Steph Charbonneau’s role with the Vancouver Warriors has shifted this season, but his preparation hasn’t.
The veteran stepped up during the Warriors’ double header sweep, helping deliver two crucial wins, including scoring his first goals of the season against the San Diego Seals. He filled in on faceoffs, pushed transition, made poised reads, and on a three-on-two with forward Keegan Bal and defenceman Reid Bowering, buried the shot that got Vancouver on the board.
Bal was calling for Charbonneau to shoot, highlighting the trust they have in one another.
“He’s been incredible for us ever since we traded for him,” Bal said. “I just felt the defender delaying the slide, and I know that Charbs can put the ball in the net. He doesn’t get enough credit for all of the things he does on the floor – we're lucky to have him.”
Bal describes Charbonneau’s intensity and effort as contagious. Inside the locker room, the Montreal native is just as valued for his presence as his production.
But if you ask Charbonneau, the moment wasn’t about him.
“It could have been anybody,” said Charbs. “Everybody is able to contribute in our defensive group and out the front end as well. Some nights it's OG [Owen Grant], some nights it's Bowering, most nights it’s [Shane] Simpson. I was lucky, I guess. On Sunday, it was my turn.”
With four new free agents added and significant depth across the roster, nothing was guaranteed coming out of training camp. In his seventh NLL season, Charbonneau could have looked elsewhere for more certainty, but instead, he told Warriors’ Head Coach and GM Curt Malawsky that he wanted to stay in Vancouver, even if that meant taking on a different role.
He even gave up his No. 19 jersey to free agent Jesse King, another small but telling example of his character and belief in the group. For Charbs, numbers and minutes come second to the crest on the front.
“From the top down, the entire organization is filled with good people that make it super easy to be a part of this organization and make it super difficult to even think about playing somewhere else,” Charbonneau said.
Part of those early conversations included the possibility of filling in at the faceoff dot while specialist Alec Stathakis was sidelined, and serving as reliable depth in a physical league where injuries are inevitable.
"It came a little bit sooner than I expected it. To be honest with you, I thought we'd be a little bit further in the year before I got my first games in,” Charbonneau said. “But again, part of that conversation with Mouse was, once I'm in, make it hard for him to take me out, and I think I've done my best to make that a reality.”
He has played nine of Vancouver’s 12 games, making his season debut on December 13th against the Las Vegas Desert Dogs while Matt Beers was injured. When another opportunity arose in Ottawa after Jackson Suboch rolled his ankle in warmups, Charbonneau was ready.
One of the biggest lessons he’s learned from Malawsky is that a winning mentality and preparation doesn’t fluctuate.
“Whether I'm playing or not, my routine and my prep is exactly the same, Charbonneau said. “In the Ottawa game, I had done my entire game day routine as if I was going to be playing that game, even though it wasn't until warmups when somebody got hurt. My entire week stays the same, game day and the prep of the game day doesn’t change.”
That meticulous approach has become something of a running joke among teammates and training staff. In a recent debate about who is the most regimented, Charbonneau was ranked ahead of Bal but still trailing Malawsky.
"Somewhere between Keegan Bal and Curt Malawsky - that's pretty good company. I'm happy where I'm at with that,” he laughed.
After the win against San Diego, Malawsky talked about what Charbonneau has meant to the team and the work he’s put in this season.
“What a teammate, first and foremost,” Malawsky said. “What a competitor – he's miserable to play against. He's super intelligent, he's got lacrosse IQ off the charts, and he's got a great competitive nature. To sit in that circle and take so many faceoffs over the last two games, especially not being a faceoff guy is tough, and then to get up the floor, that's just sheer drive and will to get up there and stick those two shots, that's probably the turning point of the game.”
For 13-year NLL veteran Jeff Cornwall, Charbonneau is in coveted company as one of Cornwall’s greatest of all-time teammates. The two are roommates on the road this season, and Cornwall sees the habits up close and says Charbs is a great communicator on the floor.
“The best thing about him is he's always ready to do what's best for the team,” Cornwall said.
“He's just really focused on trying to be the best player he can be and being the best player for his teammates. Guys like that, they're not a dime a dozen, so you’ve got to appreciate the ones that you get.”
The readiness was evident again when Vancouver trailed San Diego by a 6-5 score. Charbonneau blitzed up the floor in transition, with Cornwall trailing the play and yelling for him to shoot.
“Steph is a pretty unreal player, and our team in general has depth to a point where I have never experienced depth like that,” said Cornwall. “He might not get as many opportunities as he could in another circumstance, but when he gets them, he's dialed in, he's focused, and he's always ready to perform.”
Charbonneau’s decision to stick with the Warriors and buy-in to embrace any role reflects the culture the Warriors have built over the last three seasons.
“It all starts from Mouse – it comes from the top down,” Charbonneau said. “We're a collective, we're one team, pulling one rope in one direction, and no one person is going to have that much of an impact without the rest of the team with them.”
His role may look different this season, but his commitment to the process and this team hasn’t changed.