Exit Interviews 2024-25: #18 Jake Chiasson

With the 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs well underway and the Belleville Senators wading into the offseason, David Foot sat down with the players to reflect on a year filled with challenges, growth, and standout moments. In this exclusive series of year-in-review interviews, players open up about their personal journeys, team milestones, and what it meant to represent Belleville and the Bay of Quinte this season. From locker room highlights to on-ice battles, these conversations offer a behind-the-scenes look at the season that was — and a glimpse at what’s ahead.

Today, we check in with forward Jake Chiasson, who split time this season between the Belleville Sens and the club’s ECHL partner, the Orlando Solar Bears.

DF: You just wrapped up your first year with the Senators. How would you classify or describe your season, after going back and forth between Belleville and Orlando, and after coming in from Bakersfield?

JC: There were a lot of ups and downs, a lot of moving parts, but I think for me as a young pro, I took it as a learning curve this year. I thought the staff and team here in Belleville did a great job of incorporating me throughout the year when I’d leave and come back up, but it was an overall fun year with lots of learning and lots of different experiences along the way.

DF: I actually have a fair number of fans approach me when they see the transactions and see players bouncing back and forth between Belleville and Orlando, and they ask how difficult that is. How did you deal with that back-and-forth, given that Orlando’s not exactly around the corner?

JC: If I’m honest, it’s tough at times. It’s not easy to pack up and head down there, and you never know how long it’s going to be. But, for me, Belleville made it as smooth as possible. Dan (Ciparis) does an unbelievable job for us guys who are either going up to Ottawa or down to Orlando. He makes that process really smooth. I think you just have to take it in stride. It’s all part of the process, and it’s something you learn to deal with and handle pretty quickly.

DF: Is there anywhere you’re proud to have made some strides in your first AHL season?

JC: I thought my game matured a little bit. There are parts of your game you change while you’re in junior and then now being a second-year pro, there are things you change from the first year to the second year. I think it showed me a lot of what I’d like to work on this summer, and come back to Belleville with a fire in my stomach and take things head-on. We weren’t happy with where we finished this year, and I think I can be a player who comes in next season and adds a little bit of depth and really be able to put my stamp on things.

DF: How will you spend your summer? Where do you base yourself and how will you spend your time?

JC: I’m living out in Abbotsford, BC. I have all my training set up there, and I’m looking forward to getting back to that and the group that we work with out there. But, I think I’ll just try and enjoy some family time, since I don’t get to see a whole lot of them at this point in my life. So, I’ll take that much-needed family time, take some time to decompress and do some fun stuff with them, and get back at it with the training group.

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