Founding father of Little NHL tournament honoured by Maple Leafs and Marlies

By Sam Laskaris

TORONTO – Jim McGregor was already known for playing an important role in hockey history.

But McGregor, former chief of Whitefish River First Nation and one of the founding fathers of the Little Native Hockey League tournament, was beaming about a pair of recent honours bestowed upon him.

For starters, McGregor, who is 85 years old, was recognized as the Hero of the Game during the Toronto Marlies’ Indigenous Celebration Game held on Jan. 12. The Marlies are the American Hockey League affiliate of the National Hockey League’s Toronto Maple Leafs.

Then, the following morning, McGregor had an opportunity to address the Maple Leafs’ players prior to their morning skate, ahead of their Indigenous Celebration Game that evening.

McGregor spoke to the Leafs about the history of the tournament he helped launch. That event, often simply called the Little NHL, is celebrating its 50th anniversary this March.

After McGregor addressed the NHL players, Toronto captain John Tavares presented him with a Maple Leafs’ jersey autographed by all of the team players.

“It’s one of the biggest honours in my life,” McGregor said of the recognition he received from the Leafs and Marlies.

For McGregor, this marked the first time he had been to a Leafs’ game at the Scotiabank Arena. The club moved to the facility in 1999.

“I used to come and watch the Leafs in the old Maple Leaf Gardens,” he said, adding the late George Armstrong, the team’s Indigenous captain, was one of the players he enjoyed watching. “But this is the first time I’ve been in here.”

McGregor was one of five men called the Founding Fathers of the Little NHL, and the only one still alive.

“I just explained to them how we got started with the Little NHL and the history of it,” McGregor said of his address to the Leafs.

The tournament, which featured 17 clubs in its inaugural year, will include more than 200 squads at the 2024 event, which will be held in Markham.

“It’s quite an achievement for us, I believe,” McGregor said of the tournament’s growth and longevity.

McGregor’s son Gerry, a member of the Little NHL executive, didn’t tell his father that both the Marlies and Leafs would be honouring him until they were driving to Toronto.

“I thought, ‘Oh my goodness, what did I get myself into?’” the elder McGregor said.

Gerry McGregor said his father has been a longtime Leafs’ fan and that he was extremely touched the club presented him with an autographed jersey.

“He said, ‘I can’t believe I got this – never in a million years would I have thought I’d be able to get this,’” he said.

Gerry McGregor added that his father was blown away by the fact he was invited into the Leafs’ dressing room to speak to the team.

“He couldn’t believe his eyes or he couldn’t believe that he was even here,” he said. “It’s unbelievable to have something like that. It’s once-in-a- lifetime to have an experience like that. So, he was pretty excited to be in the room.”

Gerry McGregor also said his father was deserving of accolades because of his Little NHL involvement.

“All his work that he has done in the past and he’s continued it on since he started it,” he said of his dad’s commitment to the event. “He’s happy to see it is still strong and going on. And it’s stronger than ever.”