Horse Lake Thunder wants Fleury for run at Allan Cup

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The Horse Lake Thunder must keep winning some playoff games if they have any hopes of seeing former National Hockey League star Theo Fleury in their lineup this season.

The Thunder, a senior team in Alberta's North Peace Hockey League, signed Fleury, a Metis, in early January.

But just hours before he was set to play his first game with the Thunder versus the host Grande Prairie Athletics on Jan. 6, Hockey Alberta ruled the 36-year-old Fleury would be ineligible to suit up for the team.

That's because Hockey Alberta has a rule that stipulates senior teams are prevented from signing players who had NHL contracts last season.

But Thunder officials and Fleury believe this ruling does not apply to him. Though Fleury technically had a contract with the Chicago Blackhawks during the 2003-04 season, he did not play in the NHL last year. He had been suspended from the league for violating its substance abuse policy. Fleury last played in the NHL with Chicago 17 months ago.

"He's very disappointed," Horse Lake assistant coach Rod McDonald said of Fleury. "Same as us. He hasn't been an active NHL player for 17 months."

The Thunder, based on the Horse Lake reserve (about 40 minutes north of Grande Prairie), filed an appeal with Hockey Alberta regarding Fleury's eligibility on Jan. 10.

Officials with the Horse Lake team were hoping to have the matter resolved as quickly as possible, hoping to get Fleury into their lineup to begin a best-of-five league quarter-final series versus the Stony Plain Eagles on Jan. 12.

"We're trying to expedite the process," McDonald said, but Brad Robbins, Hockey Alberta's operations manager, did not feel that would be possible.

"I can't see that happening," Robbins told Alberta Sweetgrass on Jan. 11.

Robbins said Hockey Alberta officials had 10 days from when the appeal was filed in order to have a conference call hearing in order to rule and officials were swamped with other orders of business they had to take care of in early January.

There were several other eligibility appeals-primarily from youth hockey teams-filed with the association. And Robbins said they were being handled in the order that they were received.

Robbins added Hockey Alberta officials were also busy establishing the schedules for minor hockey playoffs throughout the province. There was a likelihood Fleury's appeal would not be heard until Jan. 20.

Even if the Thunder appeal is rejected, there will still be some hope in getting Fleury into a Horse Lake jersey this season.

Robbins explained if the first stage appeal is rejected, the Thunder can appeal that decision which will then be heard by a three-person panel. But it could take up to a month to hear that appeal. And if the second stage appeal is turned down, a third and final appeal can be filed, which would then be heard by Hockey Alberta's board of governors.

The appeal process, however, could turn out to be moot if the Thunder are eliminated early in their playoffs.

The Horse Lake team though, which has stocked up with a handful of ex-pros this season, is aiming to win the Allan Cup, annually awarded to Canada's top senior team.

The Thunder roster includes former NHLers Gino Odjick, Sasha Lakovic and Dody Wood. Fleury, whose cousin Todd Holt is also on the Horse Lake roster, would easily become the most notable player with the Thunder.

Fleury appeared in 1,161 NHL games from 1988 to 2003 and he collected 1,167 points (489 goals, 678 assists). Besides Chicago, he played in the NHL for the Calgary Flames, New York Rangers and Colorado Avalanche.

Fleury was a member of the Canadian team that won the gold medal at the 2002 Salt Lake Olympics.

"It would be a huge boost for us in our aim to get to the Allan Cup if he was playing for us," McDonald said. "He's obviously a very talented player. You don't average a point per game in the NHL by being a mediocre player."