Gaucher, Hinds & Zellweger Bringing A Winning Attitude To San Diego
Oct 14, 2023By Nick Aguilera/SanDiegoGulls.com
10 months ago, the trio of Nathan Gaucher, Tyson Hinds and Olen Zellweger reached the pinnacle of junior hockey. As members of Team Canada at the 2023 World Junior Championships in Nova Scotia, the young Ducks prospects helped their home nation win gold on one of the biggest stages in hockey.
Now reunited on the Gulls, they’re ready to take the American Hockey League by storm.
"We had so much fun," Gaucher said. "Great experience. It’s fun to win. The three together, we know how to win and we’re just here enjoying our time in San Diego.
"They played different roles. I played a different role. We’re just all gelling together. Team Canada [was] kind of the same thing because out here, we’re all new players, new faces trying to get to know each other. Getting that chemistry quick is one thing we can bring here in San Diego."
Gaucher, a 6-foot-3 center who was selected by Anaheim with the 22nd overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft, tallied 1-3=4 points with 10 penalty minutes and a +1 rating in seven games for Team Canada. He also emerged as a leader in the locker room, serving as an alternate captain for the 2023 squad.
"He’s got some jokes," Zellweger said about his teammate. "He has a good attitude. He can really dial it in though for the game.
"He’s a two-way [forward]. He has a lot of skill. He has some bite to his game where he can shut down other team’s players. And you know he can make a play for you offensively."
Hinds, another big body standing at 6-foot-3, scored twice in seven games for Team Canada. Hinds had a big season in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), winning the league’s Best Defensive Defenseman award after posting a +61 rating, the highest in 20 years.
"He’s a tough defenseman to pass," Gaucher said about Hinds. "You don’t want go up on his side. He’s a great skater. Great first pass. Defensively, he’s really good. You won’t see anyone beating him one-on-one."
Both Gaucher and Hinds played against each other in the QMJHL – Gaucher’s Quebec Remparts beat Hinds’ Sherbrooke Phoenix squad twice in three games last season – and as kids, but never got the opportunity to play on the same team growing up.
The two Quebec natives are now roommates in San Diego, and it turns out Gaucher may have another set of skills off the ice.
"He’s been cooking pretty good," Hinds said. "It’s a nice adjustment from junior hockey and I know Gaucher pretty well, so it’s fun to live with him. It’s a nice set up for me over there."
Zellweger was one of the most dominant performers in World Juniors history, as he put up 2-15=17 points in 14 games in both the 2022 and 2023 World Juniors, the second-most by a Canadian blueliner all-time and fifth-most by any defender.
Zellweger spent his junior days on the other side of the country in the Western Hockey League (WHL), appearing for Kamloops and Everett. He racked up more hardware than just the gold medal, winning WHL Defenseman of the Year in back-to-back seasons from 2021-23 and the prestigious CHL Defenseman of the Year award, given to the top blueliner in all three Canadian junior leagues (WHL, QMJHL, Ontario Hockey League), after tallying 32-48=80 points in 55 games.
He carried that momentum into Friday night’s season opener, recording his first career AHL multi-assist game (0-2=2) in his first AHL regular season appearance.
"You can be a bit more excited offensively about Zelly," Gaucher said about Zellweger. "The hands he has, the skating ability, he’s just great. I think he’s probably the opposite of Tyson in a harder way to play. Zelly’s more offensive, but they’re two great defensemen."
"We definitely had a fun time, and it was especially more fun to win," Zellweger said. "Having two other Ducks prospects on the same team was pretty cool.
"We had a few Ducks camps together then World Juniors. Here now, so it’s pretty cool to be reunited."