Former NHL'ers take to the Essar Centre (28 photos)
Friday, March 22, 2013 by: Brad Coccimiglio
He was a 50-goal man with the Toronto Maple Leafs and had over 400 career goals in the National Hockey League, and Rick Vaive showed he's still got it on Friday night at the Essar Centre.
Vaive was a part of the NHL Alumni Team that faced the Sault Ste. Marie Law Enforcement All-Stars in a charity game tonight.
Vaive was among 12 former NHL'ers in action that included former Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Curtis Joseph, former Edmonton Oiler and Ontario Hockey League standout Todd Harvey as well as high scoring forward Reggie Leach, a former 60-goal scorer.
The team was coached by Walter Gretzky, father of the NHL's highest scoring family members - Wayne, Keith and Brent.
Brent also played in tonight's game.
The team also featured some local ties, including former Soo Greyhounds Denny Lambert, Jeff Toms and Jeremy Stevenson.
"It's always great to come back to the community and be involved (in events like this)," said Lambert. "After not skating for a while I had a little bit of rust but it's still a lot of fun."
Lambert noted the size of the crowd in attendance was pleasing.
"It's great to come back and give the fans a show," Lambert said. "I wasn't expecting this many fans out here to be honest but it's great to see the support."
For those who are curious, Vaive scored six times while Joseph scored twice as the NHL Alumni picked up a 16-14 win.
