LaVallee Named Wolves' Dan Snyder Man of the Year
March 26, 2009 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Chicago Wolves News Release
Chicago Wolves left wing JORDAN LaVALLEE has been named the team's Dan Snyder Man of the Year and 2008-09 American Specialty/American Hockey League Man of the Year in recognition of his commitment to service to the Chicagoland community.
The honor is given to a Wolves player each year in memory of Snyder, who passed away on Oct. 5, 2003, after suffering major head injuries in a car accident. Snyder spent two seasons with the Wolves (2001-2003) and helped the team earn the 2002 Calder Cup Championship.
Wolves General Manager Kevin Cheveldayoff will present LaVALLEE with the award before the team battles the Quad City Flames at the Allstate Arena on Sat., March 28, at 7 p.m.
"Jordan is a tremendous ambassador for the Wolves and for the sport of hockey," said Wolves Vice President of Operations Courtney Mahoney. "He has always gone above and beyond the call of duty as a hockey player, and consistently uses his role as a professional athlete to positively impact and influence our fans and fundraising. He has stepped up every time he was asked, and taken the initiative to volunteer for many a charitable endeavor in his three years with us."
LaVALLEE made his commitment to the community known last season, when he volunteered to participate in the Chicago Wolves Equipment Challenge: a two-day event that saw him wear his full, game-worn hockey equipment for 27 consecutive hours. The fundraiser set an unofficial record and garnered more than $5,000 in fan pledges for the Family Resource Center, Anti-Cruelty Society, Dan Snyder Memorial Fund and Chicago Wolves charities.
This season, the Wolves forward, who became fluent in French during his junior hockey career with the Quebec Remparts, spearheaded a program in which he visited local high school French classes to discuss the benefits of being bilingual. He appeared at more than 10 high schools throughout the course of the season to address the class in French and answer their questions, encouraging them to practice speaking in an entertaining forum.
In addition to lending a hand at the annual "Hockey for Her" and "Get Fed By The Wolves" fundraisers, LaVALLEE participated in the Wolves most successful education program, "Read to Succeed," sponsored by Pace. The Wolves forward has visited more than 20 libraries in his three seasons with the team to speak about the role that education plays in his life as a professional athlete and to encourage children to spend more time in libraries.
LaVALLEE is also one of 29 finalists for the AHL's 2008-09 Yanick Dupre Memorial Award, honoring the league's Man of the Year. The league award is named after the late Yanick Dupre, who passed away in August 1997 at the age of 24, following a 16-month battle with leukemia. The winner of the Yanick Dupre Memorial Award will be announced by the league in the coming weeks. Chicago has had a player receive league-wide honors for community service four times in the 15-year history of the franchise.
Previous winners of the Dan Snyder Memorial Award include former Wolves defenseman Nathan Oystrick (2007-08), Wolves defenseman Brian Sipotz (2006-07), former Wolves left wing Karl Stewart (2004-05 and 2005-06) and former Wolves defenseman Kurtis Foster (2003-04).
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