IIHF – Forging his own path

Dominic Forget is somewhat of a legend in the city of Shawinigan, Quebec, home of the QMJHL’s Cataractes.

In three seasons with the hockey team from 1998 to 2001, Dominic posted season point totals of 81, 116, and 141. He sits fourth on Shawinigan’s all-time scoring list.

This past season in the QMJHL, Shawinigan hockey fans got a glimpse of the next Forget hoping to make his own mark. Jordan, Dominic’s oldest son, played 61 games for the Cataractes and, while he hasn’t yet posted numbers similar to his father, you can bet the hard-nosed, hard-working style that Jordan plays is going to endear him to Cataractes fans.

“I got drafted by Victoriaville so it wasn’t supposed to be like that. I got traded to Shawinigan one year later and I didn’t realize at first how special it would be,” says Jordan Forget, who was taken 38^th overall by Victoriaville in the 2022 QMJHL Draft and is focused this week on helping Switzerland at the 2024 IIHF U18 World Championship.

It’s very special, especially for (my dad) because he came to watch my games and that brought back some good memories. He just told me to enjoy every moment because the junior career goes by so fast. That’s what I’m doing.

“Sometimes I go out of the rink and people just say ‘yeah, I remember watching your dad and now I’m watching you playing for Shawinigan’. It makes me smile. It’s special.”

Says Dominic: “When Jordan got traded to the Cataractes of Shawinigan, so many feelings and emotions came back to me, from pride, gratefulness and joy. I like to remember Shawinigan like a school to get to the professional level. I had the chance to see him play live, meet the coaching staff and I could see the wonderful support they have been giving and pushing the player in the right direction.”

Many elite hockey players who grow a bit older and see their own sons reaching the sports high levels will often tell you they want their kids to blaze their own trail. That is certainly the case with Dominic, who is extremely proud of seeing his son play for his country at the U18 Worlds.

“I’m a big believer that success must come from within yourself so I’m trying to let Jordan write his own story and have his own identity,” says Dominic. “I see Jordan with multiple hats he can wear, from a strong technical player, an offensive, speedy, energy guy, and – most importantly – a very good teammate.”

Dominic is a native of Sainte-Julie, Quebec and, following his tremendous junior…