At his twice-weekly skates in St. John’s, George Faulkner is used to being the oldest guy on the ice. His hockey buddies at Mile One Centre on Sundays and Capital Hyundai Arena on Wednesdays are all 15 to 30 years his junior.
But on Saturday evening in Paradise, when the Newfoundland and Labrador Hockey Hall of Famer and the first player from this province to sign a professional contract with an NHL team took to the ice, the age discrepancy between Faulkner and his opponents was a bit wider.
Faulkner, hockey royalty in this province, skated in his nine-year-old grandson George’s parents vs. kids hockey game at the Paradise Double Ice Complex.
“I can say now that I’ve played with my two sons, Bob and Peter, and now I’ve played with my grandson,” he beams after the adults fell 9-8 to the CBR Renegades atom house league Blackhawks team, a game in which Faulkner himself potted a couple of goals.
“That was the first time I’ve played in that kind of game. It was great to see those young fellas play. They’re good. They can skate and hustle and they don’t want to give up,” he says.
Head coach Steve Grandy says while many of the youngsters on his team may not fully understand Faulkner’s importance to provincial hockey history, it was special experience for the dads who shared the ice with him over the weekend.
“He’s outstanding. If I can skate when I’m 52 as good as he can skate at 82, I’d be happy,” says Grandy.
“I saw him put the puck through the kids legs a couple of times and make a few passes ... feather passes at that.”
While Faulkner has played for the past 70 years, this is the first season of hockey for little George.
“A lot of my ancestors played it and it just felt like a fun game to me,” says the left-winger whose very first goal came on Dec. 27, his grandfather’s 82nd birthday.
Because little George lives and plays hockey in Conception Bay South, and his grandfather lives in St. John’s, he hasn’t had as many opportunities as he would like to see much of his namesake’s rookie year. But that hasn’t stopped him from offering up some sage advice to his only grandchild.
“I like to tell him to remember what the fundamentals are and practise those. I think he knows them now, but I’ve got remind him every once in a while,” says Faulkner.
“I’d like to see him in a hockey school this summer where he’s on the ice twice a day ... with some good instructors out there and concentrating on the fundamentals; the skating, the stick handling, the passing and the shooting. Practice those and in a couple of years he’ll be coming along pretty good.”
Unconditional love for Granddad aside, little George is a big fan of his grandfather the hockey player. He’s read the Tom Rossiter book “Faulkner: A Hockey History”, and his room is adorned with memorabilia, including postcards from the countries where Faulkner played and photos from his career, including one of him and Montreal Canadiens legend Maurice “Rocket” Richard.
Glynne Faulkner, little George’s mother, says his grandfather has always been an active part of her son’s life, from changing diapers when he was an infant to daily pick-ups from the daycare or babysitter.
“If he was the greatest hockey player in the world, wonderful, but the way he's been a grandfather to my son is what makes him so remarkable in my eyes,” contends Glynne, who hopes one day her son realizes how special the occasion was.
“It’s a low key event, but very meaningful for us, and a memory I’m sure my George will remember the rest of his life.”
Twitter: @telykenn
At his twice-weekly skates in St. John’s, George Faulkner is used to being the oldest guy on the ice. His hockey buddies at Mile One Centre on Sundays and Capital Hyundai Arena on Wednesdays are all 15 to 30 years his junior.
But on Saturday evening in Paradise, when the Newfoundland and Labrador Hockey Hall of Famer and the first player from this province to sign a professional contract with an NHL team took to the ice, the age discrepancy between Faulkner and his opponents was a bit wider.
Faulkner, hockey royalty in this province, skated in his nine-year-old grandson George’s parents vs. kids hockey game at the Paradise Double Ice Complex.
“I can say now that I’ve played with my two sons, Bob and Peter, and now I’ve played with my grandson,” he beams after the adults fell 9-8 to the CBR Renegades atom house league Blackhawks team, a game in which Faulkner himself potted a couple of goals.
“That was the first time I’ve played in that kind of game. It was great to see those young fellas play. They’re good. They can skate and hustle and they don’t want to give up,” he says.
Head coach Steve Grandy says while many of the youngsters on his team may not fully understand Faulkner’s importance to provincial hockey history, it was special experience for the dads who shared the ice with him over the weekend.
“He’s outstanding. If I can skate when I’m 52 as good as he can skate at 82, I’d be happy,” says Grandy.
“I saw him put the puck through the kids legs a couple of times and make a few passes ... feather passes at that.”
While Faulkner has played for the past 70 years, this is the first season of hockey for little George.
“A lot of my ancestors played it and it just felt like a fun game to me,” says the left-winger whose very first goal came on Dec. 27, his grandfather’s 82nd birthday.
Because little George lives and plays hockey in Conception Bay South, and his grandfather lives in St. John’s, he hasn’t had as many opportunities as he would like to see much of his namesake’s rookie year. But that hasn’t stopped him from offering up some sage advice to his only grandchild.
“I like to tell him to remember what the fundamentals are and practise those. I think he knows them now, but I’ve got remind him every once in a while,” says Faulkner.
“I’d like to see him in a hockey school this summer where he’s on the ice twice a day ... with some good instructors out there and concentrating on the fundamentals; the skating, the stick handling, the passing and the shooting. Practice those and in a couple of years he’ll be coming along pretty good.”
Unconditional love for Granddad aside, little George is a big fan of his grandfather the hockey player. He’s read the Tom Rossiter book “Faulkner: A Hockey History”, and his room is adorned with memorabilia, including postcards from the countries where Faulkner played and photos from his career, including one of him and Montreal Canadiens legend Maurice “Rocket” Richard.
Glynne Faulkner, little George’s mother, says his grandfather has always been an active part of her son’s life, from changing diapers when he was an infant to daily pick-ups from the daycare or babysitter.
“If he was the greatest hockey player in the world, wonderful, but the way he's been a grandfather to my son is what makes him so remarkable in my eyes,” contends Glynne, who hopes one day her son realizes how special the occasion was.
“It’s a low key event, but very meaningful for us, and a memory I’m sure my George will remember the rest of his life.”
Twitter: @telykenn
