Petition to rename Sarnia Arena headed to council

Journal Staff More than 2,000 people signed a petition to rename the Sarnia Arena after Pat “Whitey” Stapleton. Stapleton was the first Sarnian to play full-time in the NHL.

Journal Staff

More than 2,000 people signed a petition to rename the Sarnia Arena after Pat “Whitey” Stapleton.

Stapleton was the first Sarnian to play full-time in the NHL. He started with the Boston Bruins in 1961 and played most of his career with the Chicago Blackhawks.

In eight seasons in Chicago he was a three-time All-Star and represented Canada at the 1972 summit series against the Soviet Union.

Stapleton died last April at the age of 79.

The petition closed Feb. 15 with 2,035 signatures. The next step is to present it to Sarnia City Council, petition organizer Brian Keelan said in a post on Change.org.

“Whitey inspired and led the way for a whole generation of NHL hockey players that came from the Sarnia Minor Athletic Association and they all learned to play hockey in the Sarnia Arena,” Keelan said.

“It would be our way of remembering him and thanking him for the inspiration he provided to the hockey players who followed him.”