Brendan Shanahan.
A smiling Brendan Shanahan talks to the media as the NHLPA met at Toronto's Westin Harbour Castle July 21, 2005 to vote on a new deal that would put hockey back on the ice. Shanahan is part of the slate of inductees this year into the Etobicoke Sports Hall of Fame.
Toronto Star File Photo/LUCAS OLENIUK
Mimico native Brendan Shanahan is just one of an exciting slate of inductees to the Etobicoke Sports Hall of Fame this year.
Honourees for the 17th annual event include a host of local sports greats - from coaches, to builders, to media, to athletes, said Hall chair Jim Sturino.
"Our big one this year is a big South Etobicoke boy - Brendan Shanahan," he told Toronto Community News last week. "He's going to be in the Hockey Hall of Fame one day, but we're getting him first."
This year's inductee displays will be among the first to make their home at the MasterCard Centre for Hockey Excellence when the Hall of Fame moves from Woodbine Mall to the Maple Leafs' Kipling Avenue practice facility in September, Sturino added.
They are:
- Brendan Shanahan
A member of the elite Triple Gold Club, the recently retired winger has won all three of the most prominent team titles in ice hockey - an Olympic gold medal (2002), a World Championship (1994), and the Stanley Cup (1997, 1998 and 2002) - over the course of his esteemed, 22-year professional career.
Originally drafted by the New Jersey Devils second overall in the 1987 NHL draft, Shanahan went on to play with the St. Louis Blues, the Hartford Whalers, the Detroit Red Wings, the New York Rangers, and the Devils, scoring 656 goals in his NHL career. All three of his Stanley Cup championships were won with Detroit, where he spent the majority of his career. Shanahan retired as the leader among active NHL players for goals scored, and as the only player in NHL history with more than 600 goals and 2,000 penalty minutes.
- Bob Harris and Brian Hoskins (builders)
The president and vice chair of Lakeshore Lions arena, respectively, Harris and Hoskins played a huge part in bringing the $33.65 million, 276,000 sq.-ft. MasterCard Centre of Hockey Excellence to south Etobicoke.
The four-pad arena at Kipling and Lake Shore Blvd. W., which replaced the aging (circa 1951) single-pad Lakeshore Lions Arena, opened in September of last year. It now houses the Toronto Maple Leafs' practice facility, as well as the Hockey Hall of Fame's archives and research facilities, Hockey Canada's regional offices, the Etobicoke Dolphins (the country's second largest women's hockey organization) and the Faustina Sports Club.
- Jim Bannon (media)
Editor of the Woodbine Journal, a daily analysis of the racing card's at Woodbine Ractrack, Bannon has enjoyed a 35-year career in broadcasting. A staple at the track, he's worked as a guest analyst for CBC Television, covering the Queen's Plate, and is a director of the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame.
Bannon is also an esteemed educator, having hosted hundreds of seminars across North America on handicapping horses, and having taught the Canadian Racing Officials Course for Thoroughbred racing officials at Humber College.
- Gerry Meehan (athlete)
First drafted by Toronto in 1963, the retired NHL left winger went on to play for the Maple Leafs, the Philadelphia Flyers, the Buffalo Sabres, the Vancouver Canucks, the Atlanta Flames, and the Washington Capitals, serving as captain for both the Sabres and Capitals.
Over his playing career, Meehan scored 423 points in 670 regular season games, but he also made a name for himself after his on-ice retirement. In 1984, the Sabres made Meehan the first former team member to serve as assistant general manager. He was promoted to general manager during the 1986-87 season and brought in a number of star players over the course of his tenure in the position, including Pierre Turgeon, Alexander Mogilny, Dale Hawerchuk, Pat LaFontaine, and Dominik Hašek.
- Ken Gibb (coach)
A coach involved with the hockey in the Royal York area, Gibb coached young athletes right from the youngest age groups to midget. In 1976, he went on to serve as both coach and general manager of the Royal York Royals Provincial Junior A hockey team.
Throughout his coaching career, he's developed a number of young hockey talents - including Colin Patterson (Stanley Cup winner with the Calgary Flames in 1989), Bruce Driver (New Jersey Devil Stanley Cup winner in 1995) and Adam Oates (in the record books for being the NHL player who has accumulated the most career playoffs points without winning the Stanley Cup).
- Ted Toogood (athlete)
A member of the Toronto Argonauts' All-Time Roster, Toogood was the Argo's halfback and kick returner from 1950 to 1954. During his time with the CFL team, he not only earned accolades for turning two punts for touchdowns in one game - with no blocking - but he also established Ryerson University's football team, serving as both athletic director and coach.
In 1960, Toogood joined the staff at Burnamthorpe Collegiate Institute, and later Etobicoke Collegiate Institute, as a physical education and health teacher, and coach. He is now retired from teaching.
In addition to the annual inductees, the Etobicoke Sports Hall of Fame also present two young local athletes with scholarships each year. The 2010 winners are Robert MacFarlane and Shea Seale, both for Father John Redmond Catholic Secondary School.
The 16th annual Etobicoke Sports Hall of Fame induction dinner gala will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 27 at the Old Mill Inn and Spa, 21 Old Mill Rd. The reception and cocktails begin at 6 p.m., followed by dinner and ceremony at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $150 per person, and can be purchased by calling Carole Murphy at 416-233-6276 or online at www.etobicokesports.ca