Eric Staal is one of 31 players featured in our Hockey Player's New Testament. Click here to order your copy today. 

 

Hockey Ministries International is pleased to host a "Faith Night" promotion with the Ontario Hockey League's Belleville Bulls on February 26th at the Yardmen Arena in Belleville, Ontario. Former NHL ironman, Laurie Boschman, is going to share his journey of hockey as well as his faith journey with Jesus Christ to a post-game audience.

Laurie, who joined the staff of Hockey Ministries International sixteen years ago, ended his professional NHL career as the first captain of the expansion Ottawa Senators in 1992. From junior hockey with the MJHL's Brandon Travelers and the WHL's Brandon Wheat Kings, to his final NHL season with Ottawa, Boschman's story includes many professional and personal highs and lows. Please bring friends and family to share this special night.

For more information please contact Scott Dickson at (613) 966 8338 Ext 3895 or email him at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  

The following is a recent article by Kevin Allenspach of the St. Cloud Times, highlighting the ministry of Hockey Ministries International staff member Bill Butters to the St.Cloud Huskies Hockey Team.

The coffee in Bill Butters' hands is warm as he watches the St. Cloud State men's hockey team practice.

Retired professional hockey player Bill Butters watches St. Cloud State hockey practice. Butters, a defenseman who registered more than 100 fights in his career, later became a chaplain with Hockey Ministries International. He meets with the Huskies and many other college and professional teams throughout the Midwest to discuss the Bible and how it relates to the game and the life of a player. (Mike Knaak, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it )

Separated by Plexiglas and a generational gap, he watches a familiar scene. Players swoop and spin, occasionally crashing into one another with a shout, or blasting a slap shot that explodes in the empty arena at the National Hockey Center.

"It's a violent game," Butters said.

He should know. Butters, 58, played at the University of Minnesota in the early 1970s, then went on to a pro career that included 100 fights and more than 240 stitches in his face.

Thirty years after he last appeared as a defenseman with the Minnesota North Stars, he's still around the rinks — only now it's with a Bible under his arm. Its black cover carries the logo of a skate with a cross on the heel.

Butters is a chaplain for Hockey Ministries International, and he visits St. Cloud State about twice a month to meet with a group of Huskies who seek harmony between hitting and their own humanity.