By Carter Brooks Photos by Standout Imagery
Lazo says good-bye after raising the Kelly Cup
Winnipeg ’ s Johnny Lazo is going out on top . The 28-year-old former Winnipeg Thrashers , Tri-City Americans and University of Alberta Golden Bears star has decided to step away from the game of hockey . In making quite possibly the most difficult decision of his career , Lazo chose in mid-July of 2017 that the 2016-17 hockey season was his last . But make no mistake , Lazo is going out a champion .
When one typically thinks of hockey players skating laps , it ’ s usually thought of as punishment from a coach following a lopsided defeat , or a poor effort . But in Johnny Lazo ’ s case , the final moment of his hockey career was spent skating a lap around North Charleston Coliseum in victory -- with the ECHL ’ s Kelly Cup held proudly above his head .
The East Coast Hockey League – founded in 1988 – is home to 27 midlevel professional hockey teams across North American , and sits a couple steps below the NHL . One such ECHL team is the Colorado Eagles , who are a part of the Mountain Division of the league ’ s Western Conference .
Johnny Lazo , meanwhile , grew up in the Maples and played his minor hockey for the former Seven Oaks Raiders . He went on to play in the WHL and the old CIS at the University of Alberta where he won a national championship and after spending a brief period of time in Europe , joined the Colorado Eagles for the 2015-16 season . He stuck around long enough to win an ECHL championship this past spring .
SEPTEMBER 2017 | GAME ON | 91