Anytime I faced adversity, I said, Okay, Im going to put a couple of pucks in the net today for sure. And I was just going to show everybody that I was as good or better than them. You get one kick at the can, as they say, in life. He vowed his sons would never play, but his eldest, Jonathan, had other plans. McKegney left the NHL after 1990-91 with 639 points (320 goals, 319 assists). 6-0 , 200lb (183cm, 90kg) Born: February 15 , 1958 (Age: 64-344d) in Montreal, Quebec ca. As part of the NHL's celebration of Black History Month, NHL.com will highlight great moments and important figures in black hockey history each day throughout February. I just had this conversation with one of my former teammates, and he said, We just treated you like one of us brothers.. McKegney was selected 32nd overall in 1978 after scoring 92 points with the Kingston Canadians. / Special to NHL.com, Stanley Cup Final | Avalanche vs. I think his biggest value to our club has been his ability to score, Blues coach Jacques Martin said. Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device. Frequently Asked Questions about the NHL and Hockey, Subscribe to Stathead Hockey: Get your first month FREE. Streamline your workflow with our best-in-class digital asset management system. There isnt enough recent news in your lineup. I know there werent very many [black players]. In retrospect, I can now see how it was an important milestone for people who look like me: No Black player had ever scored 40 goals in a season not until that game against Winnipeg, where a little chip-in ended up making history. Akim Aliu hasnt had the same ability to bounce back from his difficult treatment in the game. Tony sun sign is Aquarius and his birth flower is Violet & Primrose. It's the number of Black players who have ever scored 40 goals in an NHL season. They started out with walker-type things out on the ice, and then they graduated to the point where they were scrimmaging, McKegney said. After scoring eight goals in 52 games as a rookie in 1978-79, he scored 23 in his second NHL season 37 in 1980-81. He believes the colour of his skin is part of the reason he didn't. I always loved the game, but I didn't see myself reflected in it. They were playing Ottawa and there were five black players in the game on the two teams combined. It's like a catch-22.". Hes had the most success. These brave athletes are actively changing hockey culture for the better. The focus was just on playing hockey. SN: What were the conversations like between you and your brother about the abuse he faced? Closed Captioning and Described Video is available for many CBC shows offered on CBC Gem. Its a very expensive sport, and its more of a suburbia sport, McKegney said. "Tony McKegney showed me it was possible for someone like me to play in the NHL," future Hall of Famer Jarome Iginla said in author Cecil Harris' book, "Breaking The Ice, The Black Experience in Professional Hockey." "He set the example. Mike Harrington: His team looks good, even without Alex Tuch. I just tried to shut everything else out. It appears the Sabres have made a few late deals. If you said Tony McKegney, you are correct. Tony McKegney was bom in Montreal, Quebec, in February of 1958 to a Nigerian father and Canadian mother. Buffalo was very interesting because we hung around with the football players. McKegney was born in Montreal, but was adopted soon thereafter, and raised by a white family in Sarnia, Ontario. It's the kind of impact that wins, losses, and point totals can't capture. the official stats partner of the NBA, NHL and MLB. McKegney recalls no special obstacles for him or his two adoptive brothers, who are also black, as they were growing up with a racially mixed family in a city of 50,000. While in Chteauguay, he played for Jacques Demers, who went on to coach the Nordiques and Montreal Canadiens. Tony McKegney Height, Weight & Measurements At 63 years old, Tony McKegney height is 1.85 m and Weight 91 kg. That's how good he was.". It was like, all the emotions from my career, my life: it was too much for me," the elder Saunders said. BIOGRAPHY. At the same time, he's disappointed that he's been excluded from conversations about the first black players in the NHL. Customize your Sportsnet lineup for the latest news from your favourite leagues and teams. He played six games and didn't score, but played well. Relatives: Brother Ian McKegney. Tony McKegney was born in Montreal, Canada. Overall, his NHL career saw him appear in 912 regular season games and accrue 639 points. When the last road trip started, I thought about how meaningful it would be to end the season with a goal total that was a round number. Of course, I also thought about the bonus clause in my contract, which promised $15,000 if I happened to score 40 goals (that was a lot of money in those days). It can be difficult to talk about how those views affect you as a person. In this article, we covered Tony McKegney's net worth, wiki, bio, career, height, weight, pics, family, affairs, car, salary, age, facts, and other details in 2022. He was a 4x 30-goal scorer and set career highs in 1988 with 40 . And I just thought to myself, What are they doing out there? And I couldnt wait to go out there and join them at a year-and-a-half. I showed up there and I remember sitting on my adoptive mother's knee and looking out the dining . Saunders was the third highest-scorer at training camp. He even scored 40 goals for St. Louis in 1987-88. Hockey made me gave me all the confidence in the world.". "I loved the game, but the game didn't love me.". He is 64 years old. Boards and the whole thing. Even reporters, players were coming up to me saying, 'What's going on, Bernie?'". Instead, he was drafted 32nd-overall by the Buffalo Sabres in 1978 and went on to score over 320 goals. An error has occurred while trying to update your details. (Tony McKegney, the fourth black player, debuted in 1978). Thats basically what got me where I am today., Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. Any other third party trademarks or copyrights are the property of their respective owners. Bassin knew Saunders was getting racist taunts, but said Saunders always handled it in stride and never let it get to him. He continued to score despite playing no more than three seasons with the same team for the rest of his career. TM: I heard some stories about the tough guys like George Laraque, Peter Worrell and Donald Brashear, and apparently it was absolutely brutal for those guys in Quebec. I've always been a player that plays on enthusiasm, and I was just losing my zest for the game.". Tony McKegney was born on February 15, 1958. He jumped to the AHL's Hershey. He was the fifth black man to play in the league. My older brother, Mike, was drafted in the NHL, first black player ever drafted by the Montreal Canadians. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. It is the 10th NHL season for McKegney, who will be 30 on Feb. 15, and one that he would like to make his best. Like I said, numbers never tell the whole story. Tony McKegney (front, second from r.) and his Sarnia Bees teammates of the Western Ontario Junior B Hockey League in 1973. The next day, the other team's coach called to apologize for what had happened, which Saunders found promising a sign that things were changing, albeit slowly. McKegney needed less than a season to join Buffalo during the 1978-79 campaign. (Tony) McKegney will need to be working on his paddle stroke or riding as a passenger. Never fully comfortable: Maple Leafs Kerfoot and the trade he dodged, Canucks commit to re-tooling over re-building with Hronek addition, On a career heater, Nugent-Hopkins four-point night helps Oilers ground Jets. "I could deal with it individually, but to see my son go through it was just overwhelming.". Check out the Black Girl Hockey Club, a non-profit organization that focuses on making hockey more inclusive for Black women, their family, friends and allies. Dating & Relationship status He is currently single. That is a great start and I am looking forward to rooting for the Black players drafted in the past few years who are going to carry on this legacy. Most historical data provided by Dan Diamond and Associates. Tony McKegney's birthday is on 15-Feb-1958 and was born on Saturday. Gambling problem? That was my first exposure, to have a hockey rink in my backyard. * 21+ (19+ CA-ONT) (18+ NH/WY). 1989-1990 Regular Season Fight Card NHL (1) 1987-1988 Regular Season Fight Card NHL (4) 1986-1987 Regular Season Fight Card NHL (1) 1985-1986 Postseason Fight Card NHL (2) 1983-1984 Regular Season Fight Card NHL (1) And I know they weren't alone in their thoughts. Sabres Memories is presented by BCBSWNY. We use cookies to improve your experience. After playing for 15 years professionally, it was a hard transition and Im sure Ive made some mistakes and would do some things differently. Or write about sports? Following his time in Buffalo, he spent two seasons with the Quebec Nordiques, then made stops in Minnesota (North Stars), New York (Rangers), St. Louis and Detroit before finding his way back to Quebec. Hes been an All-Star. They were around five and six years old. Important: An official team/league url or a team document must be provided for us to update player stats. Eliteprospects.com hockey player profile of Tony McKegney, 1958-02-15 Montral, QC, CAN Canada. 'I loved the game, but the game didn't love me': How hockey shaped one of NHL's first black players on and off the ice | CBC News Loaded. He was also able to open doors and create a level of acceptance for young black players who could point to him and his contemporaries as successes. Today, Tony McKegney, the first Black player to score 40 goals in an NHL season, tells his story of overcoming racial bias and serving as inspiration for Jarome Iginla, the only other Black player to hit the 40-goal milestone. And the NHL has done a great job with helping. My first time playing against another black hockey player was probably my third year in the NHL, Grant Fuhr and Ray Neufeld. Buffalo looks to bounce back with a clean slate against another tough team. There were three future Hall of Famers who made us all better. My dad felt he could do something for the amount of kids that were homeless or without parents per se.. Saunders said at the time, O'Ree was more of a mythical figure than anything else. The judge ordered McKegney, while on probation, to complete all assessments, counselling and treatments directed by his probation supervisor to deal with issues arising from domestic. They were there for me for the most part. Last seen in the 1992-1993 season with the San Diego Gulls (IHL). But Jarrett believes Saunders deserved to be there. Today, Tony McKegney, the first Black player to score 40 goals in an NHL season, tells his story of overcoming racial bias and serving as inspiration for Jarome Iginla, the only other Black. McKegney was selected 32nd overall in 1978 after scoring 92 points with the Kingston Canadians. At the age of 20, Tony signed a contract with the now defunct World Hockey Associations (WHA) team in Birmingham, Alabama only to see the owner illegally renege on the deal after fans threatened to boycott the team for having added a black player to its roster. Any other third party trademarks or copyrights are the property of their respective owners. Welcome to NHL.com, the official site of the National Hockey League, Bienvenue LNH.com , le site officiel de la Ligue nationale de hockey, Tervetuloa NHL:n viralliselle nettisivustolle NHL.comiin, Vlkommen till NHL.com, NHL:s officiella web-sida, Vtejte na NHL.com, oficilnch strnkch National Hockey League, Vitajte na NHL.com, oficilnych strnkach National Hockey League, Willkommen auf NHL.com, der offiziellen Seite der National Hockey League, Bienvenido a NHL.com, el sitio oficial de la National Hockey League. Complete record of every goal scored or assisted by the player. So I did the only thing I could do: I focused on perseverance. "It felt like they were ripping out my heart. All rights reserved. He played in St. Louis for two years. I probably should have, and I never did that. Since then, he has played for five NHL teams - Buffalo, Quebec, Minnesota, New York and St. Louis - scoring a career-high 37 goals in 1980-81. Brent Jarrett played with him in Kalamazoo, Mich.,that season. It was a simple chip-in that just dribbled through the goalie's pads. SN: Trevor was able to persevere. We celebrate Willie ORee, the first black player in the NHL, and maybe mention Mike Marson, who was the second, then the conversation shifts all the way to the unprecedented diversity we see in the game today. Today we look at former NHL forward Tony McKegney. Throughout 15 years of professional hockey, I'm lucky enough to say that there are many moments I'm proud of. Bernie Saunders played 10 games for the Quebec Nordiques, but he and others say his career would have been longer if he wasnt black. Enter Search Term. SN: Given what you went through in your career, does it make it tougher to hear stories of the abuse faced by players who came after you? He played four games with the Nordiques at the end of the 1979-80 season, the team's first season in the NHL. Clearly, Jarome recognized that the 'typical' hockey player could be anyone who loves the game and plays it well. - EP Contact Book listing of your profile (optional) We don't have much information about He's past relationship and any previous engaged. But on the. Do you have a sports website? Most recently in the IHL with San Diego Gulls. And there was a ton of it, ugly stuff. McKegney has remained in the NHL largely because of his skating skills, his durability and the steadiness he mentioned. Position: LW Shoots: Left. Well give you the latest news when it becomes available, or feel free to add some more selections to My Favourites. . The key is for him to keep working.. That fast-forwarding tends to bypass the magical middle and the stories of many players who felt alone but nonetheless accomplished great things, opening opportunities for those who followed. I ignored that coach, of course. Im sure it affected me. Sabres Send Asplund to Nashville for 7th Rounder, 2023 NHL Trade Deadline: Open Thread & How To Watch. Welcome to NHL.com, the official site of the National Hockey League, Bienvenue LNH.com , le site officiel de la Ligue nationale de hockey, Tervetuloa NHL:n viralliselle nettisivustolle NHL.comiin, Vlkommen till NHL.com, NHL:s officiella web-sida, Vtejte na NHL.com, oficilnch strnkch National Hockey League, Vitajte na NHL.com, oficilnych strnkach National Hockey League, Willkommen auf NHL.com, der offiziellen Seite der National Hockey League, Bienvenido a NHL.com, el sitio oficial de la National Hockey League. And between the benches, one of the guys said it would be termed as a black-on-black crime. McKegney vividly recalls the support from his parents - Lowry McKegney, a retired chemist, and Cathy McKegney. The subtext of the situation was clear: Because I'm a Black man, there were certain things the homeowner felt like I couldn't or shouldn't do. He heard the N-word on the ice and from fans in the stands, and opponents always made sure to finish their checks on him. Organize, control, distribute and measure all of your digital content. And the support I got from teammates just carried me through some difficult situations. And I still struggle with that to this day, with the trauma that I faced and went through.