Zach Fucale's father enjoys Canadian junior success in hometown rink
Jack Fucale says watching son win for Canada at Montreal's Bell Centre was 'extraordinary feeling'
The father of Canadian junior team goalie Zach Fucale says he’s normally relaxed when watching his son play, but seeing him in nets at Montreal’s Bell Centre has been an entirely different experience.
Fucale grew up cheering for the Habs in the Montreal suburb of Rosemere, Que.
On Monday, he backstopped Canada to a 3-1 victory over Finland at the World Junior Hockey Championships as his mother and father watched from the stands.
“Honestly, I’m usually laid back, but last night I could not control myself, ” Jack Fucale told CBC Montreal’s Daybreak.
“It’s crazy having the whole Bell Centre behind the whole team and cheering on everybody, Zach especially, being a home boy.”
The 19-year-old netminder also played at the Bell Centre last Friday, when Canada shut out Slovakia 8-0.
“It’s an extraordinary feeling,” Jack Fucale said. “We feel very, very privileged.”
Fucale could soon be playing in Montreal more often.
He was drafted by the Canadiens in the second round (36th overall) of the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.
Fucale, who plays for the Halifax Mooseheads in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, was also on the team at last year's tournament in Malmo, Sweden, where Canada settled for a fourth-place finish.
Fans are hoping the Quebec netminder can help Canada break a gold-medal slump that dates back to 2009.
So far, the team has gone with a rotation in nets that includes Fucale and Eric Comrie.
Comrie, who turned in a 4-0 shutout against Germany earlier in the tournament, will face the high-powered Americans in their final first-round game on Wednesday afternoon.
Listen to the full interview with Jack Fucale here.