With a number of stitches adorning his nose from a puck to the face in the Redbird’s 4-3 victory against the Windsor Lancers (10–10–0) in which he scored the overtime winner, Scott Walford sat down with The Tribune to chat about his time at McGill.
Like many McGill athletes, Walford did not start out as a single sport athlete. However, after six years of balancing both lacrosse and hockey, Walford was guided by his father’s love of the sport.
“My dad has always been a big [Vancouver] Canucks fan,” Walford explained. “He loved the game so much, and my brother and I picked up our love after him for the game. Whether it was playing road hockey in the backyard or on rollerblades, video games, going to Canucks games, I just started following after my dad’s love game.”
This passion is in large part what got Walford to where he is today, giving him a leg up on his peers.
“When I was young, I just loved hockey so much, and I was always playing it,” said Walford. “I’d go in the backyard and imagine playing with the Canucks.”
In 2014, Walford was drafted 18th overall to the Victoria Royals of the Western Hockey League, commencing a four-year career with the team. Playing as a 16-year-old in a league largely composed of players closer to 20, Walford was faced with a tough transition, but his time in Victoria was more than positive.
“You grew up a lot in that first year away from home,” Walford said. “It’s a very demanding schedule [….] But I love the city of Victoria. I think it’s the most beautiful city in Canada.”
Three years into his time with the Royals, Walford was drafted 68th overall by the Montréal Canadiens.
“Everything pretty much up until the point that I got drafted, went almost perfect, other than injuries, to the route that you want to take in the [Canadian Hockey League],” Walford explained.
However, Walford elected not to sign with the Canadiens, ultimately leading him to McGill. The scout who was instrumental to the Canadiens drafting Walford was McGill alumni Ken Morin, who later pushed Walford to come play for the Redbirds.
“He said, it’s a great place where you meet a lot of special people,” said Walford. “I got to speak to some of the other hockey alumni like Guy Boucher, who’s currently the assistant coach for the Maple Leafs and seeing the history of the program being all this hockey team ever and being out in a great city in Montreal that I’d never lived in [influenced my decision].”
Like many USPORTS players, the question of whether or not he made the right choice in taking the university route remains in the back of his mind. But Walford explained that with the increasing level of competition and quality of hockey in USPORTS, the chance to pursue a professional hockey career after graduation is by no means out of the question.
“I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t think about it,” Walford said, lamenting his decision not to go pro right away. “With how my career’s gone at McGill, getting an education, finish[ing] with a degree, I’ve been very, very lucky, and being able to come out on the other side of that and hopefully play pro next year.”
But more importantly, with a 14–5–2 record and a steady hold on third place in their division, Walford is looking forward to his final USPORTS playoff run and hopefully, a bout at Nationals.
“To have that coming to an end is a bit bittersweet,” Walford reflected. “There’s a lot of excitement, but at the same time, too, you really want to do everything in your power to push this season as long as you can and hopefully win the national championship because then you’re with your best friends as long as possible.”
The Redbirds will play next on Jan. 19 against the University of Ottawa Gee Gees (14–6–0).
