The Town of Sutton is a fan of Connor Macey!
The young hockey player Connor Macey, a native of Sutton, was drafted at the end of June by the Shawinigan Cataractes in the seventh round of the 2021 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League Draft. This is quite an achievement that Mayor Michel Lafrance wanted to highlight by personally meeting this talented and friendly athlete.
Connor Macey is 16 years old and has been skating since he was two and a half years old,” he told the Mayor. He started playing on a team in Cowansville when he was four years old … and hasn’t stopped since! “I could never have made it this far without the help of my parents,” he added. Without a doubt, the unconditional support of his father Réal Smith and his mother Lisa Macey has allowed Connor to develop his passion and take advantage of all the opportunities offered to determined and gifted young athletes like him. They made a lot of sacrifices so I could play hockey,” says Connor. My dad’s car has so much mileage! It’s a lot of travel and a lot of money. I break at least five sticks a year and a stick costs about $400.” The year that passed under the constraints of COVID-19 had prevented him from playing as much as he would have liked: games banned for months at a time and practices with a mandatory mask under the helmet almost got the better of his motivation, but the young striker decided to fight, for his parents, for those who believe in him, and for himself. What a great reward today!
From Sutton to Shawinigan
After completing his elementary education at the Sutton School, Connor went on to study sports at Massey-Vannier Highschool in Cowansville for two years, before joining the Triolet Highschool in Sherbrooke, which is known for its high-level sports training programs. As a member of the Harfangs du Triolet team, Connor was able to practise his sport intensively, participating in an average of 28 local games per year, in addition to 3 to 4 regional tournaments. These tournaments are an opportunity to be scouted by professional teams. This is how 255 youngsters were recruited this year by major junior hockey teams. Connor Macey, the 125th pick in the draft, was selected by the Shawinigan Cataractes, who happened to be his favourite team! “In hockey, you have to go through all the steps, but you can’t decide to play in Major Junior. You are ‘invited’ to play by a team. Now I belong to the Cataractes, I can’t decide to go anywhere else.” What’s next? Connor is looking forward to their training camp scheduled for August 16–23. Unless he is called up to play with the team this year—a rare occurrence at this age—Connor hopes to continue his training in Midget AAA with Les Cantonniers de Magog. As far as his studies are concerned, he aims at nothing less than the profession of architect.
A true athlete
But what does Connor do outside of hockey? Sports and more sports! Like any good athlete, he maintains his physical condition (he measures 5′11″ for 190 lb), but also his pleasure to compete, to learn and to improve. He regularly attends the Sutton Gym and plays basketball in Abercorn or Brome Lake whenever he can. “I used to play softball, but they asked me to retire because I was pitching too hard, so I participate in slow pitch tournaments every Thursday and Friday night at the Sutton field with my dad, my brother Brandon and some friends. This summer, I started playing golf, I love it!” And guess what? He’s already very good at it.
Like the mayor did, let’s wish Connor Macey the best of luck in making it to the NHL one day, following the path of his idol Sidney Crosby! Until then, the whole Sutton community is with you, Connor!