NEW MINAS, N.S. — Chris Wood never dreamed he would connect with one of his hockey heroes someday.
As many Valley youth do, Wood grew up playing hockey and had one particular player he idolized.
For him, it was Todd Gill.
The stalwart defender played for several NHL teams between 1984 to 2003, but spent most of his career with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Wood has a Todd Gill memorabilia collection, including two jerseys and many hockey cards.
“He was my favourite player because he was tough, a good skater and I just loved how he played the game,” says the New Minas man.
In fact, Wood loved Gill so much that when he played street hockey with his friends in the early 1990s, he wore a Todd Gill jersey. From then on, his friends started calling him Gill, a name which has stuck with him and he has used for almost 30 years.
It was over the summer that Wood’s hockey dream was about to come true through a chain of connections.
Wood goes to the Acadia Sports complex several times a week to work out, and it was here that Wood met another patron, Dave Bambrick, and the conversation about Wood’s nickname came up. Bambrick then mentioned the story to Darren Burns, head coach for the Acadia hockey team, who came from the same small area in Ontario as Gill.
“Todd is a bit older than I am, but he is from Cardinal, just up the 401 from Brockville, Ont., but now resides in Brockville,” says Burns.
Burns says when he goes back home to Ontario, he still visits with his closest friends, and these friends see Gill frequently through local events like golf tournaments, fundraisers and pickup hockey. Burns says he mentioned the story to his friend, Whitey, who golfs a lot with Gill.
“One day, Whitey texted me and said, ‘Get me your Gillers number and I will get my Giller to call him today,’” says Burns.
Wood was both nervous and excited while anticipating the phone call, waiting around all day for it to come. He prepared some questions for his hockey hero.
“I asked Todd, ‘Who was the toughest person you fought?’” says Wood, “At first, he jokingly said his wife, but then changed it to Joey Kocur.”
To the question about his favourite teammates, Gill said Doug Gilmore, Wendell Clark and Dave Ellett.
After the phone call, Wood says he was excited to hear his phone ring again, a second time from Gill, although this just turned out to be a pocket dial.
Wood said it was cool to talk to Gill since he had liked him so much growing up, and he was so nice.
“He told me he really appreciated me being a long-time fan,” says Woods, noting that Gill sounded flattered that he was such a loyal fan.
Besides the phone call, Burns took Wood’s Todd Gill hockey jersey with him to Ontario and has left it for it to be signed and mailed back.
This, according to Burns, is the type of guy and player Gill is and they’ve always been proud in his hometown of his accomplishments, grit and determination.
Burns says the answer is simple as to why he reached out to make these connections - It’s all about unity.
“Obviously these types of stories are what sets hockey apart from any other sport,” says Burns. “Hockey guys like Todd, and so many NHL players or minor hockey volunteers, are what create the DNA for many small towns.”
Burns downplays his role, saying he really didn't do anything.
“Chris is a great guy. Gill is a great guy. Knowing how much Chris idolized Todd, it was a simple thing that my friend back home set up,” says Burns. “It was really neat to see those little dots connected through this hockey connection.”
