He played just one season in Belleville but he’ll be remembered as one of the most exciting players in the history of the city’s former OHL franchise.
Former Belleville Bulls centre Jason Lafreniere died on Jan. 13 in Vancouver. He was 59.
Cause of death was not announced, but at least one hockey-related website said Lafreniere may have suffered a heart attack.
“He was one hell of a hockey player,” said Ady Vos, who covered the Bulls in the 1980s for The Intelligencer.
Jack Miller, who called the radio play-by-play of Bulls games during their entire 34-year run in the OHL, said Lafreniere was “exceptionally talented.”
Only five years after entering the OHL as an expansion franchise, the Bulls advanced to the championship final against the former Guelph Platers in 1986. Lafreniere led all OHL playoff scorers that year with 32 points (10 goals, 22 assists) over the course of a marathon 23-game post-season as the Bulls fell to Guelph 8-4 in the eight-point final series. Three games were decided by one goal and two ended in ties.
Hailing from St. Catharines, Lafreniere had arrived in Belleville via trade from the former Hamilton Steelhawks early in the 1985-86 regular season. In 48 games with the Bulls, he scored 37 goals and posted 73 assists for 110 points. Overall, including 14 games with Hamilton, the nifty pivot finished third in league scoring with 132 points in 60 games (49 goals, 83 assists) while being penalized for a mere four minutes.
Lafreniere’s impressive scoring stats, combined with his minuscule penalty-minute total, earned him the William Hanley Trophy as the OHL’s Most Sportsmanlike Player. His on-ice discipline and superior skill set gave Bulls foes fits.
“In my mind, he may have been one of the most talented guys to play for the Bulls,” said Vos. “Teams would try to rough him up to slow him down, but he was a tough guy too.”
Longtime former Bulls trainer Chris Rutledge agrees.
“Definitely one of the best players,” said Rutledge. “And off the ice, one of the most kind and respectful. He treated everyone with respect.”
Selected 32nd overall by the Quebec Nordiques (now Colorado Avalanche) in the 1985 NHL draft, Lafreniere would go on to play 146 career games in the Big Show, scoring 34 goals and adding 53 assists for 87 points. Along with the Nords, he also had stints with the New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning.
Later in his almost 20-year professional career, Lafreniere played in four different European leagues including as an instant fan favourite with the Sheffield Steelers of the British circuit. In 1997, he helped the Steelers capture the British Elite League playoff championship, scoring the winning goal — shorthanded — in the deciding game against the Nottingham Panthers.
In a post on their website, the Steelers called Lafreniere “an incredible talent, an incredible person.”
It’s a statement that is probably shared by Bulls supporters who watched Lafreniere during his brief but brilliant OHL tenure here.
SIGNS GO SOUTH
Maybe I just haven’t been paying attention, but I drove past Eastside Secondary School the other day and noticed the refurbished scoreboard in the north corner of the west end zone of the athletic field no longer bears the name of Mike Schad. As in, Mike Schad Field.
The previous scoreboard, when Eastside was known by its original name — Moira — declared that visitors and the home team were playing on Mike Schad Field. Schad, a Moira grad, remains the only Canadian in the history of football to play exclusively at a Canadian university (Queen’s) and get selected in the first round of the NFL draft (1986).
Yes, the old Mike Schad Field scoreboard needed a facelift. But why has Schad’s name been omitted?
I have the same question for Centennial Secondary School where several years ago the athletic field was dedicated in the memory of the late, great Pat Carty, longtime CSS teacher-coach who guided many Charger football teams during his lengthy tenure at the school.
The newer scoreboard no longer says: Pat Carty Field.
What gives?
If someone at the board office can explain these omissions, I’m all ears. Until then, what a huge insult this is to Schad and the family of Pat Carty.
