Vince Dunn chomped down on Cheerios from the Stanley Cup before sharing hockey’s holy grail with fans in his hometown of Lindsay, Ont., on Saturday.
The St. Louis Blues defenceman’s day with the Stanley Cup began with a bowl of cereal and milk before bringing the trophy to Old Mill Park for a celebration with friends and family along with a short autograph and photo session with fans.
The Blues won their first Cup in franchise history on June 12 in a Game 7 win over the Boston Bruins. Dunn had two goals and six assists in 20 playoff games.
Dunn returned for the final two games of the Stanley Cup finals after sitting out for nearly a month with a broken jaw he suffered in May during Game 3 of the Western Conference final. On this day he said he wasn’t feeling much discomfort.
“Eating certain things can still be tough,” Dunn told NHL.com at the park. “But holding this, it was all worth it.”
Dunn then did a quick detour from the Cup parade to the Lindsay Recreation Complex where he brought the Cup to Ross Memorial Hospital. There he met Lawny Woodcock, a longtime hockey fan from Bobcaygeon who is battling colon cancer. Dunn’s mother, Tracy, told her son about the patient and the blueliner wanted to make a surprise visit.
“I’m glad I can meet someone who appreciates this as much as I do,” Dunn told Woodcock as he posed with the Cup in the lobby and presented him with signed game-used memorabilia.
Woodcock watched Dunn win the Cup from his bed on June 12, he told the Blues’ website.
“It was pretty emotional,” Woodcock said, just after Dunn left his side. “He’s a local boy so we stick behind each other.”
Dunn then was greeted by hundreds of fans at the arena where he began his minor hockey career which continued in Peterborough.
Lifelong Blues’ fan Rodger Scott visited from Bowmanville to celebrate the moment and see the Cup close up.
“First time (seeing it), apart from the Hockey Hall of Fame,” said Scott. “Surreal, and being a Blues fan all these years. It’s about time I still can’t believe it.”
Dunn’s father John says he and Tracy tried to instill gratitude in their three sons.
“We spent a lot of time with all three boys, and that was one of the biggest things we tried to teach the boys, is to become humble, and be kind to everyone you come across,” he said.
The Dunn family also accepted donations for the Canadian Tire Jumpstart program which supplies sporting goods to underprivileged youth. Saturday’s donations supported Jumpstart Kawartha Lakes and was in memory of Dunn’s grandfather Chris.
After leaving Lindsay, Dunn then took the Cup to the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto to visit patients including Owen Brady, a prospect of the OHL’s Oshawa Generals.
“It’s a privilege for me to brighten their day in this way,” he said.