"I was incredulous. But I cherish everything about that goal that found my stick in the last minute of the last game of my 1987-88 season with the St. Louis Blues. At the age of 20, Tony signed a contract with the now defunct World Hockey Associations (WHA) team in Birmingham, Alabama only to see the owner illegally renege on the deal after fans threatened to boycott the team for having added a black player to its roster. Tony played for the Buffalo Sabres for 5 years until June 8, 1983 when he was traded to the Quebec Nordiques along with Andre Savard, Jean-Francois Sauve and Buffalo's third-round choice in the 1983 NHL Entry Draft in exchange for Real Cloutier and Quebec's first-round pick in the 1983 NHL Entry Draft. By checking this box, I agree to the terms of service and privacy policy of Rogers Media. Instead, he was drafted 32nd-overall by the Buffalo Sabres in 1978 and went on to score over 320 goals. {* traditionalSignIn_signInButton *}, Comment and participate in our online community. McKegney left the NHL after 1990-91 with 639 points (320 goals, 319 assists). Box 500 Station A Toronto, ON Canada, M5W 1E6. He paved the way for me. The Montreal-born left wing was a big scorer in junior hockey, finishing with 135 points (58 goals, 77 assists) in 66 games with Kingston of the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League in 1976-77 and 92 points (43 goals, 49 assists) in 55 games the following season, when he also played for Canada at the IIHF World Junior Championship. It is the 10th NHL season for McKegney, who will be 30 on Feb. 15, and one that he would like to make his best. "We just felt like other Canadian boys and wanted to play hockey.". Because you never forget scoring 40 in one year. McKegney recalls no special obstacles for him or his two adoptive brothers, who are also black, as they were growing up with a racially mixed family in a city of 50,000. Tony McKegney Goal vs. Toronto 12/13/80 - YouTube 0:00 / 0:44 Tony McKegney Goal vs. Toronto 12/13/80 Disengage 1.53K subscribers Subscribe 947 views 8 years ago Tony McKegney ties the game. Pseudonyms will no longer be permitted. Bailey, who is biracial, currently plays for the Vancouver Canucks and is in his second season with the organization. Continue reading to discover who is Tony McKegney. One referee, trying to break up the scuffle, grabbed Jonathan from behind. As of this date, Sue is single. Streamline your workflow with our best-in-class digital asset management system. "Tony McKegney showed me it was possible for someone like me to play in the NHL," future Hall of Famer Jarome Iginla said in author Cecil Harris' book, "Breaking The Ice, The Black Experience in Professional Hockey." "He set the example. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. Playing hockey at a high level is difficult enough without navigating the pressures of racism in society or figuring out how to respond to the supposed "fan" with a sign that says, "McKegney, grab a basketball" behind the Zamboni entrance. It was never published. You get one kick at the can, as they say, in life. Well give you the latest news when it becomes available, or feel free to add some more selections to My Favourites. All logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. You learn that what matters most is their work ethic, their commitment, their passion, their personality, maybe their sense of humor -- certainly not the way they look. It was wintertime and my dad had floodlights out there. SN: When you got to the league was it a lonely existence for you? Bassin knew Saunders was getting racist taunts, but said Saunders always handled it in stride and never let it get to him. He heard the N-word on the ice and from fans in the stands, and opponents always made sure to finish their checks on him. This is especially true for a sport like hockey, where community, respect, and teamwork have always been important values. (approx 1 - 2 per week). I was trying to convey something that I think is still true today: Sports can be the common denominator that brings people together. The McKegney brothers (l-r), Mike, Tony, Ian and friends on their backyard rink in Sarnia, Ontario in 1962. Statistics of Tony McKegney, a hockey player from Montreal, PQ born Feb 15 1958 who was active from 1973 to 1993. When Saunderswas still a teenager, the family moved back to Quebec, to Chteauguay a town on Montreal's South Shore with a strong hockey tradition. McKegney, a Montreal native who was raised in Sarnia by his adoptive family, was drafted by the Sabres with the 32nd overall pick in the 1978 NHL Amateur Draft. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. Even now, when I tell the story of the 1987-1988 season, I use a lot of numbers to explain why the season turned out so special. They started out with walker-type things out on the ice, and then they graduated to the point where they were scrimmaging, McKegney said. I dont have any theory why Tony has played with so many teams. "Everything Bernie Saunders has, he earned, in spite of [whether] there's been prejudice along the way.". He is a member of famous with the age 63 years old group. TM: I remember mentioning to Grant Fuhr, it mightve been an All-Star Game or something, I said, Youre lucky. He is also aware of his role-model responsibilities as one of only five blacks currently playing in the league. They were playing Ottawa and there were five black players in the game on the two teams combined. That's the biggest compliment for me.". Today, Tony McKegney, the first Black player to score 40 goals in an NHL season, tells his story of overcoming racial bias and serving as inspiration for Jarome Iginla, the only other Black. "I could deal with it individually, but to see my son go through it was just overwhelming.". There hadnt been many blacks in the NHL when he arrived, but hopefully his talent made quite a few people color-blind. TM: Everything. Taking into account various assets, Sue's net worth is greater than $50,000 - $99,999; and makes between $20 - 29,999 a year. He played in St. Louis for two years. ST. LOUIS (AP) _ If not for an early twist of fate, Tony McKegney would probably not be plying his talents in a sport that is essentially all white. Sometimes what has been said in the past is that once hes established he doesnt produce as much. At age 5, I started playing organized hockey. Tony McKegney erased any doubt that a black player could be a prominent goal-scorer in the NHL. Any other third party trademarks or copyrights are the property of their respective owners. Enter your email address to get a new one. tony mckegney family https://iccleveland.org/wp-content/themes/icc/images/empty/thumbnail.jpg 150 150 ICC ICC https://iccleveland.org/wp-content/themes/icc/images . SN: What were the conversations like between you and your brother about the abuse he faced? McKegney was supposed to play in the WHA for the Birmingham Bulls, but the team illegally voided his deal after fans in Alabama threatened a boycott. And if those people were wrong about his future in hockey, what else might they be wrong about? Want to more about Him? Complete record of every goal scored or assisted by the player. Right before he went to college, Mike Marson and Bill Riley, the second and third black men in the NHL, made their debuts. Go inside the Hockey Reference Database. He would like for both to be able to remember their father in an NHL uniform. People weren't used to seeing a Black player succeed on the ice. His supporters created a fan club. He believes the colour of his skin is part of the reason he didn't. McKegney, while striving to help provide black youths more opportunity, will never forget the chance given him by Lowry McKegney, 70. You reached out to him afterwards. 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Mike Harrington: His team looks good, even without Alex Tuch. Jarome Iginla. The Getty Images design is a trademark of Getty Images. - Premium Design on your profile page (optional) He got out of his contract, went back to Michigan and started playing for the Kalamazoo Wings, an International Hockey League team, while establishing himself at Upjohn, a pharmaceutical company. When he was still a toddler, his family moved to the Toronto area. Pioneers like Willie O'Ree, Angela James and Grant Fuhr will be featured. There was nothing special about the goal. It can be difficult to talk about how those views affect you as a person. In fact, I didn't play against another Black hockey player for nearly 18 years -- when Ray Neufeld, Grant Fuhr, and I were all active in the League. Jonathan freaked out. TM: I liked all sports. Saunders didn't seem bitter or disappointed about not quite making it in the NHL, Jarrett said. Sherry Bassin, 80, is a former junior hockey executive and another person who helped shape Saunders as a hockey player and a person. Saunders decided that was it. Forward Born Feb 15 1958 -- Montreal, PQ [65 yrs. Part of the reason McKegney wants to continue a while longer is because of sons Daniel, 2 1/2 , and Robert, 7 months. We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. *I understand that I may withdraw my consent at any time. I feel for them all and support them unequivocally. He has no evidence, he says, but he figures race had something to do with it. Don't miss out - sign up for our newsletters! I tried to, basically, suppress a lot of those feelings back then, and I just buried a lot of things. I just pushed the stereotypes to the background and kept hockey in the forefront. Saunders said at the time, O'Ree was more of a mythical figure than anything else. * 21+ (19+ CA-ONT) (18+ NH/WY). - Verification Badge on your profile, Post a scouting report/trivia/player comment in English (visible here). I showed up there and I remember sitting on my adoptive mothers knee and looking out the dining room window at this ice rink. Jets, Hockey Night in Canada: Maple Leafs vs. Canucks on Sportsnet, Hockey Night in Canada: Oilers vs. Oilers' Mike Green out three to four weeks with knee injury, Islanders re-assign Josh Ho-Sang to Blues' AHL affiliate. If no results appear, use Enter to do a full site search. Carbonneau, a Hall of Famer who played and coached for the Canadiens and now works as an analyst, remembers Saunders as an honest player and hard worker someone who could do pretty much anything on the ice and served as a veteran presence on the team. Bailey has appeared in three games with the Canucks this season and was placed on injured reserve on February 12 with an upper-body injury. Tony McKegney (born Anthony Syiid McKegney on February 15, 1958) is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player, who played in the NHL for 13 seasons from 1978-79 until 1990-91. Please note that CBC does not endorse the opinions expressed in comments. Numbers, however, never tell the whole story. He believes his call up was a reward for his performance in the minors. He stayed through 1983 and was a regular almost all of the time.
Transaction information may be incomplete. By midseason, people started to notice. Tony McKegney (r.) with brothers Mike (l.) and Steve in front of their house in Sarnia, Ontario in 1970. I take my hat off to Grant. Sabres Send Asplund to Nashville for 7th Rounder, 2023 NHL Trade Deadline: Open Thread & How To Watch.