BERND FRANKE Tribune Staff WELLAND — Six NHLers from Welland will be free agents for a day Saturday, hoping to Jumpstart careers in ball
hockey with a tournament at Canadian Tire. Good thing they all will still have their night jobs after the final whistle. After competing against players as young as five, twentysomethings Paul Bissonnette, Cal Clutterbuck, Andre Deveaux, Matt Ellis, Dan Girardi and Dan Paille will be glad to have hockey on skates to fall back on. But their workout in the Welland dealership’s parking lot will continue to assist children in the community long after they leave their hometown for training camp in the fall. One dollar from every purchase made at the store Saturday and Sunday will be donated to Jumpstart, a charitable program that helps children participate in organized sports. “We knew the NHLers would bring in a lot of kids and promote interest in the program,†said Lorraine Paolone, a Canadian Tire supervisor and co-ordinator of the Jumpstart chapter at the Welland store. Elaine Brear, the store’s human resources manager and chapter member, agreed that hockey was “a natural†when people at the storm began brainstorming about Jumpstart making a “big leap†locally with a major event.
“When we had Darryl Sittler here, it was absolutely chaotic. We know this is a hockey town,†Brear said.