Jules Facchini '23 Recruiting Profile

Ever since I skated for the first time when I was 2 years old I loved hockey. A day without hockey was a bad day. I loved it so much; my parents had a hard time getting me off the ice.

My father, who played Tier 1 hockey in Toronto, was a great mentor. He taught me the beauty of the game when it is played strategically and with a whole of team effort. Which I did with passion. He also taught me to play with my head up and that hockey sense is key to being a great hockey player. Which was my plan from day one.

I consider myself a student of the game. When studying it I take lessons from Patrick Kane, one of the best puck handlers the game has ever seen. His ability to control the puck, open the ice, and make those unbelievable plays to put his team on the board is the type of player I aspire to be like.

From playing hockey I learned that I am very competitive and will do what it takes for the team to win. I also learned that I am just has happy for a teammate when they score as I am when I score.

Both my parents have formal education; my dad has a consulting practice, and my mother is a lawyer. Don’t hold it against her, she is still a nice person. They have always taught me the importance of a good education. Because of that I am interested in pursuing a degree in business and law.

Because I am a November baby, many players are almost a year older than me and therefore  further down the physical development stage. Since hockey tends to favour larger players, I was always denied a spot in Tier 1 despite being told that I am fast, have great hockey IQ, and have great finishing ability. Because of my size I was always told to wait for next year. Last year was next year. I started growing and was better able to execute which was noticed by a U18 AAA coach and other hockey practitioners. But because of the pandemic, hockey was interrupted and there were no open U18 AAA tryouts. Instead, I attended a development program with U16 AA. The coaches of the development team, who have experience coaching Junior and pro hockey, told me that I should be playing U18 AAA next season provided we return to normal.

 What makes me unique is that I don’t quit, and I don’t take anything for granted. I never took disappointment as an excuse to quit. When I was told that I was too small, and therefore not able to play Tier 1, I just picked up my equipment and moved on. I kept practicing everywhere I could. I took extra training sessions with expert hockey instructors, I got myself a personal trainer, and I destroyed my parent’s basement by shooting about 200 pucks a day. I never let anyone tell me I was not good enough.