Skater makes most of chances to experience success in NHL

Rene Bourque is an example of how an undrafted player can still make it in the professional ranks and star in the National Hockey League.

The 29-year-old left winger is one of the top offensive players for the NHL’s Calgary Flames.  Bourque, whose father is Métis, is in his third season with the Flames. He spent three years with the Chicago Blackhawks.

Bourque was born in Lac La Biche but the early years of his childhood were spent in Edmonton. Not surprisingly he was a supporter of that city’s NHL squad.

“I was an Oilers’ fan as a kid,” he said. “But you learn to hate the Oilers pretty soon as I came to Calgary.”

Though he was never selected in an NHL Entry Draft, Bourque had an inkling he could play in the world’s premier hockey circuit.

“It was something I believed in,” said Bourque, who was third in Flames’ scoring with 28 points, including 15 goals, through his first 44 games this season. “I just needed a chance.”

After starring with the St. Albert Saints of the Alberta Junior Hockey League during the 1999-2000 campaign, Bourque moved to the U.S. where he suited up with the University of Wisconsin Badgers.

Upon graduating from Wisconsin, Bourque signed a free agent contract with the Blackhawks. The Chicago organization assigned him to its American Hockey League affiliate Norfolk Admirals for the 2004-05 season.
Bourque had a rather impressive campaign during his inaugural pro season. He registered 60 points (33 goals, 27 assists) in 78 games with the Admirals.

For his efforts, he was presented with the Dudley Garrett Memorial Award for being the AHL’s top rookie.

“When I won that award, it was very humbling,” he said.
After his solid year with the Virginia-based Admirals, Bourque earned a spot on the Blackhawks’ roster the following season. After his three years in Chicago, he signed a two-year contract with the Flames.

Then this past February he inked a six-year contract extension with the club, worth $3.3 million per season.
“I wanted to stay here,” Bourque said about Calgary.
“It’s a good fit for me. And it’s a good hockey city.” Bourque, though, wishes the Flames were faring better this season. Despite its 20-20-6 record after its first 46 matches, Calgary was sitting in 14th place in the standings of the 15-team Western Conference.

“It’s been a struggle,” Bourque said. “We’re playing streaky. We play well for a couple of weeks and then we struggle for a bit. It’s been frustrating.”

Despite their up-and-down ways, the Flames were sitting just eight points back of eighth place in the conference. The top eight finishers advance to the post-season.
“Everybody here believes we can make the playoffs,” Bourque said of his teammates.

Though he’s Aboriginal, Bourque said he’s never faced any discrimination during his hockey career.

“Not at all,” he said. “When I was a kid, half of the La Lac Biche population was Métis.” Bourque said his teenage and pro years have also been incident-free.

“I feel people are pretty educated about it now,” he said of the various backgrounds of players in the game in the game. “People are pretty mature.”