He was going to be named Wolfe when he was born but his father vetoed the idea.
Northeastern forward Gunnarwolfe Fontaine was what his mom and dad agreed on and now he’s got an all-time name to flaunt as he continues his hockey career.
Fontaine is in his senior season of playing college hockey and most notably scored the championship-clinching goal at the Beanpot tournament in TD Garden up in Boston back on Feb. 12.
He had never scored that big of a goal until now.
“Nashville has been great with me all year and they give me feedback after games,” Fontaine said. “When we played in Milwaukee they got to see us in person and reach out after games.”
Northeastern is the winner of back-to-back Beanpots and five of the last six tournaments.
Back-to-back game winners in the Beanpot for #Preds prospect Gunnarwolfe Fontaine (Drafted 2020). He's due to be a FA if he doesn't sign by Aug. 15. pic.twitter.com/ijdsqXifpe
— Nick Kieser🏒 (@KieserNick) February 13, 2024
Fontaine said he’s heard the most from forward development coach Nathan Gerbe this season. Gerbe started his role with the Predators in September of 2022.
“Hopefully, the opportunity will reveal itself and I can tell Nashville is a great organization, they’ve been nothing but great to me so far,” Fontaine said of his future. “I would love to be there and sign with the team that drafted me.”
This season the senior has 26 points in 28 games played with just five games remaining in the campaign before the Hockey East tournament begins on March 13 at TD Garden.
“The NCAA Tournament is the goal for us,” Fontaine said. “At the start of the year, it was pretty far stretched out for us starting off 1-9 at some point. We’re back above .500 beating top-end talent. We want to win Hockey East and winning that would be a cherry on top for sure.”
With this being Fontaine’s final season he’s taken the time to focus on himself mentally and develop his 200-foot game. Something he hopes translates well into the next level.
“Maturity away from the rink is another big one for me,” he said. “Having better emotions throughout the whole ups and downs of a season. I know once you get to the pro level it’s a lot different when you’re playing with guys that are 35 years old or even 18 years old on your team. It’s a different lifestyle so I feel I’ve matured in that way.”
Fontaine made it clear his pathway to playing under the big lights won’t come as quick, but he’s prepared to do whatever it is to get there.
“I think there’s going to be some guys in this league that make the jump to the NHL,” Fontaine said. “Northeastern has done a really good job at developing my game, and so has the coaching staff on and off the ice, hopefully, I continue in my career and improve my game.”
A fellow Predators prospect that Fontaine has played with before that he sees playing in the Hockey East is University of Massachusetts at Amherst defenseman Ryan Ufko.
Fontaine and Ufko played for the Chicago Steel during the 2019-20 season alongside Luke Reid who was drafted by Nashville in 2020 during the sixth round.
“Going to development camp everyone is so nice, we have such great talent in Nashville,” Fontaine said. “It seems like a good pool of prospects to pull from. There are a couple of kids that stand out for sure. Matthew Wood comes to mind so it’ll be fun to play with him.”
In terms of Fontaine’s skills to this point, he said he’s a shifty player being on the smaller end for a forward. As he pushes for opportunities he hopes to use that to his advantage.
“I feel like I’m pretty comfortable with the puck on my stick and making plays,” Fontaine said. “One of my other tools is being a rat out there. Just try to work hard for pucks and work down low in the offensive zone. I’m not afraid to play a bigger game in front of the net even though I’m a smaller guy.”
While nothing is set in stone with the Predators in terms of Fontaine signing his entry-level deal the senior is focused on his best hockey in front of him.
He’ll have until Aug. 15 to sign with Nashville before he officially becomes a free agent.
2024 BEANPOT CHAMPS!
Can’t believe this was already a week ago. pic.twitter.com/dWxJNMb7xL
— Northeastern Men’s Hockey (@GoNUmhockey) February 19, 2024
Follow Nick Kieser on Twitter/X: @KieserNick
Photos courtesy of Northeastern Hockey
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