CORNWALL, Ontario – The players on the ice are sure to be something special at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, but for Jonathan Ladouceur the real thrill next week will be one person in the stands that only he can see.
It will be his father Brad, who passed away tragically at age 38.
The son of a self-proclaimed hockey nut, Jonathan has followed in his father’s footsteps and recently, through the philanthropy of his school and a local bus company, will get a chance to watch his beloved Vancouver Canucks take on the Ottawa Senators via a pair of tickets he received Tuesday at school.
“I was surprised,” Jonathan, a 13-year-old Grade 8 student, understated Wednesday.
“He was jumping for joy,” corrected his stepmother Stephanie Larochelle.
Jonathan lost his father Brad Sept. 2 when the Cornwall man succumbed to a ruptured aorta suddenly at his city home.
The pair could often be found, not unlike clockwork, settling in for hockey broadcasts at every turn.
“Every Saturday night it was Hockey Night in Canada,” said Jonathan.
His favourite Canucks include the Sedin twins, Radim Vrbata and Ryan Miller.
Larochelle said next Thursday’s game will be something her stepson will take with him for a lifetime.
“We’re a big hockey family,” she said. “Brad loved to play hockey.”
Mark Begg, general manager of Delaney Bus Lines Ltd, approached Jonathan’s school, Cornwall Collegiate, with the desire to provide an opportunity for a deserving student to receive two tickets to an upcoming Sens’ game.
“We were honoured to be able to do this for him and hope that he enjoys the game,” said Begg.
CCVS vice-principal Josh Harrison was pleased to see Jonathan heading to Ottawa.
“This would not have been possible without the goodwill and generosity of Mark and his Delaney team,” said Harrison.
