Lee of Islanders gives back again with charity Kan Jam tournament

EAST MEADOW, N.Y. -- Anders Lee played Kan Jam in his backyard and while attending the University of Notre Dame. The game is simple: One player tosses a disc toward a can, where a partner can try to deflect it in to score points.

The fight against cancer, however, is not so simple. The reality of how it's affected adults and young children hits Lee harder than the broken fibula that ended the New York Islanders forward’s 2015-16 season. During his recovery, Lee was moved by a speech on YouTube from Fenov Pierre-Louis, a 16-year-old battling Stage 4 neuroblastoma since the age of 9. It led to a bond and to Lee working with the Jam Kancer in the Kan Foundation, which raises funds for families affected by a cancer diagnosis. On Saturday, he helped the cause again by hosting Anders Jam '24 at Northwell Health Ice Center.

The Islanders captain, a Jambassador since 2016, had said that this year, with his fifth charity Kan Jam tournament, he wanted to build on the experience, relationships and friends he'd made. Those boxes and more were checked Saturday. Donations are expected to reach the goal of $200,000, adding to the more than $2.7 million raised at events in local communities and NHL cities in the United States.

Lee's Kan Jam partner was 15-year-old Carsyn Volpe of Bellmore, New York, diagnosed with Stage 4 high-risk neuroblastoma in August 2011. He won the fight in 2012 and lived cancer free for more than eight years, according to the St. Baldrick's Foundation. In November of 2020, Carsyn relapsed with a baseball-size tumor in his face that took away sight in his right eye, and since Jan. 13, 2022, has been in his third and toughest battle.

For the first time, Lee won his own tournament. One could argue it was greater than winning the Stanley Cup championship that the 34-year-old forward is still chasing.

"We ended up going pretty far," Lee said. "What he's been through the last few years, for us to go out there and hang out all day and try to win it and the fashion that we did. An experience that I and him are going to enjoy for a while."

It was a private gathering of 32 registered two-person teams that either donated or raised a minimum of $2,700. They mingled with and competed against Lee and Islanders teammates with the objective of scoring 21 points by throwing or deflecting a disc into the opposing goal 50 feet away. On display was the King Clancy Trophy, awarded to Lee on Saturday by prior winners, who for the first time joined NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman on a selection committee to judge 32 nominees on the inspiration, involvement and impact of each to positively benefit his community.

Lee received a $25,000 donation from the NHL to benefit a charity of his choice: the Jam Kancer in the Kan Foundation. New this year was his election that the Islanders receive a grant of up to $20,000 from the League. There's also an auction of Islanders memorabilia and tickets to sit in the stands or the owner's suite at UBS Arena, with bidding open until 3 p.m. ET on Sept. 23.

"What I love about this event is that it's an intimate event," Lee said. "It's a small event in terms of numbers, and from that you're taking away conversation and an experience with an Islander player."

Lee this season became the third New York player to win the King Clancy (Bryan Trottier, 1989; Doug Weight, 2011) and was a finalist for the sixth time in seven seasons. Trottier traveled from Pittsburgh to join co-owner Jon Ledecky more than two years after Islanders legends Mike Bossy and Clark Gillies died of cancer. Dr. Bryan John Trottier Jr., one of Bryan's four children, is a hematology/oncology specialist dealing with cancers of the blood in St. Louis Park, Minnesota. Anders Jam '24 was another chance for Bryan Sr. to celebrate memories of his wings on the "Trio Grande Line" that helped the Islanders win the Stanley Cup in four consecutive seasons (1980-83).

"We met some cancer survivors," Trottier said. "We met some folks that have lost family and kids to cancer. It's a good opportunity to see the strength of family, the rally aspect of it, the will to live, how it affects everybody.

"They've got this mastered. They're throwing Frisbees. It was really good all the way around, a win-win for a lot of people."

Inspiring Lee from above was Pierre-Louis, the guest speaker for Lee's first tournament, held in New York City following an Islanders game in 2017. It raised more than $103,000 and inspired NHL players Zach Bogosian, Kevin Shattenkirk, J.T. Miller, Ryan McDonagh and Brendan Smith to stage their own events.

Pierre-Louis died July 18, 2018. Lee founded the Fenov Scholar Scholarship that awards $2,000 annually to up to five graduating high school seniors who have provided help and sympathy to someone with cancer.

"[His presence] was felt," Lee said. "It's the reason why we had a sunny day and [it was] hot; the boys were sweating.

"Fenov, the lessons that I learned from him and his circle, I think we did our best today to carry that out. One of his messages was putting a smile on a kid's face that's dealing with a cancer diagnosis. I think we were able to accomplish that."

Shattenkirk helped raise nearly $100,000 during his first Kancer Jam in 2018, when he was a defenseman for the New York Rangers. The 35-year-old, a member of the NHL Player Inclusion Coalition, is an unrestricted free agent after having 24 points (six goals, 18 assists) in 61 games for the Boston Bruins last season.

"Anders has been a huge inspiration for me and many other players in the NHL," Shattenkirk said. "His Kancer Jam events paved the way for players all around the League to start their own Kancer Jams in their respective cities, me included. I know Anders has touched the lives of many pediatric cancer patients and their families through his work. His events will continue to provide the help those families need for years to come."

The NHL is doing the same through Hockey Fights Cancer, raising more than $36 million since its inception 25 years ago. Many patients have rung the bell in triumph, including Anaheim Ducks director of goaltending Sudarshan Maharaj after his battle with pancreatic cancer.

Lee's request is simple: Lend a hand. Trottier's hope is that someone will do something spectacular if everyone helps with the fight.

On a Saturday afternoon in the shadow of Nassau Coliseum, the former home of the Islanders, all it took was a flying disc, a can and inspiration.

"I think today was pretty impactful," Lee said. "Everyone's going home with an experience."

Click here to learn more about and donate to Jam Kancer in the Kan.