Tom Hedican has some fond memories about Jim Koleff.
Koleff, a Burlington native hired Tom Hedican as a goalie coach on three different occasions, with three different pro teams in Switzerland.
Koleff and Hedican both celebrated a Swiss League championship with Lugano back in 1999.
In 2004, during their last coaching journey together, Koleff was diagnosed with cancer and was forced to miss the rest of the season.
Hedican, the goalie coach was promoted to associate coach for the rest of the 2004 season.
Koleff passed away a few years later but his name was never forgotten in Swiss hockey circles.
This week, the Jim Koleff Charity Memorial Game is taking place in Switzerland as Team Koleff Canada faces Team Koleff Switzerland.
“He was like a brother to me, so when his daughter Sandy asked me to be the coach of Team Canada Koleff and play a charity game against Team Switzerland, it was an automatic for me,” said Hedican who is traveling to Europe on Tuesday.
“Jim was probably the best-known coach in Switzerland and he was idolized and loved for the way he treated people. He treated people the same no matter if they had menial jobs or were the president of the hockey team.
“There are a lot of great coaches who worked with Jim so to be asked to be the head coach is very special. I am going to get to see a lot of guys I coached or worked with over many years and to all be in one place to pay tribute to such a great man will be amazing.
Hedican says it will be emotional too.
“I know Sandy has worked extremely hard and has many special things in store throughout the evening, and after the game. I am sure there will be a lot of tears to go along with the laughter because Jimmy was one of the funniest guys I have ever met.”
One of those special Swiss reunions will include Hedican’s starting netminder in the form of Stanley Cup champion and former NHL All-Star Cristobal Huet, who Hedican helped discover in Europe more than 10 years ago.
By no coincidence, Cristobal Huet will be Hedican’s starting goalie.
“The kid Jim took a big gamble on, that no one had heard of in Switzerland who went on to lead the NHL in saver percentage with the Montreal Canadiens, an NHL All-Star, and Stanley Cup champion,” said Hedican.
“When we signed Cristo in Lugano as one of three imports (he is from France), there was a lot of heat from fans and media because the team is owned by a billionaire and they were used to having well known NHL players as their imports. It could have cost Jim his job had it not worked out. This was pro hockey and there was no room for failure in Lugano. It is one of the biggest budget teams in Switzerland.
“But we won the National Championship that year with Cristo, who was incredible. He holds a special place in my heart and I am so proud of all he has accomplished and the person he is. We have been emailing back and forth and are both very excited for this game.”
Cristobal is excited too.
“Tom was my first real goalie coach,” said Huet, who came to North Bay in support of Coach4Food in the summer of 2007 when he was playing for the Montreal Canadiens.
“I was really a raw talent, we worked on a lot of stuff. He helped me develop into a better goalie aiming to play in the NHL. This was unthinkable for me before him. Tom was/is also a mentor, he created a trust relationship, ‘Good things happen to good people,’ like he would say,” continued Huet.
Hedican expects a lot of laughs, a lot of tears, a lot of beer.
“The best is that all proceeds are going to charity in Switzerland.”
Hedican is also glad the event pays tribute to a good man and a great coach like Jim Koleff.
“I just feel blessed to have met such a special person who taught me so much about how to treat people with dignity and respect regardless of who they are or what they do.”