Star-studded lunch

Trevor Letowski is back in town for the summer, and he’s bringing along an old friend.

On Aug. 5 the now-retired NHLer will host – alongside a few of the city’s active pros – a luncheon with Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke at Fort William Historical Park.

Letowski, set to take on a new challenge in his hockey career, when he steps behind the bench of his former junior club the Sarnia Sting this fall as an assistant coach, played for Burke when he ran the Vancouver Canucks and said he can’t wait to see what his old boss has to say.

"It’s for the 2011 Ontario Special Olympic Winter Games which we’re hosting here in Thunder Bay," Letowski said. "For Brian Burke to come, I’m excited just to hear him speak. I played under Burkie in Vancouver, I’ve seen him at events like this and he’s good. He’ll tell stories."

Letowski’s just glad Burke, whose son died in a car accident last winter, could spare the time to come.

"He’s a busy guy. He doesn’t get a lot of time to do things like this, so I think we’re pretty lucky. We’re very lucky to have him fly out here for a day and to do this. So we’re excited."

Letowski, however, stayed mum when asked if he thought Burke might try to deal star defenceman Thomas Kaberle for the Sleeping Giant.

"No comment," he said smirking.

The 33-year-old, who spent time in Vancouver, Phoenix, Columbus and Carolina before heading overseas to play in Russia the past two seasons, has plenty else to smile about these days.

The move to Sarnia, where he’ll mentor under long-time coach Dave MacQueen, delivers the gritty forward into the next stage of his life, and though he’s not sure he wants to take it any further than junior, coaching is a challenge and a welcome change nonetheless.

"It’s exciting. It’s just something brand new. I’ve got lots to learn, that’s for sure, but I’m going in with an open mind. It’s something I’ve always wanted to try and it’s a great spot to kind of start and have an easy transition for me."

Letowski, who scored 84 times and racked up 201 points in 616 NHL games, adding 10 goals and 17 assists in two seasons with Astana Barys, could have kept playing, but felt the time had come to hang up his blades.

"I was ready. I had a good run over here, I played nine years in the NHL and I had the opportunity to go over to Russia, which I’m glad I did," Letowski said. "I went for two years and had lots of great experiences. After that I had some options to go to Europe, but this opportunity in Sarnia came up.

"Me and my family discussed it for awhile and the more we discussed it, the easier the decision became, and it was kind of a no-brainer."

Having played under the likes of Mike Babcock, Marc Crawford and Peter Laviolette, Letowski said he hopes to draw the best out of all his former coaches when the Sting hit the ice later this summer.

MacQueen, a veteran of 25 years in the coaching business, will also be a ready source of knowledge.

"I’ll just try to sponge off of him and we’ll just see where it goes."

Tickets for the Brian Burke and Friends Luncheon are available at Young’s Insurance. Phone 344-9999 for more information.