THUNDER BAY – Rick Vaive shuddered when he was reminded it’s been nearly 38 years since the Vancouver Canucks drafted him.
“You had to remind me of that,” Vaive said, taking a breather Tuesday night between periods at Fort William Gardens, where he joined a dozen or so former players at the NHL Alumni Tour game in support of Special Olympics, taking on a team of local law enforcement all-stars.
It was all in good fun.
Vaive, a three-time 50-goal scorer with the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1980s who tallied 441 times over 13 seasons, said it might take a little more effort these days to get up and down the ice, but in the end it’s all worthwhile.
“I was at many Special Olympics events when I was playing in Toronto and saw how amazing it was, to see those athletes compete and get the opportunity to compete,” Vaive said.
“I’ve been doing this for 10 or 11 years now.”
Leafs Nation was fully represented at the game, which drew nearly 2,000 fans to the six-decade-old facility.
In addition to Vaive, defenceman Al Iafrate, the No. 4 pick in the 1984 NHL Entry Draft, and Dave (Tiger) Williams, the NHL’s all-time leading penalized player, were also in uniform. Others with Leafs ties included Dan Daoust and Mike Krushelnyski, as well as coach Mike Pelyk, a blue-line stalwart in the 1970s before fleeing to the World Hockey Association.
Williams said he’s been involved in Special Olympics most of his life, pointing to a hockey tournament he ran in Vancouver in support of the charity.
When they call, he answers.
“Every rink, every town, everywhere there are many handicapped individuals, whether they’re little guys or older people. It’s our duty to look after them,” said Williams, who in 1980 was traded to the Vancouver Canucks in a multi-player deal that saw Vaive wind up in Toronto.
Iafrate, his temporary teammates giving him the gears in the background, said being out on the ice is great, especially knowing the money is going to a good place.
“Whenever you get a chance to help a community and you can help make the world a better place, it’s great,” said Iafrate, whose legendary slap-shot was the hardest ever recorded for 16 years until Zdeno Chara surpassed his 169.3 kilometre-per-hour mark in 2009.
“Being an athlete, the opportunity to go into these communities and playing with the local law enforcement and a lot of the money gets donated to Special Olympics, it’s always great to be a part of that.”
The final score, for those keeping track, saw the NHL Alumni team double up the law enforcement all-stars 14-7.
