A 'Standing 'O' (chaleurese ovation) for Tim Bozon part of a class act for Kootenay Ice player

As Tim Bozon walked along a carpet to centre ice for a ceremonial puck drop, within a day of having been released from hospital, the Kootenay Ice hockey player was welcomed back with a long sustained standing ovation from the more than 4000 people in Western Financial Place in Cranbrook.

 

Jaedon Descheneau, his friend and teammate posted on Twitter: "Unforgettable night watching Timmy walk onto the ice. Brought a tear to my eye knowing how far he came since that night. Love ya."

 

And Landon Cross, another team-mate also commented on Twitter: "Great moment ... in Kootenay with TimB94 standing at centre ice to a standing 'O. He certainly deserved it."

 

Tim sure did deserve the "standing 'O". On March 1 following a Western Hockey League game against the Saskatoon Blades in Saskatoon, Tim was admitted to Royal University Hospital and diagnosed with Neisseria meningitis, and shortly thereafter was placed in a medically induced coma.

 

His condition was listed as critical. However, nearing the end of March, doctors had slowly taken him out of the coma, and amazingly, some may say miraculously, Tim was on the road to recovery and on March 28 there he was back in Cranbrook for the ceremonial faceoff.

 

It took place at the sixth game of the WHL quarter-final playoff series between the Ice and the Calgary Hitmen with his team leading the series 3-2.

 

To see Tim at centre ice truly brought "a tear" to the eye of many more than his friend Jaedon. It was one of those occasions when time seems to stop for a moment, and for much more than a moment, when the full house crowd cheered and applauded this young man, just turned 20, whose first stop after being released from hospital was to return to his team.

 

Tim Bozon, in himself is a class act, but so were the hockey fans who showed their respect for him.

 

For a person like me who has spent more than half the winters of my life in hockey rinks as a player (very poor one), referee, coach, manager, sports writer, and play by play announcer and colour commentator, this scene was among the most emotional of them all. 

 

But the class act continued. All the players of the Calgary Hitmen came onto the ice before the game got underway and shook Tim's hand and gave him a hug in another emotional moment.

 

At a press conference in Saskatoon before heading to Cranbrook, CTV News reported that Tim said,“I’m so grateful for knowing such great people,” Bozon said of all the support he received while in hospital. “It’s going to be exciting to leave the hospital and get back to Cranbrook and see my teammates. I think they miss me and I miss them.”

 

It was obvious his teammates missed him, and for good measure they won the series that night defeating the Hitmen 5-3.

 

At the end of the game, the Ice players gathered and held their sticks in the air as a salute to their teammate who had  watched the game from a luxury suite.

 

Tim, a Montreal Canadiens draft pick, will continue his recuperation in France where his father Phillipe Bozon, a former National Hockey League player, and his mother live.

 

Now though, a major item remains to be resolved. News reports in media across Canada have raised the issue of Tim's medical and related expenses that may not be covered by insurance. The total is apparently more than $100,000.

 

For those who wish to contribute to the Tim Bozon Trust Fund, you may do so at any branch of the Bank of Montreal in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, according to a WHL news release. If that does not work for you, contact the Western Hockey League or Kootenay Ice Hockey Club in Cranbrook.

 

Some Cranbrook businesses are holding fund raisers to help. 

 

After the game, Tim posted on Twitter: "Unforgettable night at the Ice game tonite. Thank you so much everyone for great support. Was good to see everyone. Great win."

 

For me, the best story I saw about Tim's ordeal was by TVA in French, and I leave you with one sentence  from it: "À peine sorti de l’hôpital, Bozon a été présenté à la foule et a reçu une chaleureuse ovation pour la mise en jeu protocolaire."

 

Let's continue the "chaleurese ovation"  for this young man whose first priority was to return to his team and say "au revoir" before heading off for rehabilitation, by making sure all bills are paid so there is no additional stress on Tim and his family.  My email is mj.morris@live.ca

 

A slightly different version appears on the Cranbrook Guardian http://livablecranbrook.blogspot.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapleau Ministry Manglers Win MNR Hockey Tournament Title in 1975 with Key Goal by Robin White

names below

The Chapleau Ministry Manglers made a clean sweep of the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources Hockey Tournament held at the Carmichael Arena in Sudbury in 1975.

In 2014, at the Ministry hockey tournament in Peterborough, the Chapleau Ministry was still competing, and the official program carried a photo and story about that 1975 team.

Since I started writing Chapleau Moments, and my blog, I am first to admit that I have not written much about the MNR or its predecessor the Department of Lands and Forests, and its immense contribution to the community, but thanks to Ken LeClaire and Tim Cecile, I will be able to share some of their moments now.

For starters, Ken advises that the Chapleau team did not win the 2014 championship but put up a great effort. However, he did provide me with some details on the 1975 tournament in which he participated as a player. In fact, he sent along the news story, written by Bill "Esher" Ritchie, the coach.

Teams from Owen Sound, Barrie, Parry Sound, Maple, Minden, Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie and Chapleau participated in 1975.

Playing defence for the Manglers were Martin Healey, Ken LeClaire, Graham Bertrand and Randy Corston with Glen Cappellani in goal. Rounding out the team were Tom Richardson, Darryl Ritchie, Al Harris, Robin White, John McKee, Gary Black and Joey Turner.


In their first game they defeated Owen Sound 5-2,  with Gary Black scoring two goals, and then they downed Maple 3-1.

Meeting the Sault Ste. Marie team which was heavily favoured and included Greg Vaughan and Tom Linklater, formerly of Chapleau, they won 5-2.

This set the stage for the final against Minden, and as the the third period drew to a close they were deadlocked in a 1-1 tie.

Ken shared an anecdote on what happened next. "Robin White turned to coach Ritchie and said, 'Put me on coach.' Esher did. Robin got the puck behind our net, skated the length of the ice through five defenders and scored.

"Robin came back to the bench, and said 'Now hold it'".

Ken added that it was not typical of Robin, who they called by his nickname 'Boogie' who was quiet and unassuming but it proved to be the winning goal and the Manglers won the championship with a 2-1 victory.

Another story Ken told about the series centred around Glen Cappellani who really was not and MNR employee.

Ken wrote:"When we were receiving our awards (Zippo Pen knives) for winning from Dr. Keith Renoylds the Deputy Minister, he was asking everyone what they did for MNR. 

"Our goalie had cancelled at the last minute and we brought Glen Cappellani, a non MNR Chapleauite who played goal at a fairly high level. 

"I told him to tell the Dep that he was a Jack Pine cone picker.  When the Dep got to him and asked,  Glen replied that he was a “ tree cone....... “ and forgot the rest.  He turned to me and asked what he did and I had to fill it in for him.  The Dep just laughed as he ( the Dep ) had had beverages with us the previous night in our hotel rooms."

Thanks Ken, and stay tuned for more about the MNR as I sort out all the material from Ken and Tim Cecile. My email is mj.morris@live.ca

THE TEAM

The 1975 Chapleau MNR Manglers championship team. Back Tom Richardson, Larry Mahon (trainer and beverage scout), Ray Bonnenberg, Robin (Boggie) White, Darryl Ritchie, Esher Ritchie (coach extraordinaire), John McKee, Martin Healey, Ken LeClaire Front are Gary Black, Graham Bertrand, Randy Corston, Glen Cappellani, Joe Turner, Al Harris. Courtesy Ken LeClaire

 

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