I’m not going to lie to you guys. I honestly have tears running down my face right now. I never met Joey, but I have a massive amount of respect for the man and what he was able to accomplish. When Joey broke in with the Oilers, people with Down Syndrome were just “Pejorative Slurs“. Joey was given a great chance, but he absolutely killed it. With hard work. With dedication. With boundless optimism. Players and staff, current and former, all loved him. He was an unbelievable role model under a bright light, on a lofty stage. He has done a tremendous amount of good for the disabled and his legacy will long outlive his bright lifetime.
Sincere condolences to the Moss family and his many friends. An extra hug to Lyle “Sparky” Kulchisky, his long-time mentor and friend.
I don’t know how the Oilers will honour Joey. They better do it big. And they better do it right. A legend has fallen and the occasion deserves no less.
Very well stated.I’m not going to lie to you guys. I honestly have tears running down my face right now. I never met Joey, but I have a massive amount of respect for the man and what he was able to accomplish. When Joey broke in with the Oilers, people with Down Syndrome were just “Pejorative Slurs“. Joey was given a great chance, but he absolutely killed it. With hard work. With dedication. With boundless optimism. Players and staff, current and former, all loved him. He was an unbelievable role model under a bright light, on a lofty stage. He has done a tremendous amount of good for the disabled and his legacy will long outlive his bright lifetime.
Sincere condolences to the Moss family and his many friends. An extra hug to Lyle “Sparky” Kulchisky, his long-time mentor and friend.
I don’t know how the Oilers will honour Joey. They better do it big. And they better do it right. A legend has fallen and the occasion deserves no less.
That’s a fantastic story! Thank you very much for sharing it.Years ago, when I was a kid, I attended a hockey camp in Edmonton at which Joey was one of the helpers. I sort of knew who he was at the time, but by the end of the camp Joey was just this cool guy who was everyone's buddy.
We would have these inter-camp tournaments that the organizers tried to make really official. So one of the things they did was play the national anthem before the games. You can probably guess what I'm going to say--Joey would blast the anthem at the top of his lungs just as he did behind the bench at Oilers games. He legitimately loved signing the anthem. In hindsight, I wonder if playing the anthem was really for him.
And he was hilarious. We used to take a bus from the arena to an off-ice training centre. We were always little shits who stormed off the bus like idiot kids as soon as it stopped. One day, before leaving the arena for the off-ice location, one of the directors gave us crap and warned us not to charge off the bus. Joey seconded the warning as sternly as he could. A few minutes from our destination, Joey addressed us again and warned us, "no running off the bus." We all promised we wouldn't run, which was a lie. We sort of laughed and smirked as we made the promise, and Joey gave just the slightest smirk back. As soon as the bus stopped, everyone rushed the door, screaming and laughing and generally acting like stupid kids. Right on cue, Joey threw his hands up like a dad pretending to be a monster, and proceeded to chase us off the bus and into the field, all the while shouting, "RAAAAHHHHHHHH." It turned into a sort of chaotic game of tag. It was hilarious, and even the directors were laughing.
What a sad surprise to read the news that he passed away. Joey was a gem and he will be missed.