ST. ANTHONY Dwayne Evoy will remember Cleon Smith as a good friend and a down-to-earth guy he was only too proud to call a teammate.
Smith, a teammate of Evoy with both the Western Kings and the Corner Brook Royals, hasn’t been seen since he went for a walk in a snowstorm over a week ago in his hometown of St. Anthony.
Footprints, believed to be his, were found leading into the ocean, but a search of the waters of Cremaillere Bay near the former American Air base in St. Anthony has failed to yield any trace of him. On Thursday, members of the RCMP dive team completed their underwater recovery efforts, leaving the role of continuing the search for Smith to local volunteers.
A memorial service for the 30-year-old St. Anthony native was held Saturday afternoon with hundreds of friends and family members paying their respects. Friends and family members from all across Canada attended the service, including long-time pal Lonnie Pilgrim, who delivered the eulogy after making the trek from his home in Fort McMurray, Alta.
“It is pretty shocking right from the beginning. I never really expected to hear that and right away your thoughts and prayers go out to the family for sure,” Evoy said Monday afternoon.
Evoy and Smith became good buddies when the two were toiling in the provincial major midget (former AAA) hockey league as members of the Kings. Actually, the Kings won its second provincial banner during the 1996-197 campaign by defeating Tri-Pen with Smith playing a key role in the team’s success.
“He was a great guy. He was a great athlete,” Evoy said of his former teammate. “Playing with the Kings was obviously a great time for both of us. We ended up winning the championship (provincial AAA midget) that year and Cleon was a huge part of that.”
Evoy can’t imagine what the family has been going through at this time, but he does hope the recovery operation is successful.
“Everyone needs closure,” he said. “It would be a sad moment again, but at the very least it will be closure for the family and closure for his friends as well.”
Angus Head was the head coach for the Western Kings when Smith starred for the team during the championship run in 1996-1997. Head was also coaching the Corner Brook Royals in 2003 when Smith came calling for a game of senior hockey.
Smith would go on to play a couple of seasons with the Royals before giving up on the game altogether.
Head was back in his hometown of Buchans when he got the shocking news.
“We were watching the news and they mentioned a young St. Anthony man missing and then they popped his picture up on the screen,” Head said when contacted Monday. “It just left me dumbfounded to tell you the truth.”
Tools to be great
Smith had the tools to be a great hockey player and many thought he would make a living at it one day. He had a stint in the Ontario Hockey League with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds before plying his trade in college hockey ranks with the University of Prince Edward Island for two years.
According to Head, the 1996-97 edition of the Western Kings were considered a contender for the Atlantic AAA midget hockey title that year with Smith leading the offensive charge.
However, luck wasn’t on Smith’s side. Smith never got the chance to showcase his talent at the next level that winter.
“In celebration when we won over Tri-Pen Cleon jumped over the boards, tripped on a glove and popped his shoulder,” Head said. “That probably ruined his best opportunities actually at having a go at a hockey career.”
Smith had the skillset to play hockey at an elite level, but what really impressed Head was his performance off the ice.
“In triple A hockey he was probably the best dressing room character you could ever want,” Head said. “He was a good hockey player, but a real joker. He was always a bit of fun and the boys loved being around him.”
The two would be reunited years later when Smith suited up for the Corner Brook Royals. But, this time around Head found Smith was a little more reserved and kept to himself.
It didn’t work out. Smith eventually walked away from the game.
“Certainly not what he was when I had him in triple A. I mean it’s two opposite characters,” he said.
Laurie Patey of St. Anthony was one of the coaches who helped mold the minor hockey career of Smith. Patey coached Smith when he put his first pair of skates on at five years old and was still coaching him as a teenager in the bantam division.
Patey knew Smith had a knack for the game at an early age. A lot of young minor hockey players from the area had a jumpstart on Smith, he said, but it didn’t take him long to develop into a dominant force in local hockey circles despite starting later than most of them.
“Clumsy on the skates, but the stickhandling came so naturally that all he wanted was the puck,” Patey said. “He was just born natural. He just had to learn how to skate and the hockey sense came natural to him. That’s how good he was.”
Dealing with the loss
Like so many people who was touched by his presence, Patey was having a tough time dealing with the loss.
“It was a total shock for everybody. Cleon was such a joy to be around. A very lovable, entertaining guy,” he said.
“He was very dedicated. He just loved to play hockey,” he added.
Mayor Ernest Simms, who taught Smith when he was in elementary school, was among those in attendance for Saturday’s memorial service.
“It was a difficult program, but his friends were there,” Mayor Simms said of the outpouring of emotion he witnessed. “Several of his friends provided music and one of his closest friends (Lonnie Pilgrim) provided the eulogy for him.”
Mayor Simms fondly remembers Smith as a hard-working student who tried to do his best at everything he went at. He also noticed how sports became a big part of Smith’s life at an early age.
“He’s probably the best hockey player that ever came out of this area,” Mayor Simms said.