It was an emotional and inspiring night of hockey Saturday at the Civic Centre, as the Battlefords Stars paid tribute to Wade Belak.
Belak, who played for the Stars midget team before going on to a junior and then NHL career that included stints with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Calgary Flames and the Nashville Predators, died Aug. 3, 2011 in what was later ruled a suicide.
The game Saturday, where the Stars took on the Saskatoon Blazers in AAA midget action, was a way for the Battlefords to remember Belak and to raise money towards an education fund for his daughters, Andie and Alex Belak.
The pre-game ceremonies featured many of Belak's former colleagues who played on the team with him, as well as his former coach, Tim Nilson.
On the ice, the AAA Stars players wore commemorative jerseys featuring the old stylized "N" logo the Stars wore when Belak played for the team in the early 1990s.
Nilson presented a commemorative jersey to Wade's parents, Barry and Lorraine Belak, at centre ice. The two were accompanied by Stars assistant captain Eric Pfeifer as they crossed the ice surface to receive the jersey.
There were a number of associated fundraising efforts throughout the night, including a guaranteed $500 50-50 draw, as well as a silent auction in which several of Wade's former jerseys were up for auction.
There were other jerseys up for bids as well, included ones from Wendel Clark and Dave Manson from their time with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The game and the events surrounding it attracted the AAA Stars' largest crowd of the season, with an estimated 700 fans taking in the game against the Blazers. Among the fans were many minor hockey players from the Battlefords who attended the game for free by wearing their team jerseys.
The night turned out to be exactly what organizers, including team manager Shawn Robinson, had hoped for.
"I thought it was a success," said Robinson. "I'm proud of the people who turned out and showed their support."
Robinson said many people in the Battlefords had not had a chance to pay their respects to Belak because the funeral was in Nashville. This was their opportunity to pay tribute.
"A lot of people wanted to step up and help out," said Robinson.
As for funds raised from the evening, a final tally was not expected until later in the week, though there was hope the final numbers could hit $10,000.
The club expects to hold a formal cheque presentation once the final numbers are in.
The large crowd saw a thrilling hockey performance from both the Blazers and the Stars.
The Blazers started the scoring in the first period at the 13:25 mark as Tyler Kreklewich scored to make it 1-0, but the Stars came back with two goals, from Spencer Bast (with Pfeifer and Maxim Powiada assisting on the power play marker) and Austin Duzan (with Regan Yew assisting) to make it 2-1 Stars after one period.
In the second the Blazers scored three times starting with Keegan Allison midway through the period, followed by goals from Chris Thorimbert and then Allison again for his second of the game, to make it 4-2 Blazers after two.
But the Stars staged a comeback in the third period. Kent Walchuk scored from Ryan Frehlick to make it 4-3 early in the third, and then at the 16:13 mark, Josh Bly tied it on the power play unassisted.
Maxim Powiada's goal from both Regan and Robin Yew at the 17:11 mark gave the Stars the lead, and then they sealed the comeback moments later with a goal from Braden Lacoursiere from Walchuk at 17:51.
That set up a 6-4 comeback victory for the Battlefords Stars. Rylan Toth got the win in net for the Stars.
It was clear the Stars players were moved by the occasion and that might have contributed to their slow start in the game.
"The boys were really caught up in the hype, you could tell," said Robinson. "They were a little star-struck at first, but they settled down in the third and got the job done."
In an unusual gesture for a regular-season contest, the two teams lined up at centre ice to shake hands after the final buzzer sounded, capping an evening of hockey that fans at the Civic Centre will remember for a long time.
The Stars were scheduled to be back in action against the Blazers in Saskatoon Tuesday, before returning home for games Jan. 12 and 13 against Swift Current at the Civic Centre.
