{"id":511861,"date":"2026-03-01T13:34:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-01T13:34:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/511861\/"},"modified":"2026-03-01T13:34:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-01T13:34:08","slug":"mark-messier-brings-stanley-cup-to-st-johns-to-honour-paradise-hockey-coach","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/511861\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Messier brings Stanley Cup to St. John’s to honour Paradise hockey coach"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Text<\/p>\n

Listen to this article<\/p>\n

Estimated 3 minutes<\/p>\n

The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.<\/p>\n

The Hyundai dealership in St. John’s was packed full of fans on Saturday, excited to meet six-time Stanley Cup champion Mark Messier \u2014 and snap a photo with the Stanley Cup. <\/p>\n

The event was a prize for Hyundai\u2019s ‘Drive Home the Cup’ \u2013 a contest that recognizes individuals who make great contributions to hockey in their communities. Paradise Minor Hockey Association president Colby Mitchell is this year\u2019s winner \u2014 and the first in Atlantic Canada. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s a great honor, but more importantly, you see behind us here with the amount of kids [and] the smiles on their faces \u2014 that’s ultimately what it’s all about,\u201d Mitchell told CBC News.\u00a0<\/p>\n

After being with the minor hockey association for 10 years, Mitchell said winning the contest shows how much hockey has grown in the province.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt just shows how big our association has gotten, how good our group of kids are. We’re super proud of our players,” he said. <\/p>\n

And Mitchell said the leadership doesn’t stop once the kids are off the ice. <\/p>\n

“I think most of the volunteers within all the associations in the province, especially in Paradise, we’re really here to support the kids and their off-ice decisions,” he said. “[And] just grow as hockey players today into, you know, mature adults.”<\/p>\n

WATCH | Mark Messier meets fans in St. John’s:\"\"<\/p>\n

NHL legend Mark Messier visits N.L. with the Stanley Cup<\/p>\n

A Paradise, N.L. hockey coach won a national contest. The prize? A visit from NHL legend Mark Messier, who also brought along the Stanley Cup. As the CBC\u2019s Abby Cole reports, it\u2019s all about recognizing local hockey leaders who help young players succeed.<\/p>\n

Messier told CBC News it was great to be celebrating the \u201cpeople that really donate their time to help our young boys and girls through the game of hockey,” and he said Mitchell is a great example.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou’re doing it because you love the game of hockey. You’re doing it because you want to help young boys and girls,\u201d he said. \u201cHe’s a worthy recipient of this award today.\u201d<\/p>\n

During his childhood in Edmonton, Messier said he can remember playing organized hockey and the impact the community and coaches had on him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember being inspired in 1972 for the Great Summit Series, and watching Canada play, and hoping one day that I\u2019ll be able to wear that maple leaf and represent our country,\u201d he said. \u201cIt took a lot of people to get me there \u2014 and that never goes unnoticed by any player.\u201d<\/p>\n

Download our\u00a0free CBC News app<\/a>\u00a0to sign up for push alerts for CBC Newfoundland and Labrador. Sign up for our\u00a0daily headlines newsletter here<\/a>. Click\u00a0here to visit our landing page<\/a>. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Listen to this article Estimated 3 minutes The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":511862,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[556],"tags":[64,63,575,85],"class_list":["post-511861","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nhl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-nhl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511861","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=511861"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511861\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/511862"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=511861"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=511861"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=511861"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}