What was slated to be a special day turned into a remarkable event for New Westminster Salmonbellies assistant coach Russ Heard.
The 52-year-old was preparing to celebrate his son’s birthday and had arranged for him to come with the squad to their game in Victoria against the Shamrocks last Friday when a player shortage put him in another spotlight.
Heard suited up for the Bellies and recorded an assist in his 400th Western Lacrosse Association game – six years after he played his 399th game – in a contest where Victoria pulled out a 11-9 win in the provincial capital.
Add in the fact that while checking out whether or not he could play, Heard was told he had also been elected into the Canadian Lacrosse Hall of Fame, making it a Friday to remember.
“I told them I’d only play every eight to 10 years,” joked Heard, who starred as a member of the Burnaby Lakers and Coquitlam Adanacs from 1985 to 2000, which included two league MVP awards during that span.
Coming off their home opener the day before, New West management was struggling to find enough players to fill the roster for the trip to Victoria, and almost jokingly Heard volunteered his name.
“We were just joking around and Steve (Goodwin, New West head coach) said ‘Don’t you need one more for 400?’
“I tried to come up with a good excuse but each one kind of got shot down.”
It wasn't his first time in senior Bellies' red, white and blue. He played three WLA games in 1985 as a call-up, before joining the senior loop full-time in 1986.
Still active in masters lacrosse, Heard was physically prepared to play, but he thought because he had signed a card with the North Shore senior B team that he was ineligible. But a quick call resulted in his temporary release from that commitment. His wife Debbie, who works in the B.C. Lacrosse Association office, noted his name was up for possible induction into the Canadian Lacrosse Hall of Fame.
“There’s a five-year rule that you need to be inactive for so I thought maybe that would stop it,” said Heard. “We tracked down (LHOF committee member) Dave Evans and he said, no, they’d already held the vote and I was (going in), so I could play as many games as I wanted.”
When he took to the floor he received a nice welcome from the Victoria faithful, although he laughed how one spectator shouted “Let the young guys play!”
Already 0-2 on the year, the Bellies came out fired up and led for much of the first half, including 7-4 midway through the second period. The Shamrocks rattled off four straight goals to push ahead in the third, thanks to a quick shorthanded marker to open the third and a powerplay tally midway through the frame.
New West pulled even with 2:50 to play, when Heard set up Brandon Goodwin on his second of the night. But Victoria counted two goals in the final 1:38, including an empty-netter, to improve to 3-0.
Heard said once the game started, his focus was on sticking to the gameplan and foregoing any instinct to recreate some of his famous solo scoring drives.
“For me, I wanted to keep everything high percentage,” he said. “I wasn’t just a player, I’m also a coach, so I wanted to be sure to move the ball around, do some set-picks and create space for my linemates.
“We were right in it, and I think this game was where we’ve started to click and do the little things.”
While his previous one-off game was in 2010 for the Langley Thunder, Heard doesn’t envision recreating this moment ala Gordie Howe, or trying to extend his playing career, even for a single game, to cover a fifth decade in four years time.
“It’s not something we planned,” he said. “When it comes to Gordie Howe comparisons I say we should dress Steve Goodwin because he has two sons on the team.
“He may not have Gordie’s scoring touch, but he kind of has the elbows.”
