Our Full Celebrity Roster

Thornton was drafted in the first round, third overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft. He also played left wing for the Edmonton Oilers, Montréal Canadiens, Dallas Stars and San Jose Sharks. In his first season with San Jose, he had a career year, scoring twenty goals playing alongside gritty centre Mike Ricci. He signed a two-year contract extension in the 2003/04 season. The first season of the extension coincided with the 2004/05 NHL lockout, and after the second year, Thornton became an unrestricted free agent and on July 1, 2006, he signed a 2 year contract with the Los Angeles Kings. Thornton announced his retirement on July 28, 2008.

Turning pro with the WHA’s Houston Aeros at 18, John Tonelli played with the father-son combination of Gordie and Mark Howe. The Aeros only last three seasons and the New York Islanders picked up Tonelli. He became known as a digger, began to become more aggressive, and scored more. He was a key component of the Islanders’ Stanley Cup dynasty from 1980 to 1983. His hard work was rewarded with a Team Canada call-up for the 1984 Canada Cup series. He had nine points and was named the tournament’s top player. After that, he had his best season ever with 42 goals and 100 points. He then moved to Calgary for two and a half seasons, Los Angeles for three and then finished up his career in Chicago and Quebec. He retired in 1992 with 836 points in 911 games. The John Tonelli Arena in Milton, Ontario is named in his honour. He currently resides in New York City, working for Fidelity National Financial.

Vladislav Tretiak is a former goaltender for the Soviet Union’s national ice hockey team. He is considered to be one of the greatest goaltenders in the history of the sport, he was voted one of six players to the International Ice Hockey Federation’s (IIHF) Centennial All-Star Team in a poll conducted by a group of 56 experts from 16 countries. Tretiak was the first ever player born and trained outside North America to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. He is the current president of the Ice Hockey Federation of Russia and was the general manager of the Russian 2010 Winter Olympic team.

Drafted as an underage player by the New York Islanders, Bryan Trottier played his first game in 1975. In his second game, he had a hat trick and five points! He finished the year breaking rookie-scoring records and easily won the Calder Trophy. In 1978, he was the league’s top scorer and won the Hart Trophy as league MVP. In 1980, he won the first of four Islander Stanley Cups and picked up the Conn Smythe Trophy. He stayed in New York until 1990 when his defensive skills attracted the Pittsburgh Penguins. His presence was the missing link as Pittsburgh won two successive Cups in 1991 and 1992. He retired after the second cup but returned in 1993 as a player-coach. He then joined the Avalanche in 2000 as an assistant coach and won yet another ring. He is also one of only eight NHL players with multiple 5-goal games.

Tugnutt played in the NHL with several teams from 1987–2004 and is currently an assistant coach with the OHL’s Peterborough Petes. Tugnutt signed as a free agent by the Ottawa Senators, August 14, 1996. He helped lead the Pirates to the Calder Cup Finals and it was this strong performance that caught the attention of the Ottawa Senators. With the help of goaltending coach Phil Myre, Tugnutt worked on the fundamentals, gained some confidence and improved his game each season. While in Ottawa, he went from fighting for the backup position with Mike Bales behind starter Damian Rhodes to splitting duties with Rhodes the next two seasons and becoming the team’s undisputed starting goaltender by 1999.

Ian Turnbull was a natural defenseman who could easily join the rush. Drafted by Toronto in 1973, he paired up with Borje Salming and successfully protected their net. However, in 1974, a mid-ice collision resulted in severe tears in his knee. Recovering after a year, he returned in 1977 where his career exploded again. In fact, he holds the records for most goals in a game by a defenseman: five goals in a 9-1 win over Detroit. In 1981, he moved to Los Angeles and then Pittsburgh before retiring in 1983. He is now a real estate magnate in California.

Rogie Vachon started as a back-up to Gump Worsley in Montreal in 1966 but ended up playing the majority of the games. Even though the Habs lost in the finals to Toronto, Vachon earned a starting spot. The next season the team won the Stanley Cup, repeating the feat in 1969. When Worsley left the next season, Vachon was the sole starter. He won one more Cup and then was traded to Los Angeles the next year. He helped the Kings achieve some respectability and is arguably the Kings most popular player behind No. 99. He played for Canada in every single Canada Cup game in 1976 and won Canada’s MVP. After stints in Detroit and Boston, he retired in 1982. He also served as interim head coach of the Kings on three separate occasions. He currently serves as a Royal Ambassador for the Kings organization.

Drafted by Toronto in 1974, he was a utility player for the Maple Leafs. Falling out of favour with Leafs management after three seasons, Valiquette was traded to the Colorado Rockies. A new kind of skate and the influence of Don Cherry seemed to energize him and he scored 107 points over two seasons. At the age of 25 Valiquette retired and he entered the business world through selling real estate, and later in business of his own. He is still active with both the Maple Leafs and NHL alumni.