The Tom Kurvers Humanitarian Award was created to honor the Minnesota Wild player who best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice while making a significant humanitarian contribution to his community. The Wild will present the award annually in memory of the late Tom Kurvers, the Wild assistant general manager and Minnesota hockey legend who passed away in June of 2021 following a courageous battle with lung cancer. Former Wild defenseman Matt Dumba was the inaugural recipient of the award last season.
Fleury, 39, has shown exemplary humanitarian efforts throughout his 20-year NHL career. Over the course of the season, Fleury accompanied his Minnesota Wild teammates to hospital visits, participated in Make-A-Wish initiatives and supported numerous community initiatives throughout the Twin Cities. He helped raise over $55,000 for Children’s Minnesota through personal donations and fundraising efforts and provided support for other community partners, including: Minnesota Diversified Hockey, DinoMights, Mosaic Hockey Collective and Ronald McDonald House. Fleury was also named the Wild’s Tom Kurvers Humanitarian Award winner this season, voted on by his teammates.
Arguably Fleury’s most notable support this season benefited the American Indian Family Center (AIFC) located in Saint Paul, Minn. As part of his 1,000th game celebration, the Minnesota Wild Foundation made a $5,000 donation on Fleury’s behalf to the AIFC and the Fleury family also contributed a $10,000 gift to the group. In a game on November 24 against the Colorado Avalanche, Fleury donned a custom-made Native American themed goalie mask during warm-ups that raised over $35,000 at auction for the AIFC and the Minnesota Wild Foundation. In total, Fleury and the Minnesota Wild Foundation raised over $65,000 in an auction with a portion of the proceeds benefitting the AIFC.
