One year after the most heartbreaking of defeats, a triple-overtime loss to the Prince Albert Mintos in the gold medal game of the 2014 TELUS Cup, the Grenadiers de Châteauguay have made it all the way back.

But the similarities between the 2013-14 edition of the Grenadiers and the team that will be on the ice in Rivière-du-Loup more or less end at the logo on the front of the jersey.

Just three players are returning, and even the head coach is new; Bruce Richardson left to join the QMJHL’s Tigres de Victoriaville, replaced behind the bench by Memorial Cup-winning assistant coach Steve Hartley.

With one of the league’s youngest rosters – including nine 1999-born players – the Grenadiers were hardly considered favourites to repeat as Ligue de hockey midget AAA du Québec champions.

But Châteauguay put together a solid regular season, finishing with the LHMAAAQ’s fourth-best record thanks to rookie standouts Maxime Comtois and Antoine Morand, who finished fifth and sixth, respectively, in the league scoring race.

The Grenadiers opened the playoffs with a four-game victory over Jonquière, and stopped the 2015 TELUS Cup hosts from winning their way into the national championship, beating Collège Notre-Dame in four in the quarter-finals.

Matched up with second-place College Charles-Lemoyne in the final four, the Grenadiers rebounded from a Game 1 loss to post three consecutive victories and clinch a return to the LHMAAAQ final.

The best-of-seven league championship series wasn’t one many had expected – the No. 5 Grenadiers against the No. 8 Lions du Lac St-Louis, who had staved off elimination twice against Saint-Eustache in the quarter-finals before sweeping aside the LHMAAAQ regular season champions from Lévis in the semis.

Châteauguay quickly took advantage of home-ice advantage, scoring 6-1 and 2-1 victories to get halfway to the Coupe Jimmy-Ferrari before a statement performance in Game 3 all but put the Lions away.

On the road for the first time in the series, the Grenadiers scored three times in the opening 14 minutes, and added four unanswered in the second period after Lac St-Louis had cut their lead to just a single goal.

When the smoke settled, Morand had three goals and three assists, Comtois and captain Pierre-Luc Sanche added a goal and three helpers apiece, and Châteauguay had run away with a 10-4 victory to take a commanding 3-0 series lead.

Three nights later, Game 4 seemed like a mere formality; the Grenadiers led 4-0 after 20 minutes, Morand added four more points and the Grenadiers’ 6-2 win gave them back-to-back Quebec titles.

Now, it’s back to the TELUS Cup and a chance at redemption.

But it won’t be easy. No team has made it back to the gold medal game one year after losing in the final since the 1996-97 Thunder Bay Kings, and no Quebec team has turned the trick since the Gouverneurs de Ste-Foy in 1982-83.

HOW THEY GOT TO RIVIÈRE-DU-LOUP

Ligue de hockey midget AAA du Québec
Preliminary round: defeated Jonquière 3-1 (5-2, 1-4, 4-2, 3-1)
Quarter-final: defeated Collège Notre-Dame 3-1 (3-1, 5-6, 4-3 OT, 2-1)
Semifinal: defeated Collège Charles-Lemoyne 3-1 (1-2, 3-1, 6-4, 3-2 OT)
LHMAAAQ championship: defeated Lac St-Louis 4-0 (6-1, 2-1, 10-4, 6-2)

REGULAR SEASON

Record: 23-10-9 (4th in LHMAAAQ)
Goals For: 151 (5th in LHMAAAQ)
Goals Against: 120 (6th in LHMAAAQ)
Longest Winning Streak: 4 (Oct. 3-12)
Top 3 Scorers (all games):

• Maxime Comtois – 23G 33A 56P (5th in LHMAAAQ)
• Antoine Morand – 18G 37A 55P (6th in LHMAAAQ)
• Pierre-Luc Sanche – 19G 31A 50P (15th in LHMAAAQ)

PLAYOFFS

Record: 13-3
Goals For: 64
Goals Against: 37
Top 3 Scorers:

• Maxime Comtois – 12G 19A 31P
• Antoine Morand – 12G 18A 30P
• Pierre-Luc Sanche – 10G 15A 25P

NATIONAL MIDGET CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY

2014 – Grenadiers de Châteauguay | silver medal | 3-2-2 | 25GF 17GA
2006 – Patriotes de Châteauguay | bronze medal | 3-4-0 | 17GF 31GA

PLAYERS TO WATCH

MAXIME COMTOIS
very good on the power play … strong along the boards … plays a 200-foot game … good speed and quickness … plays with size … smart

KYLE JESSIMAN
loves to compete … very quick from side to side … good technical skills … communicates well … thrives in big games … finds the puck

ANTOINE MORAND
offensive dynamo … exceptional hockey IQ … very good shooter … elusive … always a threat to create offence … defensively reliable

QMJHL DRAFTED PLAYERS

Marc-Olivier Duquette – Moncton 2014 (6th round, 99th overall)