He has been to every game the Thunder has played in the South Island this year and has brought the team luck in the national ice hockey league.
''Emerson ... loves his ice hockey,'' his father, Thunder captain Andre Robichaud, said.
''He loves to come out and support the team.''
Emerson travels with the Thunder to all its games in Queenstown, Christchurch and Dunedin.
''Sometimes his stay is a bit shortened. It depends on his temper,'' Robichaud said.
Robichaud (38), a fireman, grew up in Canada and moved to New Zealand 13 years ago.
It is his second year with the Dunedin Thunder and his first as captain.
He is confident the Thunder can win both games against the West Auckland Admirals at the Dunedin Ice Stadium this weekend.
''Our strength is that we play as a team,''Robichaud said.
''We play our own game and not the opposition's game. I believe we will walk away with a couple of wins.
''Our strength comes from everyone chipping in and doing the little things to get the wins.''
If the Thunder gets two wins against the Admirals, it will host the final of the New Zealand Ice Hockey League on August 17 in Dunedin.
The Botany Swarm leads the competition with 30 points but has played two more games than the Thunder and the Christchurch Red Devils, both on 26 points.
Both the Thunder and the Red Devils need two wins to reach the final. If both finish on 32 points, the final will be held at the Dunedin Ice Stadium because the Thunder has the better head-to-head record this year.
Last year, the Thunder narrowly missed making the final.
''We have a young team on paper and not a lot of people gave us a chance,'' Robichaud said.
''But everyone has bought into the system that coach Janos Kaszala put forward
... we don't have the highest-scoring team but our players are willing to do the little things in defence and I think that wins games and championships.''
Mat Enright (28), one of the two vice-captains, is playing his fourth season for the Thunder.
He played for the English under-21 team and for Oxford in the English league before immigrating to New Zealand.
''This is special for me,'' Enright said.
''We may not be the best team on paper but we gel together.''
It is also the fourth year with the Thunder for the other vice-captain, Paris Heyd, who has won national league titles with the Southern Stampede (2006) and the Red Devils (2009).
Heyd is an experienced Ice Black and played one year in the tough French league.
Fact file
NZ Ice Hockey League
Points: Botany Swarm 30, Canterbury Red Devils 26, Dunedin Thunder 26, Southern Stampede 23, West Auckland Admirals 3.
Games remaining: Thunder v Admirals (Dunedin, Saturday 5.10pm and Sunday 4.10pm), Red Devils v Stampede (Christchurch, Saturday 4.45pm and Sunday 4.45pm).
