Jérémy Gagnon-Laparé's decision to return to the Halifax Wanderers was simple. He likes the brand of football the CPL side is playing under coach Patrice Gheisar.
While he enjoyed his first go-round with Halifax before leaving for York United FC after the 2022 season, Gagnon-Laparé was drawn back by what he saw on the pitch last year.
"'There's been a lot of very positive change," he said.
Halifax, in turn, welcomed the chance to benefit from the 28-year-old midfielder's experience and cultured left boot.
“Jérémy has a special ability to keep the ball moving and has a commitment to the game that will set a standard in our team,” Wanderers head coach Patrice Gheisar said in a statement. “His technical qualities, distribution and ability to chip in with assists from the heart of the midfield will make him a great fit in our system.”
The 28-year-old Gagnon-Laparé, a native of Magog, Que., who now calls nearby Sherbrooke home, recorded five assists in 23 appearances for fifth-place York last season. He missed part of the year with an ankle injury.
Halifax, which finished seventh in 2022, moved up the table to third last year. It finished tied with eventual champion Forge FC but was consigned to third on away goals differential, the league's fourth tiebreaker.
Along the way, Halifax set single-season franchise records for wins (11), points (42), goals scored (39) and fewest goals allowed (32).
Gheisar, a finalist for the CPL’s Coach of the Year award, did it with a roster that featured 21 new players and was the league's second-youngest. In November, he was rewarded with a contract extension that runs through the 2025 season.
Gagnon-Laparé's first stint with Halifax started in 2021 with the midfielder logging more than 3,500 minutes of action in 44 appearances over two seasons. He has rejoined the club on a two-year contract.
He called his time at York a "positive experience" despite the two-month-plus injury layoff. The decision to leave at the end of the 2023 season was mutual, he said.
He sees Halifax as a new beginning, working with a new coach and teammates.
"I've heard many good words about the environment and the project that they're trying to build," he said in an interview. "It made me excited to join that project and try to add my little piece to the puzzle."
Gagnon-Laparé started his career in 2011 with CF Montreal, then known as the Montreal Impact, becoming in 2014 the sixth academy player to sign a pro contract with the MLS club, following in the footsteps of Karl W. Ouimette, Maxim Tissot, Wandrille Lefèvre, Maxime Crépeau and Zakaria Messoudi.
He went on to play for Montreal's reserve side in the USL and made 11 appearances for the first team, with a loan spell with the Ottawa Fury, before joining fourth-division side AS Vitré in France in January 2017. He returned to Canada in 2018, signing with Ottawa before moving to Saint Louis FC in late 2019.
A former Canadian youth international, he has won five senior caps for Canada.
"I hope I can bring something to (Halifax) from my experience and the places that I've played," he said. "I've been around a little bit and I'm as motivated as ever. I still like this is a situation that I feel very fortunate to be in … I'm very very confident and enthusiastic about the start of the season."
Gagnon-Laparé's girlfriend Rosalie, also a Quebec native, has followed him on his travels since his first time in Halifax. Her work may keep her away this time but he hopes they will be reunited this summer.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 31, 2024
Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press
