NHL goaltender Jimmy Howard of the Detroit Red Wings returned to his Junior B roots in Westport.
“It’s great to be back here where it all started with the Westport Rideaus,” said Howard.
He played for the Eastern Ontario Junior B squad for two seasons when he was 14 and 15 years old from 1998 to 2000.
Coming from Ogdensburg, N.Y. he and his parents seldom missed a game or practice.
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He says it was the right place at the right time to mature as a hockey player. “I owe a debt of gratitude to the Westport Rideaus. It’s where my career started and evolved and I’m very, very thankful for it.”
Howard went on to play for the Kanata Junior “A” Lasers and the University of Maine before joining the Red Wings in the NHL.
Former Westport General Manager Ed Mulville knew there was something special about Howard the first time he saw him play.
“He was just so dedicated, committed and technically sound,” says Mulville. “The odds of him making it to the big show were astronomical but he found a way to do it.”
Jimmy Howard Day was a huge success. With a golf tournament, dinner, dance and silent auction they raised $20,000. Howard matched that with another $20,000 donation allowing the team to purchase a new centre-ice clock for the Westport Community Centre.
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