-Alexandre Beauregard (born January 28, 1976) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played 14 years in the minor leagues. Early years Beauregard was born in Montreal, Quebec. From a very young age, Beauregard had been a ...

Jean Béliveau Trophy
(Top Scorer) * ''1991-92'' Patrick Poulin Michel Brière Commemorative Trophy
(Most valuable player) * ''1991-92'' Charles Poulin Shell Cup – Offensive
(Offensive player of the year) * ''1991-92'' Martin Gendron

Raymond Lagacé Trophy The Raymond Lagacé Trophy is awarded annually to the Defensive Rookie of the Year in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Prior to 1980, there was only one Rookie of the Year trophy, the Michel Bergeron Trophy The Michel Bergeron Trophy is awar ...

(Offensive Rookie of the Year) * ''1993-94'' Jimmy Drolet

Frank J. Selke Memorial Trophy The Frank J. Selke Memorial Trophy is awarded annually to the most sportsmanlike player in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The award began in the 1969–70 season as a team trophy awarded to the league's West Division champions. It has bee ...

(Most sportsmanlike player) * ''1991-92'' Martin Gendron * ''1992-93'' Martin Gendron

Paul Dumont Trophy The Paul Dumont Trophy is awarded annually to the "Personality of the Year" in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The award can be won by anyone connected to the league, including players and staff. It was named after former league president Pau ...

(Personality of the year) * ''1991-92'' Patrick Poulin

Wittnauer Plaque The QMJHL Humanitarian of the Year Award is awarded annually by the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League to one player for humanitarianism and community A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms ...

(Best community involvement) * ''1994-95''

NHL alumni

Season-by-season results

Regular season

Playoffs

*1989-1990 Defeated Trois-Rivières Draveurs 4 games to 3 in quarter-finals.
Lost to Victoriaville Tigres 4 games to 1 in semi-finals. *1990-1991 Lost to

Longueuil Collège Français Longueuil Collège Français are a junior "A" ice hockey team from Longueuil, Quebec, and a member of the Quebec Junior Hockey League. The Collège Français headquarters are in Longueuil, Quebec, while the team plays at Colisée Jean Béliveau ...

4 games to 0 in quarter-finals. *1991-1992 Lost to

Verdun Collège Français Verdun Collège Français were a junior ice hockey team from Verdun, Quebec, Canada. They were members of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League from 1991 to 1994. Collège Français resurrected the dormant Quebec Remparts franchise in 1985 after a ...

4 games to 2 in quarter-finals. *1992-1993 Out of playoffs. *1993-1994 Lost to Hull Olympiques 4 games to 3 in division quarter-finals. *1994-1995 Lost to Hull Olympiques 4 games to 1 in division quarter-finals. *1995-1996 Finished 4th place (3 wins, 4 losses) in 6 team round-robin for division quarter-finals.
Lost to

Granby Prédateurs The Granby Prédateurs ("Predators") were a junior ice hockey team founded in 1981 after the team moved from Sorel-Tracy, Quebec, where they had been known as the Sorel Éperviers. The team had been known as the Granby Bisons, but changed their ...

4 games to 1 in quarter-finals.

References

{{Defunct QMJHL Defunct Quebec Major Junior Hockey League teams Sport in Saint-Hyacinthe Ice hockey clubs established in 1989 Ice hockey clubs disestablished in 1996 1989 establishments in Quebec 1996 disestablishments in Quebec