A Little League viral video story with Canadian Jayden Struble

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Five years before the Canadiens selected defenseman Jayden Struble in the second round (46th overall) of the 2019 NHL Draft, he was in the spotlight for the Minor League Baseball World Series.

Struble was a 12-year-old first baseman and janitor for the Cumberland Americans from Rhode Island. After Cumberland's 8-7 loss to Illinois, Americans coach Dave Belisle gave an emotional speech to his players that quickly went viral.

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“The whole tournament, the whole season, you've never been disappointed in your efforts,” Belizle said after gathering the players on the court. “It's been a great journey. We battled… look at the score, 8-7 — 12-10 hits. He reached the end. We didn't quit. This is us! This is us guys!'

Struble sees this video popping up on social media from time to time.

“It was a great experience to be young and on a big stage,” the Canadian defenseman said earlier this season. “You play for your city and your state. It was a very cool experience. … It's a good memory.”

Belisle didn't just coach baseball. He was also a longtime assistant high school hockey coach with his father, Bill, as head coach at Mount St. Charles in Rhode Island. Bill, who died two years ago at age 92, was inducted into the USA Hockey Hall of Fame in 2016 after spending 41 years on the bench with his son, St. Charles, winning 32 state championships.

In a phone interview Tuesday from his home in Cumberland, Belisle provided more details about his Little League video.

“It was a heartbreaking loss,” the 64-year-old recalled. “We had a great trip that summer. We beat Rhode Island, New England. This was my second time taking a team to the Little League World Series. I took over another team in 2011 with my oldest son. But I knew this team was special.”

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Belisle was not scheduled to coach the Cumberland team in 2014 because his wife was in poor health as she battled cancer. After his son John made the team, Belisle informed the Cumberland organization that he could no longer coach due to his wife's condition.

“When I got home that night, my son said to his wife, 'Mom, I made the team, but dad isn't coaching this year,'” he recalled. “My wife said, 'John, come down,' and she looked at me and said, 'Don't do this to this family and make me a martyr.' I get it…you have more important things to do to make this family happy. I'm fine with that, I just want you to do it. I'll be fine… I called my mom to help. You take this team and you have fun with this team and Johnny has fun. We'll have a summer we'll never forget.”

“The rest is history,” Belisle added.

On the night of the loss to Illinois, Little League officials and one of Belisle's friends arranged for his wife, Nancy, to fly to Williamsport, Pa., to watch the game — unbeknownst to Belisle or his son. On the morning of the game, Belisle and his son were told they needed to be interviewed by Little League officials. When they arrived, Nancy was waiting for them, followed by the rest of the team.

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“It was a scene where everyone jumped into each other's arms,” ​​Belisle recalled. “That night we went out and played our hearts out and then we lost. The tears in my eyes and their eyes (during the post-game video) was that we're not going to be with each other anymore. They put a microphone on you, but I didn't know the microphone was on. It was just an emotional moment. These children gave my wife and I another summer of normal life, and then she passed away in February (age 50). I am so glad that this moment was captured because it sent a special message.

“The next morning I woke up and the kids were like, 'Coach, your speech is going crazy…it's going viral!' he said. I didn't know what they were talking about and what it meant,” Belisle added with a laugh. “So I asked, 'Is the virus good or bad?' I asked.”

Belisle is a lifelong Canadiens fan and still keeps in touch with Struble and his family. He hopes to make it to Montreal before the end of this season to see him play at the Bell Centre.

“He's a friend forever,” Belisle said. “He's a keeper…he's a good kid. Now a man. But he is a player. He decided.”

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