Lögberg-Heimskringla - 01.05.2015, Blaðsíða 5

Lögberg-Heimskringla • 1. maí 2015 • 5
ONLINE MAGAZINE: WWW. HEIMSKRINGLOG.COM
OP-ED Cully Wilson did us proud
In recognition of his remarkable twenty-three year career in professional
hockey, which included two
Stanley Cup championships,
Cully Wilson will be inducted
into the Manitoba Hockey Hall
of Fame on October 3, 2015.
Despite his size (Cully never
weighed more than 150 pounds)
he is remembered first and
foremost as a tough guy – and he
was! He is also sometimes quite
wrongly cast as a dirty player,
having racked up 990 penalty
minutes in the course of his
526 professional games. Let’s
put that number in perspective:
firstly, a simple calculation tells
us that Wilson spent an average
of 1.88 minutes in the penalty
box for each game he played;
secondly, as his teammates have
attested, Cully was often the
target of opposing team goons
anxious to knock this very fast,
highly skilled player out of
the game. During his career,
professional teams’ rosters had
just eight or nine players, which
meant that Wilson was on the
ice for 60 minutes pretty much
every game – and longer if it
went into overtime. The average
NHL career lasts just 5.5 years.
To remain competitive for more
than two decades in a tough
sport like hockey, you have to be
not only physically and mentally
tough, but a student of the game,
using experience and knowledge
to make up for diminishing
speed and stamina. Cully was
just that, as demonstrated by the
fact that, after two decades in
professional hockey, he served
for two years as a star player
and head coach of the St. Paul
Saints.
The Winnipeg’s West End,
where Cully grew up at the turn
of the last century, was a dynamic
rough and tumble place. It had
its own pecking order – and we
Icelanders were at the bottom
of it. In 1900, the city had a
population of 42,000; there were
three times as many brothels and
saloons as there were churches
and synagogues; help wanted
ads often stipulated, “Icelanders
need not apply,” and we weren’t
deemed good enough to compete
with our British cousins in
sports. This motivated our
community, together with other
“alien immigrants,” to organize
our own sports leagues. At this
point, we didn’t just want to
play against teams in the senior
league, we wanted to humiliate
them.
There is an old adage in
hockey that says, “if you’re
going to beat them on the ice,
you’ve got to beat them in the
alley”, and Cully had lots of
practice at that. Old timers told
stories of fighting their way
to school and fighting their
way home. This experience
not only honed young Cully’s
fighting skills and increased his
strength and stamina, it taught
him teamwork. It also gave
him unique insights into dealing
with bullies. Essentially, all
bullies are cowards – and once
they understand that, if they
tangle with you, they’re going
to experience pain in ways they
never expected, they’re not
likely to come back for more.
Lessons learned in the alleys
of West End Winnipeg proved
invaluable to Wilson throughout
his professional career.
Just as his fellow Icelanders
had his back in Winnipeg, his
teammates did on the ice – they
were a band of brothers. While
co-players and fans loved Cully,
opposing teams and their fans
hated him. This is the way of
the warrior and Wilson was a
warrior.
So on October 3rd, let’s
raise a glass to Cully. He was
one hell of a man and he’s done
us all proud.
Carl Johnson
Winnipeg, MB
THORVALDSON CARE CENTER
495 Stradbrook Avenue Winnipeg Manitoba R3L 0K2
Phone: 204-452-4044 www.thorcare.ca E-mail: thorcare@shaw.ca
24-HOUR SUPERVISION
GOVERNMENT APPROVED FACILITY
Herman O. Thorvaldson, President
Our modern two storey care facility is government approved and specifically designed to offer a
homey atmosphere in a safe contemporary setting. We are located in Osborne Village convenient to all
ammenties and services.
‘Intermediate’ Personal Care is provided to those who are no longer able to manage in their current
living situation, yet are not quite ready for placement in a Personal Care Home.
Thorvaldson Care Center is the only Intermediate Care facility in Manitoba.
Celebrating over 50 years of Caring for Seniors
AN INTERMEDIATE CARE FACILIT Y
Thorvaldson Care Center
~ 24 hour care / supervision by Health Care Aides
~ Registered Nurse (on-site) weekdays
~ Medications administered and charted
~ Assist with bathing, dressing, hygiene
~ Private bed-sitting rooms with bathroom
~ Two nurse call stations in each suite
~ Three home-cooked meals / day plus snacks
~ Housekeeping (daily), Laundry (personal & linens)
~ Recreational activities
Top: Harry Holmes, Bobby Rowe, Ed Carpenter, Jack Walker. Middle: Frank Foyston,
Pete Muldoon, Manager. Bottom: Bernie Morris, Cully Wilson, Roy Rickey, Jim Riley.
The hands that laid many an opponent low in the heat of the
game now sculpted beautiful backyard gardens. Roses were his
specialty.”
Cully died on July 6, 1962 and he was laid to rest in Seattle.
His widow Violet donated his skates to the city of Seattle, where
they have remained ever since – a tribute to one who helped bring
professional hockey to that city.
Cully was one of only four players named to the Hall of Fame
this year, along with Sheldon Kennedy, Cam Connor, and Curt
Ridley. In addition to these four players, popular broadcaster Scott
Oake was named to the Hall of Fame, along with four “builders,”
one official, and three teams.
“All of these inductees were nominated by fellow players,
coaches, administrators, other members of the hockey community
and individuals outside of the hockey community. All of them
have made contributions to hockey regionally, nationally and
internationally. A peer jury made the final selections for inclusion
in the Hall of Fame,” said Jordy Douglas, vice president of the
Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame.
The 2015 nominees will become official members of the
Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame at the biannual induction dinner at
CanadInns Polo Park in Winnipeg on October 3, 2015. “The dinner
is formal recognition of the contributions made by our Inductees
and a celebration of the hockey community in Manitoba,” said
Don Kuryk, president of the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame. The
dinner is open to the public and tickets are now available.
The Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame and Museum was
established in 1985 when the first honoured members were
named and plaques were erected in their honour. It recognizes
the accomplishments of Manitoba players, coaches, builders and
teams at the international, national, provincial and local levels.
Since 1995, it has added to its honour roll every second year.
The Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame and Museum is located
on the main level of the MTS Centre in downtown Winnipeg.
The Players Wall is just inside the main entrance in the northeast
corner and the Builders Wall is in the northwest corner. A Wall of
Champions for teams in the Hall of Fame is located opposite the
Builders Wall. The museum also includes a tribute to Olympic
gold medallists and an enclosed memorabilia area. In addition
to the installations at the MTS Centre, there is a Wall of Fame
photo gallery at CanadInns Polo Park in Winnipeg and, in 2011,
a permanent exhibit from the Hall of Fame collection was placed
on the second floor of the MTS Iceplex, just west of Winnipeg’s
Perimeter Highway.
Velkomin
to the Gimli Constituency
Peter Bjornson
MLA for Gimli
204-642-4977
1-866-253-0255
PeterBjornson.ca
118D 10 Centre Street
Box 5500 Gimli MB R0C 1B0
New office location:
Cully Wilson Hockey Hall of Fame ... from page 1