When Scott Howson phoned Kraken pro scout Lorne Henning in late December, it sized up as a former player calling one of his favorite coaches. Turns out Howson, president and CEO of the American Hockey League, had a surprise invitation in mind. Would Henning like to be an honorary captain for the AHL’s All-Star Classic on Feb. 2 and 3 in Palm Desert, CA, home of the Kraken affiliate Coachella Valley Firebird and Acrisure Arena?
“Scotty called me directly,” said Henning during a conversation at Climate Pledge Arena before the Kraken’s second dramatic multi-goal, third-period comeback against division rival Vancouver. “I was pleasantly surprised, but it was kind of a shock.”
Howson played center for Henning in the Kraken scout’s first head coaching job with AHL Springfield (MA) in 1984-85. Howson scored 20 goals and added 40 assists that season. Henning, coming off two Stanley Cup wins as a center with the New York Islanders and two more over three Cup finals as a NYI assistant coach, impressed enough behind the bench to be hired by the NHL Minnesota North Stars (now Dallas Stars) for the 1985-86 season.
Henning’s counterpart for the upcoming AHL All-Star festivities, Grant Fuhr, is a familiar face to Coachella Valley and for Henning and all New York Islanders alums as well. Fuhr, now an analyst for the Firebirds and host of a popular charitable annual celebrity golf tournament in the Valley, was part of the Edmonton Oilers dynasty that followed the Islanders by winning five Cups in the second half of the 1980s after NYI won four straight from 1980 to 1983.
In the 1984 Cup Final, Fuhr was the starting goalie for the first three games but was injured in a collision with NYI star Pat LaFontaine, shelving him, and teammate Andy Moog replaced him as the Oilers won their first Cup. Fuhr was the backup goalie in 1983 when Edmonton reached the Final for the first time, and Henning was winning his second Cup as a coach.
“The Islanders were king of the hill,” said Fuhr Friday by phone. “It was our first trip to the Final, and they swept us. But we did get a chance to learn from them a little bit.”
Indeed. Fuhr was the starter in net for Edmonton Cup wins in 1985, 1987 and 1988. The Hockey Hall of Famer was equally taken aback to hear from AHL president Howson.
“It was a complete surprise,” said Fuhr. “It’s fun to represent the Firebirds and the Kraken as well. Especially because I live here, you get a chance to represent the Valley a little bit, and that's always a good thing.”
Opposing Benches, But Friends On the Course
Henning and Fuhr will be the third coach behind each All-Star bench, joining the two head coaches from each AHL conference whose teams are leading their divisions. The two honorary captains will be speakers at the league’s annual AHL Hall of Fame lunch and will preside over the skills competition. No plans are set but a round of golf might be in the offing.
“A fun part of this honor is I have become friends with Lorne over the years,” said Fuhr. “It will be great to catch up; that’s another fun part.”
“I was fortunate enough to first play with Grant in a charity golf tournament,” said Henning. “What a great experience. Grant is such a humble guy and a great, great person.”
Connected to the AHL
For his part, Fuhr appeared in 21 AHL games over four seasons with the Moncton Alpines (1982-83), Cape Breton Oilers (1989-91), Rochester Americans (1993-94), and Saint John Flames (1999-2000). Most of the appearances were part of injury rehab, while Fuhr, alongside Firebirds play-by-play Evan Pivnick, is a current AHL mainstay as an analyst for CVF broadcasts on local TV and radio.
Henning, drafted by the Islanders in the second round (No. 17 overall) of the 1972 NHL draft, played all of four games for AHL New Haven (CT) before he was called up to finish the NHL season, scoring six goals and notching 19 assists. But along with the aforementioned season as AHL Springfield head coach and as an assistant general manager for the Vancouver Canucks, he was responsible for overseeing the AHL affiliates.
“The first three years, our AHL team was in Winnipeg,” said Henning. “Then it was Chicago for two years. After that, I was overseeing Utica (NY).
“We went to the [Calder Cup] final in Winnipeg, and we went to the final in Utica. We started the franchise in Utica. That first year, we took our lumps, but the second year, we ended up going to the final. It took time to get chemistry, but that second year, we were really good.”
Hmmm, an AHL franchise starting out in early seasons with a conference championship. Henning’s fellow honorary 2025 All-Star captain certainly knows about that.
