Hedican to be inducted into North Bay Sports Hall of Fame

Tom Hedican (right) standing with former NHL goaltender Cristobal Huet, who he instructed in Switzerland before he came over to the North America where he became an NHL All-Star. File photo.

International hockey goaltending coach Tom Hedican will be inducted into the North Bay Sports Hall of Fame on April 28th at the Best Western.

The 2011 induction class will also include Garry Payne (builder), Claude Riopelle (football), Rolph Tipler (judo) and the late Lou Farelli (hockey).

“Tom was an excellent goaltender in his youth, went on to coach in the OHL with London and North Bay, and has been a goaltender consultant with European professional teams for a number of years,” hall of fame chairman Bill Jacko said in making Hedican’s announcement.

“His famous Coach4Food campaign played a key role in North Bay being named (Kraft) Hockeyville in 2007.”

Born in North Bay, Hedican worked his way through local minor hockey ranks and the St. Joseph-Scollard Hall Bears.

In 1977, he was starting netminder for the POHA junior ‘A’ North Bay Trappers.

Early in the season, he suffered a serious knee injury that could have ended his career. Instead, he came back after three months and went on to play intercollegiate hockey with the Guelph Gryphons, where he helped them to consecutive OUAA championships.

In his first year in Guelph, after winning the provincial intercollegiate title, he was picked up by the junior ‘A’ Platers and helped them to the POHA crown. So he racked up three provincial hockey titles in two seasons.

After a year playing nets with Utica in the Atlantic Coast Hockey League, he returned to North Bay where he acquired a journalism diploma and played OCAA hockey with the Canadore Panthers.

Accepting a position with the London Free Press, he began to help the intercollegiate Western Mustangs as an assistant coach.

In 1991, he became an assistant and goalie coach with the OHL London Knights, which launched an intermittent coaching career in the Ontario Hockey League with two terms each in London and North Bay, divided by two years of consulting work in Europe in 1996-97.

Hedican was an assistant coach to Centennial head coach Shane Parker for two seasons starting in 1994. He returned in 1998 as an assistant coach and then associate general manager.

After two seasons, he returned to goaltender consulting work in Europe and North America, where he helped netminder Cristobal Huet find his way to the NHL and worked with numerous NHL draftees.

For six years, starting in 2005, Hedican ran the Coach4Food program in North Bay. He gave up his Christmas break to coach youngsters in exchange for nonperishable food items for area food banks.

The idea proved amazingly successful and has been picked up by other communities in Ontario.

Tickets for the 43rd annual induction and awards dinner can be obtained by calling Bill Jacko at 705-476-1429, Karen Cobb at 705-752-1997 or from any Hall of Fame board member.

Submitted to BayToday.ca