When Simon Isabelle joined the Ottawa Junior Senators in 2020, he had two goals in mind: to earn a Division I hockey scholarship and to win a Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL) title.
The swift skating forward, who was born in the Yukon, attracted the attention of the NCAA’s Rochester Institute of Technology last season—despite only playing in a handful of exhibition matches–and accepted a scholarship offer. Now with the CCHL season resuming, Isabelle is once again focused on a league championship.
“I’ve always played on winning teams,” the 5-11, 160-pound forward said. “From the first day I’ve been focusing on winning the title. It’s the goal of the entire organization. This is a team that has high expectations. That’s why I came here.”
Isabelle has certainly had something to do with the Junior Sens sitting atop the CCHL with a 21-3-1-1 mark prior to the resumption of play. In 23 games during that span he contributed 11 goals, including three game-winners, to go along with 23 assists. He has also potted four power-play goals and was twice named as the CCHL’s Player of the Week.
After six-weeks without a game, Isabelle was raring to get back on the ice—and it showed. In Ottawa’s first game back, a 3-2 win over the Hawkesbury Hawks, he netted a power-play goal.
“Last year was strange, we didn’t really know what was happening and everything kept changing,” he said. “This time, everyone was a bit more confident that we would be back on the ice to finish the season. That’s what the league kept saying and the coaches stayed in regular contact telling us to be ready.”
Junior Senators head coach Kyle Makaric is counting on Isabelle to push himself and his fellow players to reach new heights in the second half of the season and the playoffs.
“Before joining the team I did some research and tried to find out what I could about the players,” said Makaric, who took over the reins in late August. “The review I got about Simon was that he was a quick and shifty forward with the expectation he would be one of the better offensive players in the league. After watching him for a week it was clear to see he had all of that ability, but also a great work ethic and leadership qualities. He is very accountable.”
While the CCHL season has been extended into April, it will mean the teams will sometimes be playing four times a week, making for a busy schedule. In Isabelle’s case, as he will also be balancing a full course load at Algonquin College, where he is studying prior to enrolling at RIT next year as a civil engineering major.
“I know it will be very hectic, but I’m looking forward to it,” he said. “It will definitely keep me focused and it will help me get ready for college in the US.”
Isabelle learned the game as a child from his dad, Patrick, who had been a goalkeeper. The youngster joined Ottawa for the 2020-21 campaign after spending after spending two years in the Québec Collegiate Hockey League (QCHL), where he was a member of the St-Hyacinthe Lauréats. He posted 12 goals and 26 assists in just 33 games during his final QCHL season.
When the Junior Sens reached out, Isabelle was ready to make the jump to the CCHL in large part because the team was among the most successful in the league.
Isabelle’s first season was hampered by the COVID pandemic. While the Junior Senators were able to practice as a team, game play was limited to a series of exhibition matches, primarily against the neighboring Navan Grads and Nepean Raiders. His play, however, did not go unnoticed.
“It kind of came out of nowhere,” Isabelle said of the scholarship offer from RIT. “Marty (Dagenais, the former Junior Sens coach) texted me to say that RIT was interested. He hooked me up with them, we talked and it clicked right away.”
With the CCHL campaign back under way, Isabelle said the best way to prepare for college hockey would be with a strong finish and a championship.
“We have a very close-knit team,” he said. I know we’re ready.”
