Around the rinks: One women’s league is Hefford’s new goal
As acting commissioner of the Canadian Women’s Hockey League, Jayna Hefford — inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on Monday — still hopes to find a way for her league and the rival U.S.-based National Women’s Hockey League to join forces: “The models are very different. We’re not for profit; the other league is for profit with private investors. For us, it’s just figuring out what’s the right step for the women’s game. When I played, I wanted there to be one league with all the best players. That’s still what I think needs to happen. That’s one of our goals as well, to navigate that road. It’s not an easy one. When we can get all the star players from around the globe into one league, that’s when I’d feel we’re a truly professional league.” ONE REGRET: Martin Brodeur said he has only one regret after his Hall of Fame career: not winning the Stanley Cup more often. “It’s the things you leave on the table. I went to five Stanley Cups and there’s two rings I don’t have. I know the one in 2001 against Colorado, I had two games to win. I had two chances to win that Stanley Cup. To me, that’s my regret. It’s not because of you; it’s because of the players that never won that were on that team, the fact you let them down. That’s what bothers me the most about not winning.” FIRST BALLOT: Nothing about Martin St. Louis’ career came easy, certainly in the early days. He was never drafted, undersized and had to work harder than everyone else. But getting into the Hall of Fame? Piece of cake by comparison. He got the call in his first year of eligibility: “Everything I’ve gone through seemed hard. It was never a given. Now the biggest honour, it’s ‘Here you go, Marty.’ You read a book, you hope it finishes well. This is like that nice finish.” HALL TURNOVER: Women’s hockey star turned broadcaster Cassie Campbell-Pascall and Winnipeg Jets executive Mark Chipman have joined the Hockey Hall of Fame’s 18-member selection committee — replacing journalist Eric Duhatschek, who served his full term of 15 years, and former team executive Bill Torrey, who died in May. Campbell-Pascall now works for Hockey Night in Canada and captained the Canadian gold medallists at the 2002 and 2006 Winter Olympics. Chipman is best known as executive chairman of True North Sports and Entertainment, which owns the Jets. BOOING BETTMAN: NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, also inducted on Monday, sounds as if he’s at peace with all the booing that comes his way from hockey fans: “Our fans are passionate. That’s great. It means they care. It means they’re focused on the game. It means they know what’s going on. You couldn’t ask for more from your fans. If you follow the exploits of the booing over the past few Stanley Cups or the past few drafts, I’ve even been known to egg it on. It’s fine. It’s all part of the routine.”