Little NHL Hall of Famers inducted at ceremony
By Sam Laskaris
A pair of former National Hockey League players are among the latest inductees into the Little Native Hockey League’s Hall of Fame.
Chris Simon, an Ojibwe from Wawa, and Stan Jonathan, a Mohawk who lives in Six Nations, were among those honoured by the association, which is more commonly called the Little NHL.
Induction ceremonies were held this past Saturday at the Hilton Mississauga/Meadowvale. The event was staged in conjunction with the 45th annual Little NHL Tournament, which begins today (Monday) and continues until Thursday in Mississauga.
Simon, who played 16 seasons in the NHL with eight different teams, was inducted via the Alumni category.
“It’s a huge honour for me,” he said. “It was a surprise and a great surprise. I’ve never been the type of person who expected things like awards.”
As for Jonathan, who spent the majority of his eight-year pro career with the Boston Bruins, he was inducted through the Friends category for his lengthy support of the Little NHL tourney.
Simon, now 44, still fondly recalls the two Little NHL tournaments he played in.
“The first year I played was at the 11th annual tournament,” he said. “I played for a Wikwemikong B team and we lost to the Wikwemikong A team in the final.”
Simon’s other appearance at the tournament was with the Garden River Braves, who ended up winning their Minor Bantam division.
“I still talk to 4-5 guys from that team,” Simon said. “I just remember being together with those guys and how it felt like we were all a family.”
Simon went on to play a total of 857 NHL games. A highlight was winning the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in 1996.
Simon played three seasons in the NHL with the Quebec Nordiques before the franchise relocated to Colorado. He also had NHL stints with the Washington Capitals, New York Rangers, Chicago Blackhawks, Calgary Flames, New York Islanders and Minnesota Wild.
Simon concluded his pro days by spending five seasons in the Russian-based Kontinental Hockey League.
Besides his hall of fame induction, there’s another good reason why Simon is attending this year’s Little NHL. His son Max is playing for a Peewee team representing Garden River.
The elder Simon now devotes a good chunk of his time to a mobile hockey school he launched recently.
Meanwhile, Jonathan, who appeared in 474 NHL contests, never played in a Little NHL tournament. But the 60-year-old has been one of the event’s biggest boosters.
For the past three decades he’s been attending the event, offering encouragement and advice to tournament participants.
“It’s just something I like to do,” Jonathan said. “I’ll go into as many dressing rooms as I can and sign autographs and talk to the kids. I talk to the kids about setting goals in life. And I tell them they too can make it to the NHL if they put their heart into it.”
Besides Simon, three others were inducted via the Alumni category on Saturday, including Moose Factory’s Mervin Cheechoo, whose son Jonathan is a former NHLer. The elder Cheechoo played in the inaugural Little NHL Tournament in 1971.
Maryanne Menefee (Oneida) and Kelly Babstock (Ojibwe) were the other Alumni inductees. Menefee spent the last three seasons playing at the University of Minnesota while Babstock is now playing pro, with the Connecticut Whale of the National Women’s Hockey League.
Joining Jonathan in the hall of fame via the Friends category were the Ontario Minister of Aboriginal Affairs David Zimmer and the Peace Hills Trust.
Meanwhile, those joining the hall of fame through the Builder category included Lloyd McGregor (Wikwemikong), Elizabeth Debassige (M’Chigeeng), Pauline Debassige (M’Chigeeng), Robert Restoule (Dokis) and Arnold and Bob Gardiner (Eagle Lake).
Honoured posthumously as builders were Dan Koosees (Kashechewan), Wellington Williamson (Curve Lake), Georgina McGregor (Whitefish River), Violet McGregor (Whitefish River) and Mike Hill (Six Nations).