The Saint-Hyacinthe Laser were a

junior ice hockey Junior ice hockey is amateur-level ice hockey for 16 to 20 year-old players. National Junior teams compete annually for the IIHF World Junior Championship. The United States men's national junior ice hockey team are the defending champions from ...

team in the

Quebec Major Junior Hockey League The Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL; , LHJMQ), formerly the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues that constitute the Canadian Hockey League (CHL). The league includes teams in Quebec ...

from 1989 to 1996. They played their home games at Stade L.P. Gaucher in

Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec Saint-Hyacinthe ( , ) is a city in southwestern Quebec east of Montreal on the Yamaska River. The population as of the 2021 Canadian census was 57,239. The city is located in Les Maskoutains Regional County Municipality of the Montérégie r ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

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. Hist ...

were bought and moved to the city of

. The team played for seven years before moving to

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

. In the third year of operation, general manager

Claude Lemieux Claude Percy Lemieux (born July 16, 1965), is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played 21 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for six teams between 1983 and 2009. Lemieux won four Stanley Cup championships during his car ...

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 Maritimes Junior Hockey League The Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL; , LHJMQ), formerly the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League is one of the three ...

). 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 was awarded Coach of the Year in 1993-94 (

Ron Lapointe Trophy The Ron Lapointe Trophy is awarded annually by the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League to the "Coach of the Year." The award is named for Ron Lapointe. Winners List of "Coach of the Year" winners. Winners in bold also won the Brian Kilrea Coach ...

). His assistant coach that season was

Mario Pouliot Mario Pouliot (born September 30, 1963) is a Canadian Coach (ice hockey), ice hockey coach who is the head coach of the Oshawa Generals. He began coaching in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) as an assistant coach with the Saint-Hya ...

Players

The most notable player in the team's history is

goaltender In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as goalie or netminder) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their own team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays ...

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.

Award winners

CHL Player of the Year The David Branch Player of the Year award is given out annually to the player judged to be the most outstanding in the Canadian Hockey League (CHL). It is selected from three most valuable players of the respective leagues; the Red Tilson Troph ...

* ''1991-92'' Charles Poulin

CHL Sportsman of the Year The CHL Sportsman of the Year Award is given out annually to the most sportsmanlike player in the Canadian Hockey League. It is chosen from the winner of the William Hanley Trophy of the Ontario Hockey League, the Frank J. Selke Memorial Trop ...

* ''1991-92'' Martin Gendron CHL Humanitarian of the Year * ''1994-95'' David-Alexandre Beauregard

Jean Béliveau Trophy The Jean Béliveau Trophy is awarded to the top regular season scorer of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). The award is named after Quebec native Jean Béliveau, a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame The Hockey Hall of Fame () is ...

(Top Scorer) * ''1991-92'' Patrick Poulin

Michel Brière Commemorative Trophy Michel may refer to: * Michel (name), a given name or surname of French origin (and list of people with the name) * Míchel (nickname), a nickname (a list of people with the nickname, mainly Spanish footballers) * Míchel (footballer, born 1963), ...

(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 Maritimes Junior Hockey League. Prior to 1980, there was only one Rookie of the Year trophy, the Michel Bergeron Trophy The Michel Bergeron Trophy is a ...

(Offensive Rookie of the Year) * ''1993-94'' Jimmy Drolet Frank J. Selke Memorial Trophy
(Most sportsmanlike player) * ''1991-92'' Martin Gendron * ''1992-93'' Martin Gendron Paul Dumont Trophy
(Personality of the year) * ''1991-92'' Patrick Poulin Wittnauer Plaque
(Best community involvement) * ''1994-95'' David-Alexandre Beauregard

NHL alumni

Season-by-season results

Regular season

Playoffs

*1989-1990 Defeated

Trois-Rivières Draveurs The Trois-Rivières Draveurs ("Raftmen") were a Canadian junior ice hockey team playing in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). They played home games at the Colisée de Trois-Rivières, in Trois-Rivières, Quebec. The team was origin ...

4 games to 3 in

quarter-finals A single-elimination knockout, or sudden-death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of a match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final match-up, w ...

.
Lost to

Victoriaville Tigres The Victoriaville Tigres are a Canadian junior ice hockey team that plays in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. The team is based in Victoriaville, Quebec. The team plays its home games at the Colisée Desjardins. History The franchis ...

4 games to 1 in semi-finals. *1990-1991 Lost to

Longueuil Collège Français The 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 B ...

4 games to 0 in quarter-finals. *1991-1992 Lost to Verdun Collège Français 4 games to 2 in quarter-finals. *1992-1993 Out of

playoffs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

. *1993-1994 Lost to

Hull Olympiques The Gatineau Olympiques are a Canadian junior ice hockey team based in Gatineau, Quebec, that plays in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). Starting with the 2021–22 season, the Olympiques play home games at Centre Slush Pupp ...

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 Bisons were a Canadian junior ice hockey team based in Granby, Quebec, and played in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). The team was founded in 1981 after they moved from Sorel-Tracy, Quebec, where they had previously been k ...

4 games to 1 in quarter-finals.

References

{{Defunct QMJHL Defunct Quebec Maritimes 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 Defunct ice hockey teams in Quebec