Lucas Condotta named Laval Rocket’s 2022-23 IOA/American specialty AHL Man of the Year
Lucas Condotta is one of 32 nominees eligible to win this award
LAVAL (May 2, 2023) – The Laval Rocket is proud to announce that Lucas Condotta has been named the team’s winner of the IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year award for his outstanding contributions to the Laval community during the 2022-23 season.
Lucas Condotta has been playing with the Laval Rocket since the end of the 2021-2022 season. His leadership on and off the ice has really made an impact with his team but also in the community. He participated in three community programs this season.
Read for Fun
The Read for Fun program aims to encourage reading among young elementary students in Laval, Montreal, and North Shore regions. Rocket players promoted the benefits of reading, while also addressing various themes, including the importance of practicing sport, which contributes to the well-being of the students.
Lucas Condotta went to Hillcrest Academy in Laval (December 7, 2022) to talk about his academic experience in elementary school, high school and in college. More than 150 students benefited from this activity. Lucas also played hockey with the students in the school gym.
Rocket Hockey Tour
The Rocket Hockey Tour gives three teams a typical Rocket practice experience with Rocket assistant coach Martin Laperrière and a few players.
Lucas Condotta participated in two practices for the Rocket Hockey Tour. He participated in a practice with the Laval-Est Jets (March 7, 2023) and with the Laval-Nord Cobras (March 23, 2023). Lucas helped both teams learn some new tricks on the ice. He also demonstrated what a typical Rocket practice looks like, while telling the children about the Rocket values.
Hospital visits
Lucas Condotta visited two hospitals and one rehabilitation center. The first hospital visit was on December 12, 2022. The visit was at the Cité de la Santé (hospital in Laval). Lucas and other players visited children and their families. He gave gifts to the kids. These gifts were board games and teddy bears (the one from our Teddy Bear Toss game). The Rocket did this hospital visit with the Service de police de Laval, who helped organize our Teddy Bear Toss game. The second hospital visit was on January 16, 2023. The visit was at the CHU Sainte-Justine (children’s hospital in Montreal). Lucas and some of his teammates visited more than 200 kids during this visit. The rehabilitation center visit (Centre de réadaptation Marie-Enfant) was on February 15, 2023. Lucas and some of his teammates visited 20 kids. They all got invited to a Laval Rocket game and two of them had the chance to live a VIP experience during a game (locker room visit, to watch the warmup on the bench and more).
Lucas Condotta is now one of 32 finalists for the AHL’s 2022-23 Yanick Dupré Memorial Award, honoring the overall IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year. The league award is named after the former Hershey Bears forward and AHL All-Star who died in 1997 following a 16-month battle with leukemia. The winner of the Yanick Dupré Memorial Award will be announced by the American Hockey League on Thursday, May 4.
