Cape Breton hockey icon to be remembered by his old team
Longtime Eagles coach Blair (Bearcat) Joseph died this June at the age of 78
The Cape Breton Eagles will honour the legacy of longtime coach and scout Blair (Bearcat) Joseph on Sunday.
Joseph, 78, died of cancer in June. The Eagles play the Victoriaville Tigres at 3 p.m. at Centre 200.
"Blair certainly had a big impact on the hockey club and on the hockey community for sure," said Paul MacDonald, who was president of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League team while Joseph was behind the bench.
MacDonald said Joseph loved being around the game and it showed in his relationship with players. He said Joseph made time to connect with every player on the team, and was always looking to make people feel welcome.
He said Joseph was a terrific conduit between the head coach and the players. "Sometimes you need somebody to sort of either bring your message or take a message between each other," he said.
Permanent tribute
Sunday's game will include video highlights of Joseph's career and the unveiling of a permanent tribute within Centre 200.
MacDonald said it's appropriate to have a special event planned for a person who had a profound impact on the game in Cape Breton.
"So, I think that was the biggest thing Blair loved about the game was all the people he got to meet," he said. "And I think he really appreciated and loved every single one of them."
Gerard Shaw, a former Eagles president and current special adviser to the majority owner, and Joseph were friends. They spent many days together in cold rinks.
"He had an affinity to Cape Bretoners and he wanted to see Cape Bretoners do well," said Shaw.
Extra mile
For Shaw, having his son, Logan, play on a team that Joseph was on made a big difference in developing his talent. Logan Shaw went on to play in the NHL.
"Logan played for the Cape Breton Eagles for those 3½ years and Blair was a mainstay with him," he said. "Logan continues to talk about Blair today."
Both MacDonald and Shaw say they hope people remember Joseph as being a kind person who would go the extra mile to help people out.