Vincent Desharnais wouldn’t have existed if his brother hadn’t died at birth

Vincent Desharnais began to make his mark as a very good 6-7ᵉ defenseman.

This season, he played 78 of 82 games with the Edmonton Oilers, plus another 12 in the playoffs, before having to make way for Philip Broberg.

This summer, Desharnais signed a two-year, $2 million-a-year contract with the Vancouver Canucks.

This means he can continue to prove that he belongs in the NHL, with a club that will give him plenty of playing time.

Interestingly, despite the Québécois’ 6 foot 7 inches, he wouldn’t be the tallest on the club.

Tyler Myers is listed at 6 feet 8 inches.

In an interview for a radio station, Desharnais mentioned that he’s looking forward to training camp, hoping to be the same height as Myers and prove that he’s a liar.

In addition to this comical fact, a number of interesting subjects were discussed, some of them very touching.

As he explains, his older brother’s death at birth helped him get to the NHL.

It sounds strange, but if his brother hadn’t died of complications at birth, his parents wouldn’t have wanted more children afterwards.

“If he doesn’t die of complications, I don’t make it, I’m not in the NHL and I’m not fulfilling my dream.”

He continued later on by saying:

“My parents had my brother (Alex) and then they had another child (Felix) two years later, who died at birth. My parents wanted two children, and afterwards my mother was afraid to try again so as not to lose another. They decided to try again, and I was the one to come along. – Vincent Desharnais

It’s a very moving story…

What’s even more special is the day of Desharnais’ first NHL game.

It was January 11, and that day corresponds exactly to Félix’s date of birth (and death).

Even if he never knew Félix, it must have been an extremely special day for him and his family.

It’s amazing what fate can do.

Following this, Mario Langlois asked him how it was to play his first game, after all he’d been through, because it’s worth remembering that Desharnais went through a huge depression that almost made him give up hockey.

He’s still emotional to this day.

He still remembers special moments from that day, and the pride of his parents who, at the time, were unaware of the severe depression he had suffered in Bakersfield a few years earlier.

In the same interview, the big guy also talked about the day of his recall to the NHL.

At first, he wasn’t expecting this great news at all, as he had just come back from injury and was starting to find his rhythm again.

After an AHL game, his coach called him into the office, where all the team’s other coaches were waiting with smiles on their faces.

The head coach asked him if he knew what was going on.

Desharnais simply replied no, and his coach followed up by saying: Yes, you do.

That’s when the Québécois realized he’d just been called up by the big club.

All the road the Québécois has traveled and the pitfalls he has encountered along the way deserve a round of applause.

I personally take my hat off to Desharnais for persevering to motivate himself and get out of his depression, which is not an easy thing to do.