Storm to open with tribute to 3
10/21/2005A tribute to three people with very close ties to Toledo minor league hockey will be held prior to the Storm's season opener tonight.
Former Toledo players Mike Greeder and Dick Pontarollo will be honored posthumously along with Laurine "Laurie" Gladieux, who was the wife of team owner Tim Gladieux. All three passed away within the last three months. The memorial will take place prior to tonight's 7:35 faceoff against the Dayton Bombers.
Greeder, who died of a heart attack at the age of 48 in August, was a former captain of the Goaldiggers and coach at St. Francis de Sales High School. Greeder led the Goaldiggers to a Turner Cup title in the 1981-82 season.
Pontarollo, who died at age 75 in August, played for the Toledo Mercurys from 1951-55. He was the first player in Toledo hockey history to score 50 goals in a season in 1953-54.
Laurine Gladieux, who died of cancer at age 47 last month, could be seen cheering at nearly every Storm game, according to team general manager Mike Miller.
"Those three were all big parts of Toledo hockey through different eras," Miller said. "Laurine would be cheering at the games. Mike won a championship here and was a fixture in the hockey community. Dick was a great player and scored 50 goals back in an era when scoring 20 was huge."
Tickets are still available for the season opener against Dayton. It is the first of 13 meetings between the rivals. Toledo plays every weekend at the Sports Arena over the first eight weeks of the season.
Storm officials recommend that fans leave early for the pre-game ceremonies due to construction in the Toledo area.
Contact Mark Monroe at:
mmonroe@theblade.com
or 419-724-6110.