Kings program has played a key role in developing local NHLers

Jordan Staal says it’s unlikely he’d be where he is today had the Thunder Bay Kings program not been in place when he and his hockey-playing siblings were growing up.

On Thursday, as the Carolina Hurricanes forward does every year, Staal laced up his skates and took to the Tournament Centre ice for a friendly scrimmage, the seventh annual Kings alumni game helping to raise funds to keep the program alive and well.

“It was definitely big for myself and a lot of players from Thunder Bay. We live where we live, but to be on that team, to travel and for people to see you play, it helps create options for you and helps you move to the next level.”

Staal, whose brothers Eric, Marc and Jared also played for the Kings, graduated to the Peterborough Petes, who took him second overall in the 2004 Ontario Hockey League draft. Two years later the Pittsburgh Penguins made him the No. 2 pick in the NHL draft.

The Kings program has had a major role in the development of most of the city’s recent NHLer’s, a list that also includes Tom and Taylor Pyatt, Patrick Sharp and the next generation, goaltenders Matt Murray and Mckenzie Blackwood.

“It’s big. Obviously it was a lot of ice time and with the Kings there were a lot of practices and a lot of opportunity to grow your game on a personal level. It’s a great program that has had a lot of players go through and done really well.”

St. Louis Blues defenceman Robert Bortuzzo has also been a regular at the game, saying it’s important to give back to the program, founded by the late Jim Johnson, who the annual alumni game is played in honour of each year.

“It was a big part of my career,” Bortuzzo said. “Those were two key developmental years for a young kid. I met a lot of my best friends in those two years and obviously developed my career. It was a great step … so I owe a lot to it.”

The program is as strong as ever, said Kings vice-president Trevor Mikus, despite the major midget team taking a year off because of a lack of quality players.

The program is back to full strength at both the midget and bantam levels, with the midget squad scheduled to play 30 games in the local Junior B circuit, giving parents and friends a chance to get a close-up look at players at home.

Mikus said he’s hoping to continue the pipeline to the major junior and professional ranks, and the Johnson family can be proud of the legacy left by their patriarch.

It’s been an unmitigated success, he said.

“For a small community like this to have seven and eight NHL pros, good pros, it’s really incredible. And we’ve got a few more that are going to be coming up,” Mikus said.