After choosing to play in the USHL last season rather than report to the Val-d'Or Foreurs, Nause went back into the QMJHL Entry Draft this year where he was selected fifth overall by the Remparts.
This afternoon, Nause, a Riverview native, officially signed with the club.
While he had never officially committed to a NCAA club, it was believed he was strongly considering the college route, especially given the fact that he played in the USHL in 2019-20. The 17-year-old defenseman registered three goals and 14 assists in 44 games with the Sioux Falls Stampede where he was teammates with Cameron MacDonald.📣 ANNONCE | Notre premier choix au dernier repêchage, Evan Nause, se joint officiellement à #NotreÉquipe 🔴⚫️— Remparts de Québec (@quebec_remparts) June 11, 2020
Plus de détails : https://t.co/aR36dguCNI pic.twitter.com/syaAU6xc2p
The news is notable for a few reasons. For starters, there was speculation prior to the last weekend's draft that the Saint John Sea Dogs, who held the third overall pick, were interested in taking the d-man. Obviously that didn't happen with the Dogs opting to go with a less risky move, selecting 16-year-old forward Leighton Carruthers - who was also a guy that clearly wanted to be a Sea Dog.
The move is also notable from a Sea Dogs perspective because the Remparts have said they're interested in bidding to host the 2022 Memorial Cup. Nause, 2003-born, will be a key piece of Quebec's build.
If it seemed like their weren't a lot of "Nause's" in this year's draft - i.e. players who have made their NCAA intentions clear - that's because there weren't, La Presse noted last week.
One of the other "Nause's" in the draft was defenseman Guillaume Richard, who was also a first-round pick in 2019 but opted to play in the United States. The Victoriaville Tigres released his rights and he was selected in the fourth round by Saint John last weekend.
“We took a calculated risk on elite left-shot defenceman, Guillaume Richard,” said Sea Dogs president and general manager Trevor Georgie in a news release. “Guillaume who was drafted 7th overall last season but was put back in the Draft due to his commitment to the University of Maine. Although we have had success in recruiting players in similar situations, we know that every player is different and we will take our time getting to know Guillaume and his family to show them how they fit into our championship plans.”
Like Nause, Richard is a 17-year-old d-man. He fits into Saint John's core very well - even with an already loaded backend. It'll be interesting to follow this recruiting process, especially given the current pandemic border restrictions and the civil unrest around the United States.#SeaDogs take calculated gamble and select D-man Guillaume Richard in 4th Rd.— John Moore (@rinkrant) June 7, 2020
"Elite level skater and thinks game at high level. We wll do everything we can to get him to Saint John." - Anthony
Stella. Drafted 7th overall a year ago but did not report to Victo. #QDraft
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