Allard pushes himself to next level

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This article was published 16/06/2023 (960 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Never underestimate the power of a little bit of adversity on a driven person.

Cameron Allard, a 15-year-old defenceman from Yorkton, was selected by the Brandon Wheat Kings in the eighth round of the Western Hockey League draft on May 11 with the 160th overall pick.

Allard started to realize junior hockey might be in his future in his minor bantam year.

“I got cut as a first year in peewee and that just motivated me,” Allard said. “Peewee second year I was still working towards it and when I made bantam as a first year for AA in Saskatchewan, then it was ‘Here we go. It’s all starting up now.’”

The six-foot-one 162-pound defenceman began to skate around age three in Kindersley, Sask.

“I used to go out on the rink with my dad,” Allard said. “It was a smaller town so we could skate whenever we wanted.”

He began to play after his father Jeremey, a police officer, had been transferred to Maple Creek.

“I got a lot of experience in different rinks,” Allard said. He immediately gravitated to the back end, and has never played forward or goal.

There is certainly a passion for the game in the family.

Jeremy Allard played in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League and college hockey at Minot State University-Bottineau, which is now Dakota College at Bottineau, and his mother Shanley played at the University of Saskatchewan.

“They both love hockey,” Allard said. “My sister (Kaley) plays girls U13 AA this year.”

The family also includes a second sister, Shayla.

In addition, Cameron’s uncle Shane Allard was a goalie with the MJHL’s Dauphin Kings when he died in a car accident on Dec. 1, 2002, at age 19.

“I’ve had a love for the game since I was probably three when I first started to skate on the ice and was playing mini sticks in the basement or watching a game on TV,” said Cameron, who was born in 2008. “I just love the sport.”

In what’s increasingly becoming an unfortunate throwback to another era, he’s also a high-end player in another sport.

He plays baseball at the AAA level, doing some pitching but spending a lot of time at first base.

“It’s nice because you can just get outside and enjoy both sports,” Allard said. “You still have to be training and working hard in the summer but it’s nice to go out there and swing a bat instead of shooting a hockey puck.”

In 31 games in his first year at the U15 level, Allard had three goals, nine assists and six penalty minutes. That vaulted him into his WHL draft year, which he admitted he thought about last season.

“I tried to keep it out and make it a small deal but it was still in the back of my mind,” Allard said.

In 39 games with the Yorkton Terriers U15 AA squad, Allard had six goals, 13 assists and 32 penalty minutes.

On draft day, he was at school with his phone when his name finally popped up in the eighth round. It was apparently worth the wait.

“It was unreal,” Allard said. “I was in the classroom and watching close. Teacher probably didn’t like it but I might have been one of the happiest men in the school that day.”

And needless to say, his phone was active.

“That was the craziest part,” Allard said. “It probably didn’t stop buzzing for about an hour or two after.”

It certainly proved to be a popular pick at home. The 285-km drive from Yorkton to Brandon is the third closest to home, with Regina and Moose Jaw the only two cities closer.

“My parents wanted me to go to Brandon because my dad actually grew up watching games here,” Allard said. “Brandon is a nice city and real close, about three hours from Yorkton, so it’s a short drive and they can come out and watch.”

Allard’s father grew up in Portage la Prairie but his grandfather worked in Brandon so he would come to a hockey game occasionally.

Brandon director of player personnel Chris Moulton said after the draft that Allard’s game reminds him of another Wheat Kings prospect, Jack Swaenepoel of Souris, who the Wheat Kings took in the seventh round, 22 picks earlier.

“He’s a big body and very similar to Jack, to be honest,” Moulton said. “He does a lot of things well and can make a play, can defend. He is not afraid to get involved. He’s a very well-rounded guy in a big frame.”

Allard said his strength is in his own end, but he has offence in his game as well.

“I’m a pretty reliable guy in the D-zone and I can make that first pass and get it out of the zone,” Allard said. “I can join the rush when I have to.”

He said getting faster is his major goal.

“I have to quicken up my feet so I can have those quick couple strides to get going or to catch up to a guy,” Allard said. “Also my physical strength, so I can push guys around and use my bigger frame.”

Brandon’s prospects camp in late May was a proving ground of whether he actually belonged. He knew that, and while it added a bit of anxiety to his first taste of the WHL, it all worked out.

“I tried to be more excited than nervous but obviously before the first skate, there are some older guys here,” Allard said. “But I felt pretty good, pretty calm after the first skate. Games get you up a little more and the first couple of shifts you really just have to adjust to the tempo and get going from there.”

He liked the level of talent he saw around him on the ice, saying he was most impressed by the speed and the shots and saw a bright future for the organization.

The teenager attended WHL games in Saskatoon, Regina and Swift Current growing up. Now he’s hoping Brandon is next on the list.

“That’s what I want to do,” Allard said. “I want to play major junior. That’s the next step to reach an ultimate goal.”

» Profiles of Brandon’s most recent draft picks and listed players will continue in upcoming editions of The Brandon Sun.

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