LEAGUE WELCOME
3
C H I C A G O W O LV E S
WOLVES HISTORY
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FOUR-TIME CHAMPIONS THE CHICAGO WOLVES FRANCHISE IS DEFINED BY EXCELLENCE. During an 11-year span from 1997-2008, the Wolves reached the league Finals six times and came away with the championship trophy four times. In 1998 and 2000, the Wolves skated away with the International Hockey League’s Turner Cup. In 2002 and 2008, the team hoisted the American Hockey League’s big prize, the Calder Cup. Regardless of which league they’ve played, the Wolves organization has become synonymous with winning. It’s a tradition they carry into their 20th season of competition. Here, we look back at the four most momentous days in Wolves history, all of which have added to the franchise’s illustrious fabric.
JUNE 15, 1998 Backed by 16,701 fans, the second-largest crowd in Turner Cup Finals history, the Wolves shut out the Detroit Vipers 3-0 to capture their first Turner Cup Championship, 4-games-to-3. It was the first sevengame series for the IHL Championship in 13 years, while the shutout set a then-franchise record with two in one postseason. Chicago won the last two games of the series to become only the sixth team in the IHL’s 53-year history to rebound from a 3-games-to-2 deficit in the Finals. Wolves center Alexander Semak walked away with the N.R. ”Bud“ Poile Trophy as the postseason’s most valuable player.
JUNE 5, 2000
JUNE 3, 2002
JUNE 10, 2008
After a scoreless first period, center Derek Plante notched two goals just 26 seconds apart in the second period to eliminate the Grand Rapids Griffins at Van Andel Arena and capture the Wolves’ second Turner Cup Championship in three years. With the victory, Chicago became the 16th team in league history to capture multiple IHL championships (1998 and 2000). Wolves goaltender Andrei Trefilov was awarded the N.R. ”Bud“ Poile Trophy as the Turner Cup Playoffs Most Valuable Player, having led the league during the postseason in both goals-against average (1.35) and save percentage (.950).
The Wolves clinched their third championship in five years when center Yuri Butsayev scored 2:05 into the second overtime to defeat the Bridgeport Sound Tigers 4-3 and capture the Calder Cup Championship, 4-games-to-1, at the Allstate Arena. The Wolves, who played a league-high 105 games, including an all-time American Hockey Leaguehigh 25 playoff games, became the sixth team in AHL history to win the championship in their inaugural season. Goaltender Pasi Nurminen was awarded the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as the playoff MVP, posting a league-leading and then franchise-high 15 wins. Right wing Rob Brown, who notched three assists in the victory, led the league during the postseason with a then-franchise record 33 points and tied an AHL and team record with 26 assists.
The Wolves clinched their fourth league title in 11 years and second Calder Cup Championship with a 5-2 victory and a 4-games-to-2 series win over the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins at Allstate Arena. Center Jason Krog capped a four-point night with a hat trick and an assist, which earned him the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as the MVP of the 2008 Calder Cup Playoffs. He matched franchise marks with 12 goals and 26 assists in the postseason and established a new club record with 38 points. Rookie goaltender Ondrej Pavelec collected his 16th postseason win, the most in club history.
C H I C A G O W O LV E S
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OW N E R S H I P
DONALD R. LEVIN (luh-VIN) founded DRL Enterprises, Inc., in 1969. The
DON LEVIN CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD / GOVERNOR
Chicago-based company has holdings in many industries including tobacco processing, aircraft and medical equipment leasing, licensed sports product manufacturing and distribution, and motion picture production and distribution. Levin’s film company has made nearly 20 motion pictures distributed in the U.S. and overseas. His films have featured such stars as Emilio Estevez, Charlie Sheen, Sharon Stone, Rodney Dangerfield, and Chuck Norris. Levin founded the Chicago Wolves with William Buddy Meyers and Grant Mulvey in January 1994 and has served as the team’s chairman of the board throughout. Levin donates his time and serves on the board of directors for several charitable organizations. Levin also supports Chicago’s Department of Animal Care and Control (ACC). The Wolves host the ACC’s Adopt-a-Dog program at several home games each season and encourage fans to bring home an adopted dog after the game. The Adopt-A-Dog program has found homes for 1,080 dogs in its first 13 seasons. Ten years ago, Levin purchased and donated the Animobile -- a mobile adoption unit and a modern clinic staffed by veterinarians and adoption specialists. The Chicago native was recognized at the Boy Scouts of America’s Northwest Suburban Council’s Distinguished Citizens Banquet as its 2005 Honoree. Under Levin’s direction, the Wolves organization has held a scout night for the Northwest Suburban Council at a home game for the last 16 seasons. Levin was inducted into the Illinois Hockey Hall of Fame on Jan. 27, 2013. He was honored as the International Hockey League’s Executive of the Year for the 19992000 season, which concluded with the franchise’s second of four championships. Before beginning his business career, Levin served in the United States Marine Corps, from which he was honorably discharged. Levin and his wife, Kathleen Ann, have a son, Robert, and they live in the northern suburbs.
“THE FIRST CHAMPIONSHIP BECAUSE I FRANKLY DON’T REMEMBER MUCH ABOUT IT. IT’S ALMOST LIKE HAVING A CHILD BORN. THERE’S SO MUCH EXCITEMENT AND EMOTION THAT YOU MISS
WE ASKED
IF YOU COULD RELIVE ONE DAY IN WOLVES HISTORY, WHICH WOULD IT BE? WHY?
THINGS. YOU’RE OVERWHELMED. WHEN IT WAS OVER, I WAS EMOTIONALLY DRAINED. I DON’T RECALL EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED. IT WAS JUST TOO EMOTIONAL FOR ME.”
BUDDY MEYERS, a principal owner of the Wolves who founded the team
BUDDY MEYERS VICE CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD B R E A K A W AY M A G A Z I N E
with Don Levin and Grant Mulvey in January 1994, has been involved in the world of hockey for more than 35 years. He is a former certified agent of the National Hockey League Players’ Association and is past attorney for the Soviet Red Army Hockey Team (CSKA). He is a practicing attorney and the principal in the law firm of Buddy Meyers, Ltd. His concentration is in the areas of worker’s compensation and personal injury litigation. Additionally, he is a member of the Illinois Bar Association, Illinois Trial Lawyers Association, and Illinois Workers Compensation Lawyers Association; a former director of the Better Boys Foundation and River North Association; and a recipient of the Shomrim Society of Illinois’ Man of the Year Award in 2006. Meyers was inducted into the Illinois Hockey Hall of Fame on Jan. 26, 2014. He also supports numerous charitable and environmental organizations. “THERE CAN’T BE JUST ONE. THERE’S Meyers is a graduate of the University of THE DAY WE WERE IN FORT WAYNE Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and holds a juris (JAN. 25, 1994) AND AWARDED OUR doctor degree from the Illinois Institute of FRANCHISE. THE FOUR DAYS ON Technology/Chicago Kent. He and Jill live in WHICH WE WON CHAMPIONSHIPS. the River North area of Chicago and have five LASTLY, EACH OF THE 20 HOME children between them: Justin, Lindsey, Zak, OPENERS. ‘GAME ON.’ ” Brad, and Leslie.
HOCKEY OPERATIONS
WENDELL YOUNG GENERAL MANAGER
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WENDELL YOUNG enters his fifth season at the helm of the Wolves hockey operations department. The team has compiled a .590 winning percentage (167-111-15-19) during his tenure as general manager, which includes capturing the regular-season West Division title in 2009-10 and the regular-season Midwest Division title in 2011-12. The 50-year-old is the Wolves’ all-time leader among goaltenders in games played (322), wins (169), saves (8,467), minutes (17,912) and shutouts (16), and was a member of Chicago’s 1998 and 2000 Turner Cup championship squads. His jersey number “1” was the first number retired by the Wolves on Dec. 1, 2001. The Halifax, Nova Scotia, native, who was inducted into the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame in 2007, is the only man in hockey history to have won all four North American championships: the Stanley Cup, Turner Cup, Calder Cup and Memorial Cup. He captured the Stanley Cup in 1991 and 1992 as a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins, the 1988 Calder Cup with the Hershey Bears, the 1982 Memorial Cup with the Kitchener Rangers and the 1998 and 2000 Turner Cups with the Wolves. He also was behind the bench as a coach for the Wolves 2008 Calder Cup victory. Young played 18 seasons of professional hockey, including 10 in the National Hockey League. He compiled a 59-86-12 record in 187 games with the Vancouver Canucks, Philadelphia Flyers, Tampa Bay Lightning and Penguins. He also served as goaltending coach for the Calgary Flames from 2001-2003.
BILL BENTLEY enters his fifth season as assistant general manager and 20th season with the Wolves organization. One of a handful of people who has been with the organization since the team’s inception in 1994, Bentley has been instrumental in the hockey operations department for more than 17 years, which includes all four championship campaigns. The Chicago native joined the organization as a statistician in 1994 and was promoted to team services manager a year later. The 43-year-old spent 12 seasons as the director of hockey administration, handling team travel, immigration and accounting for the hockey operations department, before assuming the assistant general manager role in August 2009. A graduate of Quincy College, Bentley served as the Director of Media Relations for the Chicago Cheetahs of the now defunct Roller Hockey International during the 1993-94 season.
BILL BENTLEY ASSISTANT GENERAL MANAGER
GENE UBRIACO DIRECTOR OF HOCKEY OPERATIONS
GENE UBRIACO returns for his 17th term as the Wolves director of hockey operations and fifth as senior advisor following a 10-year professional playing career and 26 seasons as a professional coach. Ubriaco has been with the Wolves since the 1994-95 inaugural season when he was the team’s first head coach. That year, he guided the Wolves to a 34-33-14 record and a berth in the Turner Cup Playoffs. He compiled a 61-61-20 head coaching record with the Wolves during a three-year span, including a two-game interim stint during the 1996-97 season. Ubriaco began his coaching career at Lake Superior State University in 1972-73. Four years later, he led the Milwaukee Admirals to the Turner Cup Playoffs, becoming the first International Hockey League coach to lead an expansion team into the postseason. In 1988-89, Ubriaco moved on to the National Hockey League to coach the Pittsburgh Penguins. Under his tutelage, the Penguins shattered several team records that season and advanced to the Stanley Cup Playoffs after a seven-year absence. The Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, native recorded 162 goals, 258 assists and 420 points in 456 AHL games spanning nine seasons, which includes a career-high 42 goals and 86 points during the 1965-66 season with the Hershey Bears. Ubriaco spent his final three years as a player in the NHL with the Penguins (1967-68), the Oakland Seals (1968-69) and the Chicago Blackhawks (1969-70).
C H I C A G O W O LV E S
BEHIND THE BENCH
JOHN ANDERSON HEAD COACH
DAVE ALLISON ASSISTANT COACH
SCOTT ALLEN ASSISTANT COACH
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JOHN ANDERSON enters his 12th season as Wolves head coach after being re-hired to the position on July 16, 2013. Anderson returns to the Wolves with four years of National Hockey League experience, which includes two years as head coach of the Atlanta Thrashers from 2008-10. He served most recently as an assistant coach with the Phoenix Coyotes from 2011-13. The 56-year-old Anderson guided the Wolves to four championships during his first tenure with the Wolves: the Calder Cup in 2002 and 2008 and the Turner Cup in 1998 and 2000. He is the team’s all-time leader in wins (506) and postseason victories (105). Prior to joining the Wolves, Anderson captured the Colonial Cup as head coach of the Quad City Mallards of the Colonial Hockey League. He began his coaching career with the Winston-Salem Mammoths in 1995-96, leading them to the Southern Hockey League Finals and a 30-23-1 regular-season record. Toronto’s first pick (11th overall) in the 1977 amateur draft, Anderson played 12 seasons in the National Hockey League with the Maple Leafs (1977-85), Quebec Nordiques (1985-86), and Hartford Whalers (1986-89). The Toronto native registered five 30-goal campaigns in the NHL, including four straight from 1981-85. Anderson’s most productive offensive season came in 1982-83, when he paced Toronto with 80 points (31G, 49A) in 80 games. Anderson ranks 14th in Maple Leafs history with 189 goals and 20th with 393 points. Overall, he amassed 282 goals and 631 points in 814 career NHL games, along with 9 goals and 27 points in 37 career Stanley Cup Playoff contests. DAVE ALLISON enters his first season with the Wolves after being named assistant coach on July 16, 2013. He brings 18 years of professional coaching experience to Chicago. Allison served most recently as head coach of the American Hockey League’s Peoria Rivermen, where he led the team to a 33-35-5-3 record in 2012-13. Prior to joining the Rivermen, the 54-year-old Allison spent time as a scout with the Pittsburgh Penguins and worked as a part of the player development team with the Colorado Avalanche. Allison has accumulated a 232-214-25-28 mark during his seven seasons and 499 games as an AHL head coach with Peoria (2012-13), Iowa (2005-08), Milwaukee (200102), and Prince Edward Island (1994-96). The Fort Francis, Ontario, native also had a 25-game stint as the interim head coach of the NHL’s Ottawa Senators during the 1995-96 season. Allison enjoyed a 10-year professional career as a defenseman in the AHL, IHL, and NHL. He amassed 119 assists, 144 points, and 1,473 penalty minutes in 452 career AHL games with Nova Scotia, Sherbrooke, Newmarket, and Halifax spanning eight seasons from 1979 to 1985 and 1987-89. He skated in three NHL games with Montreal during the 1983-84 campaign.
SCOTT ALLEN enters his first season with the Wolves after being named assistant coach on July 16, 2013. He brings 17 years of professional coaching experience to Chicago. Allen served most recently as Dave Allison’s assistant with the Peoria Rivermen during the 2012-13 campaign. Prior to joining Peoria, he spent three seasons in the National Hockey League as an assistant coach with the New York Islanders. The 47-year-old Allen entered the coaching ranks as an assistant coach with the ECHL’s Johnstown Chiefs in 1996 and was promoted to head coach of the franchise halfway through the 1997-98 season. He would serve as the Chiefs head coach for four more years before moving to the American Hockey League in 2002. Allen spent two seasons with the San Antonio Rampage (2002-04), where he split time as an assistant coach and then a head coach. He then served as an assistant coach in Lowell, Omaha, and Quad City from 2004-09. The New Bedford, Mass., native spent 10 years as a player in professional hockey as the former center competed in the All American Hockey League, Atlantic Coast Hockey League, Colonial Hockey League, Central Hockey League and the ECHL.
C H I C A G O W O LV E S
MAP THE LEAGUE
WESTERN CONFERENCE
EASTERN CONFERENCE
MIDWEST DIVISION Chicago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . St. Louis Grand Rapids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Detroit Iowa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Minnesota Milwaukee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nashville Rockford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chicago
ATLANTIC DIVISION Manchester . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Los Angeles Portland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Phoenix Providence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Boston St. John’s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Winnipeg Worcester . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . San Jose
NORTH DIVISION Hamilton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Montreal Lake Erie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Colorado Rochester . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Buffalo Toronto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Toronto Utica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vancouver
NORTHEAST DIVISION Adirondack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Philadelphia Albany . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . New Jersey Bridgeport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NY Islanders Hartford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NY Rangers Springfield. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Columbus
WEST DIVISION Abbotsford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Calgary Charlotte . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Carolina Oklahoma City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Edmonton San Antonio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Florida Texas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dallas
EAST DIVISION Binghamton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ottawa Hershey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Washington Norfolk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Anaheim Syracuse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tampa Bay W-B/Scranton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pittsburgh
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C H I C A G O W O LV E S
17
MEET THE WO LV ES
CADE FAIRCHILD
2
D | H 5-10 | W 178 Jan. 15, 1989 Duluth, Minnesota @Caderade0
3
JOEL EDMUNDSON
DAVID SHIELDS
D | H 6-3 | W 205 Jan. 27, 1991 Rochester, New York @David_Shields5
MICHAEL DAVIES
TAYLOR CHORNEY
D | H 6-4 | W 210 June 28, 1993 Brandon, Manitoba @jedmundson3
7
13
RW | H 5-9 | W 175 Dec. 10, 1986 Chesterfield, Missouri @MikeGDavies
4 D | H 6-0 | W 201 April 27, 1987 Thunder Bay, Ontario
8 TY RATTIE
RW | H 6-0 | W 183 Feb. 5, 1993 Airdrie, Alberta @TyRattie8
MARK CUNDARI
D | H 5-11 | W 195 April 23, 1990 Toronto, Ontario
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BRETT PONICH
D | H 6-7 | W 217 Feb. 22, 1991 Beaumont, Alberta @BrettPonich
9 SHANE HARPER
RW | H 5-10 | W 194 Feb. 1, 1989 Valencia, California @Cali_Sharp
DEREK NESBITT
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LW | H 6-0 | W 185 April 16, 1982 Egmondville, Ontario @Derek_Nesbitt
5
JANI HAKANPAA
D | H 6-6 | W 227 March 31, 1992 Kirkkonummi, Finland @JHakanpaa
10 CHRIS PORTER
LW | H 6-1 | W 205 May 29, 1984 Toronto, Ontario @32porterhouse
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SERGEY ANDRONOV
LW | H 6-2 | W 208 July 19, 1989 Moscow, Russia @andronovsa
6
12 PAT CANNONE
C | H 5-11 | W 193 Aug. 9, 1986 Bayport, New York @PistolPat20
ERIC KATTELUS
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LW | H 6-1 | W 203 June 22, 1987 Traverse City, Michigan
C H I C A G O W O LV E S
AT HOME ON
THE RANGE
BY LINDSEY WILLHITE | PHOTOS BY ROSS DETTMAN | CHILDHOOD PHOTOS COURTESY OF BERNIE REGNER
"
WHEN YOU DON'T WORK HARD OUT THERE, YOU'RE LETTING YOUR GUYS DOWN. I DO BASE MY GAME OFF THAT. (...) I DO PRIDE MYSELF ON THAT. IT'S DEFINITELY PEOPLE ALWAYS COMING FROM THE GO INSIDE WHEN FARM AND MY ROOTS. IT'S A BLIZZARD; WE GO OUTSIDE.
"
"
ASSISTANT COACH DAVE ALLISON, WHO’S IN CHARGE OF THE WOLVES DEFENSEMEN THIS YEAR and served as Regner’s head coach at Peoria last year, believes Regner has the ability and the makeup to play games in the NHL. “A professional is someone who does something on a regular basis — a predictable basis,” Allison said. “And ‘Regs’ is a very predictable player. And, again, some guys think, ‘Well, that’s blasé.’ It isn’t blasé! It’s what professionals do. You pay them for a service and you know what the service is. That’s why McDonald’s is a brand. ‘Regs’ is a brand. You know what you’re going to get every game, every night. And you’re looking forward to it every game, every night. “You see a loose-puck battle. The game still comes down to who gets the puck. And you know what? ‘Regs’ goes into the battle and he’s going to get the puck more times than not. “Another example was the game against Grand Rapids (on Jan. 15). Jordin Tootoo nailed him right off the bat with a clean check. There was no retaliation to do — nothing like that. But the next shift? ‘Regs’ ran through him. ‘Regs’ ran through him and said, ‘I’m OK with the hit, but you better be too.’ That’s a man’s game.”
B R E A K A W AY M A G A Z I N E
During Brent’s first year playing away from home, his Vancouver Giants claimed the 2007 Memorial Cup. On the strength of his showing there, he was drafted by Columbus in the fifth round of the 2008 NHL Entry draft and started playing in the American Hockey League in 2009. Wolves general manager Wendell Young had his eye on Regner for years, but couldn’t get him on his side until working out a deal with Peoria with two weeks left in the 2012-13 season. Regner closed out last year with 1 assist in 7 games for the Wolves, which didn’t begin to describe how Young evaluated his play. Perhaps a better barometer has come this season as Regner delivered 3 goals and 13 assists in the Wolves’ first 46 games. Perhaps more important, he was the team’s only player asked to be in the lineup for all 46 games. “I just see a very, very consistent guy who flies under the radar,” Young said. “People don’t understand how good he has been. He’s been the most consistent player on our team all year. He’s low-key, a low-maintenance guy. A lot of guys from the farm are like that. They know what hard work is.” And they don’t feel obliged to brag about it. It took some nudging before Regner admitted the work ethic he developed in Newbrook influences every minute he’s on the ice for the Wolves. “On the farm, it’s work that needs to get done,” he said. “Dad is our boss, I guess, but we don’t really treat it like that. We just have to get this done. We’re family-run. When you’re a part of something…when you don’t work hard out there, you’re letting your guys down. I do base my game off that. You know what? Working hard is easier because you get the puck back more and quicker. You work really hard for 10 seconds and you’ll spend 30 seconds with the puck. It’s just that really fine line. But, yeah, I do pride myself on that. It’s definitely coming from the farm and my roots.” When Regner’s playing days are through, he’d like to return to BN Ranch full-time. It helps that Jessica, whom he’ll marry on Aug. 9, grew up four miles down the road on her family’s farm and they share an appreciation for the lifestyle. “I’d love to be on a farm somewhere in northern Alberta beside my family and have a family at that time,” Brent said. “You know, not be
moving around. Set my hat down somewhere and that’s where I’m going to stay. My brother and I have had a plan for a long time to be partners in the farm and the industry. “We’d love to do it. We’re really, really good friends. Hockey is my dream. But after this, farming is what I’d like do.”
DARING GREATLY
WOLVES ORAL HISTORY
A SEVEN-PART SERIES
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BY SARAH DRAHEIM
THERE ARE FIVE CHICAGO WOLVES BANNERS HANGING FROM THE RAFTERS OF ALLSTATE ARENA. ONE HONORS A MAN WHO BUILT FOUR TEAMS THAT EACH BROUGHT A CHAMPIONSHIP TO THIS CITY. ONE HONORS A MAN WHO HOLDS VIRTUALLY EVERY SINGLE-SEASON AND CAREER SCORING RECORD FOR THE WOLVES.
One honors a man who helms this team, one who backstopped it for years before eventually posting up in the general manager’s office. But this isn’t about those men. It’s about the two men whose names are proudly displayed on those other two banners, men whose legacies the Wolves honor each year with awards and a scholarship. It’s about two men who may no longer walk among us, but who live still in the heart of this franchise - forever in the heart of this game. It’s about Dan Snyder and Tim Breslin. Breslin was one of three people first signed to the new Chicago Wolves franchise ahead of its 1994-95 International Hockey League inaugural season.
JOHN ANDERSON (Head coach): He epitomized what it was to be a true Wolf. He’s from Chicago; he’s one of the original cast members and he was a part of the first Wolves championship.
WENDELL YOUNG (General manager): He put a lot of pride in playing for the Wolves, especially being from Chicago. That’s one part of it. The other part of it is he was a great person. The bottom line is that there are good people – great people – in hockey, and he was one of them. But it was Tim’s off-ice demeanor, his willingness to lend a hand to any type of community endeavor, that set the tone for this franchise – even to this day. The Wolves remember Tim every year with the Unsung Hero Award, honoring the Wolves player that best exemplifies Tim’s on-ice spirit, his team-first attitude, and his community involvement.
WAYNE MESSMER (Senior executive vice president): He was a guy who touched a lot of lives by just being positive. He was overjoyed by the opportunity that his athletic ability had given him, and that joy was contagious. In fighting for roster spots, and by sheer stubbornness of will toward earning them,
Tim Breslin and Dan Snyder were kindred spirits.
GENE UBRIACO (Senior advisor/director of hockey operations): Danny Snyder was a player that a lot of players can identify with. He was never drafted. Even going into junior hockey he was on tryout. He worked his way up until he finally got a chance to play in the NHL. It was that tenaciousness that would eventually put Dan in the Wolves record books.
BILLY GARDNER (Color analyst): In 2002, Dan Snyder scored five game-winning goals in the postseason for the Wolves during that championship run. That is quite the record. It matched a league all-time high.
ANDERSON: I think Snyder was very similar to Al Secord. I don’t think he was initially gifted, but he had a will to win and to compete, and he got better and became a leader on this team. It was true, Dan Snyder bent this game to his will. By the time he made the 2003 roster out of camp for the National Hockey League’s Atlanta Thrashers, the undrafted free agent already had two championships under his belt – the International Hockey League’s Turner Cup with the 2001 Orlando Solar Bears and an American Hockey League championship with the 2002 Calder Cupwinning Chicago Wolves. It seemed for Dan, by way of hard work and incredible will, the sky was the limit. It was not to be. He lost his life on Oct. 5, 2003, after suffering massive head injuries in a singlecar collision days earlier.
BUDDY MEYERS (Vice chairman): I remember we flew up with the team to Canada for Danny’s funeral. One of the most memorable moments I have being involved in hockey was on the way from the airport to the funeral home. The streets were lined with young hockey players in their uniforms with their sticks and as the procession passed by, they were all knocking their sticks, just kids from the age of 4 to 14 lined up on the street, paying their respects to
a fallen hockey player. The Dan Snyder Man of the Year Award, given to a player who demonstrates the most outstanding dedication to Chicago-area community service each year, is a way to remember No. 19, and mark his contribution to this franchise.
UBRIACO: I think having that award every year is so important. It’s nice to relive what Dan represented. He was a special person. Dan’s passing was tragic and sudden and, just two years later, the Wolves would again come face-to-face with losing one of their own. When Tim passed away on Feb. 5, 2005, due to complications from appendiceal cancer, the club banded together to create a benefit for Tim and his family. The Wolves Alumni would host the Blackhawks Alumni – including Chris Chelios, Denis Savard, and Jack O’Callahan – at the Allstate Arena in a night meant to honor Tim and his family. 10,000 people came to see the Wolves beat the Hawks alumni in a shootout. Everybody wore shamrocks on their helmets – an ode to Tim and his Irish heritage.
YOUNG: We are a community. We stick up for each other. He was one of ours. It was one of the most emotional moments ever at Allstate Arena. Hockey players made that happen. BOB NARDELLA (Former Wolves defenseman): When we went to Don Levin about the idea, he said, “Whatever you need. You have my full staff at your availability.” The Village of Rosemont donated the building. The Blackhawks gave their full support. There were so many people involved in putting that together, and I know a lot of the people who were there that said they’ll never forget that night. Tonight, when the lights come on, when the doors open, when the show starts and the puck drops, these two banners and the men they honor serve as a reminder of what this game is; it is a community, bound by work and will to take care of and remember its own. C H I C A G O W O LV E S