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On Saturday night, The Yorkton Terriers held their third annual Celebrity Sports Dinner at St. Mary’s Cultural Centre and it was one I was really looking forward to, for a couple of reasons.
Firstly, the meal at St. Mary’s? Always outstanding. I seem to have, after almost 20 years, finally cracked the code for eating just enough to be full, but not too much that I’m completely bloated and can’t move. The roast beef and horseradish, perogies, cabbage rolls, dessert, and of course, the buns. I kid you not, when I say that the bowls that are meant for salad? Mine get used as a bun and butter transport system!
And secondly, I was excited for the event as soon as the evening’s guest speaker was announced. Since I was a kid, you all know by now, I’m a diehard Philadelphia Flyers fan, but since he burst into the NHL, I’ve also been a big Jeremy Roenick fan. Big skill, big tenacity, and a big personality, rolled up into one dynamic package!
J.R. was never the biggest guy on the ice, but his motor never stopped In baseball terms, he was a “five-tool player.” He could snipe around the net, set up goals with some pretty passing, throw some thunderous bodychecks, drop the mitts and fight, and he could chirp with the best of ’em!
In his early years with Chicago, I remember watching him become a centrepiece of the Blackhawks’ lineup, along with his hero, Chris Chelios, Steve Larmer, Denis Savard and Ed Belfour help to lead the Blackhawks to the 1992 Stanley Cup Final, where they were swept by Mario Lenieux, Jaromir Jagr and the Penguins, who won their second of back-to-back Cups. (By the way, how good is your goaltending situation, when Belfour was Chicago’s starter, and Dominik Hasek was the BACKUP goalie? But I digress…)
When Roenick had an acrimonious split with the Hawks, he was dealt to the Phoenix Coyotes, and spent several years in the desert, before signing with my Flyers, in 2001.
I was super excited when J.R. donned the Orange and Black, and in his three seasons in Philly, he made three all-star teams, had memorable moments such as dressing up as Flyers icon (and G.M. at the time) Bobby Clarke, having his jaw shattered by a Boris Mironov slapshot at Madison Square Garden, and my personal favourite, his overtime goal in 2004 to eliminate the Leafs from the playoffs, and sending Philly to the Eastern Conference Final, where they ultimately fell in seven games to the Tampa Bay Lightning.
For years, I’ve had an 8×10 photo of J.R. celebrating that moment and when I realized he was coming to town, I dug it out, and was able to get it signed by the man himself!
When chatting with him for a brief couple of minutes, I described it as a “great moment in Philadelphia Flyer history,” and Roenick said that was actually his favourite goal!
I can only imagine what it must be like to be the guy who could take a raucous 20,000 seat arena full of Leaf fans, and turn it quiet as a morgue in seconds!
After his three years in Philly, he headed to Los Angeles for a year, followed by one more season with the Coyotes, and two final years with San Jose, where he eclipsed the 500-goal plateau.
It was a heck of a playing career – one that several of today’s players spoke on when J.R. got the call to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2024.
And on induction night, Roenick was the final inductee of the evening, and his speech was heartfelt, full of humour, contrition, gratitude and hope for the future.
At St. Mary’s on Saturday, J.R. took the stage for a chat with our own sports guru Benny Walchuk, and he was relaxed and gregarious, chatting at length from everything from an encounter at a Hartford Whalers practice with Gordie Howe that made a huge impression on him, to breaking into the NHL with the Hawks (I’ll be having nightmares of Al Secord for months!), playing for “Iron Mike” Keenan, an insane day on the links with Michael Jordan, some memorable pranks, his time in Phoenix, Philly and L.A., and making his way to San Jose, where his former teammate, friend and Sharks G.M. Doug Wilson gave him a lifeline, and a chance to finish his career on a positive note, getting emotional when he said “Doug Wilson saved my life.”
I think that was what impressed me the most about J.R.s talk, was his openness about his personal issues with alcohol and gambling, and how he realizes now that a big part of the reason he had to wait so long to become a Hall of Famer, was because he wasn’t living like a Hall of Famer. He noted that it took a while to get his life and priorities in order, but he’s now in a great place.
And he also noted how it was ironic that he was right in the middle of the Canadian prairie, on the night before the Olympic gold medal men’s hockey game, speaking on his own Olympic experiences, and closing the evening with his trademark sense of humour, by saying that he hoped Canada would “f****** lose tomorrow!” (Well, J.R., you got your wish. Congrats, and enjoy it!)
(It’s also a credit to J.R. and the goodwill he creates wherever he goes, that he could get away with saying that in a room full of rabid Canadian hockey fans, and still get the room laughing! Haha!)
It was a great evening overall, with a fantastic meal, a chance to catch up with many friends I hadn’t seen in a while, and meet one of my all-time favourite hockey players. A super-friendly guy, and full of great humour, stories and insight into life, creating an evening that everyone in attendance will remember for years to come.
Kudos to the Terriers, St. Mary’s, all of the sponsors, Jeremy Roenick, and everyone who made it such a memorable evening!
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