Tickets are still on sale for the Weyburn Red Wings 2017 Sports Dinner, which will be hosted Saturday, Jan. 28 at the Cugnet Centre at the Weyburn Comprehensive High School. Myrna McFadden will be providing a gourmet meal for the evening.
Emceeing the Sports Dinner is Darryl Romuld, from CTV Regina.
Headlining the event will be Darcy Tucker, who was drafted in the sixth round of the 1993 NHL entry draft by the Montreal Canadiens, 151st overall.
Always told he was too small and not fast enough, Tucker overcame these perceived obstacles and became a consummate professional ice hockey player who could play it any way — physical, skilled, defensive, offensive. In his first professional season in the American Hockey League he won the Dudley “Red” Garrett Memorial Trophy and scored 93 points in 74 games. He played two seasons with the Montreal Canadiens and then was traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning in 1998.
In 2000 he was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs for whom he played for nine seasons. In 2008 Tucker was signed as an unrestricted free agent by the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League. Tucker had six 20-goal seasons in the National Hockey League including a career-high 28 goals in the 2005-06 season playing in 74 games.
Co-headlining the evening is Kelly Gruber. On April 16, 1989, Gruber was the first Blue Jay in history to hit for the cycle when he scored six RBIs and four runs. He also played in 158 of the club’s 162 games and played six positions. Gruber was nicknamed “Xanthos” by the media for his blonde hair and the ladies loved his luscious locks. He was voted Toronto’s most eligible bachelor by his legions of mostly female fans.
Kelly Gruber led all third basemen with 31 HR, 118 RBIs and had 14 steals to cap it off. He was second in the AL in total bases with 303 and extra base hits with 73. He was fourth in voting for the MVP award, was voted an All Star and won both the Silver Slugger and the Golden Glove award based on his play at third base. Gruber also won the 19th annual Super Stars Competition in Cancun, Mexico and was the first-ever baseball player to do so.
Tickets for the Red Wings Sports Dinner are on sale now. Single admission is $100, and corporate tables are $1,000. (These are eight seats with complimentary wine, closer to main stage).
During regular hockey action, the Red Wings lost twice during home games on Friday and Saturday. The Notre Dame Hounds won 4-1 over Weyburn in the first game.
The lone Weyburn goal was scored by Jacob Wozney unassisted, while short-handed in the first period. Notre Dame scored twice in the second period, then added two more goals in the third period.
Carter Phair was in net for the Red Wings. He stopped 29 out of 33 attempts by the Hounds.
The following night, the Battlefords North Stars won 2-1 against Weyburn. Both teams opened the first period with a goal each. Scoring for Weyburn was Mike Eskra, with the assists from Ian Parker and Jacob Wozney on the power play.
Neither team were able to score in the second period, then Battleford scored a goal in the third period.
Phair was in net for the Red Wings again. He stopped 31 out of 29 attempts from Battleford.
Currently, the Weyburn Red Wings are ranked third in the Viterra Division of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League. The Red Wings and Yorkton both have 39 points, but the Terriers have one more win to give them second place.
The Estevan Bruins have a strong 51-point lead in the Viterra division. The Bruins are only three points behind the Flin Flin Bombers for second in the SJHL. The Battleford North Stars have a strong 66-point lead for first in the SJHL.
The Red Wings will head to North Battleford on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 13 and 14, to face the North Stars twice. Then on Sunday, Jan. 15, the Red Wings travel to Kindersley for another road game.
