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Hockey greats playing for a important cause (8 photos)

The NHL Alumni Tour made a stop in Thunder Bay this weekend, playing in support of Special Olympics

THUNDER BAY - Mike Krushelnyski, who has had his fair share of exciting moments out on the ice, still can’t help but smile when he laces up the skates and jumps over the boards. What makes it even better is being able to share the ice with young players eager to learn new tricks and knowing he is helping lift up kids of all abilities.

“Every time I come up here it has always been a great response,” Krushelnyskisaid. “The community supports us, the sponsors support us, we get to have fun with the kids who come out on the ice. That’s the future of what’s up and coming.”

Former National Hockey League players faced off against a determined team of law enforcement in the NHL Alumni Game at the Fort William Gardens on Sunday.

This is the third year the NHL Alumni Tour has stopped in Thunder Bay in support of Special Olympics. Organizers said they hoped to raise $10,000 this year.

“It’s a miracle. It’s terrific,” said Jim McIlveen, a retired correctional officer and former coordinator of the tour. “We are getting bigger and bigger names out.”

“In Thunder Bay here is one of our better programs,” McIlveen continued. “It’s one of the best communities. We’ve been here for the last three years now and it gets better and better every year.”

Players with the Elks Hockey Association were given the opportunity to take to the ice with some former NHL greats from the original six teams, including Adam Munro, Andrea Deveaux, Brent Gretzky, Jay Wells, Gilbert Dionne, Bryan Muir, Ethan Moreau, and Mark Napier.

“It’s cool. I never did it before,” said 10-year-old, Ryder Bedard. “This is my first year. It’s going to be fun.”

Krushelnyski said he loves being able to get out on the ice with a group of up-and-coming hockey stars so he can share a few tricks of the trade.

“It’s nice to see the progression sometimes,” he said. “From year to year we will catch a certain age group and we will come back a year later and see the same kids and think: wow, those kids have gotten better.”

“Better yet when we get an email that say we tried your trick and we won the game, that’s the best,” he continued. “There’s always something you can learn. At every age.”

During his career that spanned nearly two decades, Krushelnyski won three Stanely Cups with the Edmonton Oilers in the 1980s.

And while earning the chance to hoist the Cup is no easy feat, Krushelnyski is even more impressed with the men and women in law enfocement who he was facing off against on the ice on Sunday.

“They do all the work, they put the event on, we get to have fun and come out and play hockey,” he said. “They do a great job raising money and it all goes to a great cause. We’re all just trying to pitch in, do our little part, and have fun here.”



Doug Diaczuk

About the Author: Doug Diaczuk

Doug Diaczuk is a reporter and award-winning author from Thunder Bay. He has a master’s degree in English from Lakehead University
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