| Brett Brochu | London Knights | OHL | L | G | 5’11” | 176 | London Knights | 2018 | Windsor, ON | 2002 | 2021-2022: C |
Neutral Zone’s Brennan Poderzay, February 2, 2022: Brochu has been on fire as of late, sporting a 93% save percentage or better in 4 of his last 5 games since the new year. He suffered a 3-2 loss to Guelph in his last game, but was busy holding his team in it by stopping 45 of 48 shots. Known for being a goaltender who plays an aggressive style, Brochu showed great control in this game by reading plays well and not allowing many second opportunities. This aggressiveness has also been his Achilles Heel at times when he takes it too far, especially with his puck handling decisions, as a turnover behind the net ended up causing the last goal against which ultimately handed London the loss. Looking back to the positive, many of his saves came at or above the top of his crease, which is an instrumental part of his game to find success as an undersized goaltender. It was yet again impressive to see how sharp and quick he moves around the net, as his skating skills are incredibly elite for his age and is one of the areas that set him apart from others in this draft class.
U20: 2022 NHL Draft Eligible Goalie Report, December 8, 2021: Last 5 game snapshot- Brochu has strung together an impressive season so far on a very good London team. He has stopped 164 of 177 over his last five games for a save percentage of 92.6% and a record of 3-2. He has given his team a chance to win every game with both of these losses only being decided by one goal. The best thing that stands out about Brochu is his high compete level, as he never is found giving up on a play. He finds a way to make saves in scrambles around the net that leads to second and third opportunities. He is very aggressive on plays and makes a lot of unorthodox saves through his battle and hunger to find the puck through traffic. This attack mentality has also been his Achilles heel at times, as there have been numerous times he gets himself outside of the posts, which makes it hard to recover if the puck bounces to the other side of him. He is able to make it work for himself at this level, but he will definitely need to build more structure in his game if he wants to find success at the next level when dealing with smarter and more skilled players. Brochu also loves to play the puck whenever he has the chance, but sometimes tries to do too much with it instead of making the simple pass for his team to end up with possession.
OHL: London Knights NHL Prospects, February 25, 2020: Brochu is an undersized and underrated goaltender who is emerging as the starting goalie in his first season in the Ontario Hockey League. Entering the game Brochu was 13-1 in his last 14 games. Brochu got the win this evening and was not the busiest of the two netminders in the game but did make a handful of key saves at the right time. At 5’11”, Brochu does not fit the mold of the prototypical giraffe like tenders on our draft list, but he has by far the best stats of any 17 year old goalie in the OHL this season. He currently sits second in the league in GAA (2.46%), third in the league in save percentage (.919%), and fourth in the league in wins (26). While we are leary of his size and the tape measure requirements for goalies to play at the NHL level we continue to like his development in his rookie season with the Knights and have really enjoyed his compete level in the net to fight through checks. We have added him to our draft list as a C+ prospect with his consistent play and ability to get the job done effectively all season for his team. Game Grade: B
OHL: Saginaw Spirit at London Knights, October 26, 2019: An athletic goaltender with good mobility and an aggressive posture to get out and challenge shooters. Brochu made 25 out of 26 saves to win his 5th game early in the season. Brochu challenged shooters effectively and made a number of saves outside of the blue paint. His aggressive play is a key attribute for him but left him out of position a few times in this game where he had to rely on defenders to bail him out on the weak side. Brochu played pucks well around the boards and showed confidence handling pucks and distributing them to his defenders. Brochu was third star in this game and deserved it particularly on the penalty kill where he competed hard and held a strong Saginaw power play off the scores sheet. Game Grade: B
Photo Credit: Dan Hickling/Hickling Images