West Lorne opens ‘Hockeyville Lane' to welcome Maple Leafs, Sabres

WEST LORNE, Ontario -- Darcy Tucker stood inside a common area of the renovated West Lorne Arena, people from the West Elgin municipality outdoors enjoying the unveiling of "Hockeyville Lane" that started a party celebrating West Lorne, winner of Kraft Hockeyville 2023 and the $250,000 grand prize that modernized a 55-year-old building.

About 20 minutes before a scheduled autograph session, the retired NHL forward, who played eight of his 15 NHL seasons for the Toronto Maple Leafs, was met by kids and adults fortunate enough to get a signature on photos and memorabilia.

Tucker gets it, so he couldn't say no. He was born in Castor, Alberta, and grew up in Endiang (population no more than 500). Everything he did revolved around the local rink and that, in summation, is the spirit of Hockeyville and why he's here to represent the Maple Leafs for their preseason game against the Buffalo Sabres at Joe Thornton Community Centre in St. Thomas on Wednesday (6:30 p.m. ET; NHLN, SN, TVAS).

"It's just amazing to see the whole community come together, to see your family, see your friends," Tucker said. "You're with your cousins, your relatives. This is all about growing the game, giving back to the game and it's going be pretty exciting here in the next 24 hours."

Kraft delivered more good news when senior brand manager Matt Bruce announced a donation of more than 19,000 pounds of food to two area food banks: Caring Cupboard Food Bank -- Rodney and the West Elgin Daffodil Auxiliary in Dutton/Dunwich. The people of West Lorne and surrounding villages were undeniable, sending their initial bid six days before the deadline and winning Hockeyville on April 1, months of planning and volunteer work rewarded with a block party starring the Stanley Cup and the NHL on site.

"It shows they have it in them that they want to be the best and succeed," said Sabres television analyst Rob Ray, Buffalo's NHL alumni representative. "This is not an easy thing to win, and it takes a lot of commitment from everybody."

Ray lived Hockeyville, his hometown of Stirling, Ontario winning the 2013 title thanks in part to efforts from his sister. Sabres defensemen Owen Power (Mississauga) and Jacob Bryson (London) lived and played in the Southwest Ontario region; Power grew up a Maple Leafs fan and recalled them playing Hockeyville, John Tavares scoring two goals in his Toronto debut, a 4-1 win against the Ottawa Senators in Lucan, one hour north of West Lorne.

Power is projected to skate against Tavares on Wednesday, one day closer to his second NHL season and less than two months before his 21st birthday (Nov. 22).

"It's pretty cool," Power said. "It's nice to kind of go play in smaller buildings and let those people who maybe don't have big-market teams watching, just playing in front of them. It'll be a cool experience for sure and I think it's a good thing that the League does."

One night before their town was declared Hockeyville winner, the West Lorne Minor Hockey Program held an alumni night. Director of coaching Rob Tait asked Mike Rivard, a revered local hockey coach for more than 30 years whose past pupils include New York Islanders center Bo Horvat, to attend and get introduced. One for avoiding the spotlight, Rivard, 73, declined, then realized it, like Hockeyville, was once in a lifetime.

Rivard came out to what Tait called the loudest ovation he ever heard.

"It made me cry," said Ryan Rivard, Mike's son and a retired pro player. "It was such an amazing thing to see."

Six months later, Mike Rivard was surprised with a house call by the Stanley Cup. So were kids from kindergarten to high school, the same ones invited to see the Sabres and Maple Leafs arrive on the red carpet, practice and take part in a question and answer session with select players. Even after Hockeyville leaves West Lorne, the title is theirs and they're running with it.

Tucker was an eyewitness.

"It's going to last with them for the rest of their life," Tucker said.

NHL.com independent correspondent Heather Engel contributed to this report