Windsor-born OHL player Sebastien Gervais brings Memorial Cup home

Windsor-born OHLer Sebastien Gervais brought the Memorial Cup to town Thursday after winning it with the Saginaw Spirit this past season.

The 19-year-old winger was among the players attending the BioSteel Next-Gen Hockey Development Camp at Windsor’s Central Park Athletics – and he brought the historic hardware with him, inviting members of the community to stop by and see it.

"It makes my day making other people smile,” Gervais told CTV News. “Just being nice and having an impact on this community. Not many people get to do it. So it's pretty special.”

The two-day BioSteel camp brings together players from the CHL, NCAA, USHL, BCHL, NAHL and OJHL – several of them NHL draft picks – for on-and-off ice development.

Before heading off for the day's events, Gervais took some time to take pictures with 9-year-old hockey player Jaylen Vendenburg, who said he wants to be like Gervais someday.

“I like hockey because it’s challenging,” said Vendenburg. “I try my hardest.”

Gervais loved to hear it.

“It’s cool,” he said. “They're looking up to this goal. This is where they want their next steps to be."

It’s also where a few of his campmates might like to be – with some gentle chirping and, according to Gervais, some envious glances at the cup.

“There’s a lot of rivalry,” he said with a smile. “They want to win it but they’re my friends so they want to be happy for me.”

Gervais said winning the Memorial Cup was surreal – but bringing it home was a comparably cool experience.

“It's just good to bring it back to the people, bring it back to my roots,” he said.