They haven't won the Stanley Cup in
almost 50 years. So the Blackhawks may need all the help they can get,
even if it's divine intervention.
Meet Bishop Thomas Paprocki- man of God by
day, fan of the ice by night- the "Holy Goalie".
"A parishioner a few years ago dubbed me
the holy goalie," Paprocki said. "I've been playing hockey since I was a
boy and started playing goalie when I was in eighth grade."
Paprocki plays on an amateur league every week at McFetridge Ice Center
in Chicago. But the best part about this 57-year-old Chicago-born bishop
is that he's a huge Hawks fan.
"The two things I remember from my early childhood are: first, going to
church, and second, going to the Chicago Stadium to see the Blackhawks,"
Paprocki said. "One of my earliest memories is actually of the
Blackhawks winning the Stanley Cup in 1961."
Alright, so let's do the math: that means Paprocki was 9 years old when
the Hawks won the cup. He's such a big supporter of the Chicago team
that he even got to shoot around during one of their practices a few
years ago.
Paprocki showed WGN a few pictures from his Hawks practice session.
"They took a bunch of shots at me, a few people didn't score, and
somebody finally said, 'Did anybody score on this guy?', and the next
shot they ripped a slapshot past me," he said.
But the bishop has stepped up his game since then.
"He's probably the quickest learner I've ever seen, and the most
improved player I've ever watched play amateur hockey," said Mike
Quigley, a teammate of Paprocki's.
Steve Demitro, Paprocki's teammate of 12 years, said, "He's just an
incredible goalie, he's directly responsible for our team winning 12
cups."
"So when somebody is coming in on me on a breakaway, I just say a quick
'help me Jesus' and then if I make the save I say, 'thank you Lord',"
Paprocki said. "So I pray that I play the best that I can using the
gifts that he gave me."
WGN sat in on one of Paprocki's scrimmages. The "Over 30 team" meets
every week, and no checking is allowed. That doesn't mean that the
bishop hasn't gotten a few injuries, however.
"I've gotten a few shots to the head," he said. "The mask takes care of
things pretty well, but I have a few stitches here and there and I
broke a finger once taking a shot on the wrong side of the glove."
So is having a rough and tumble bishop on the Hawks side going to help
the team win the Stanley Cup in 2010?
"Well a little divine intervention never hurt," Paprocki said. "So far
the Hawks are showing that they're the better team, so I think they have
a good chance of winning."
A pretty good chance, with the bishop's blessing, that is.
Bishop Paprocki is leaving Chicago. He starts his new job as the Bishop
Designate of Springfield at the end of June. He says he hopes to make it
back to Chicago to catch the Hawks play. If not, he says Springfield
isn't too far from St. Louis; maybe he'll catch the team there.
*Produced by Jenny Milk for WGNtv
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What a great piece! Love it and I don't even like hockey! :)
Is that the cover story you just did? If so, that was spectacular!!!!
sure was! and there's another one coming up next week--june 8th--it's about legal drugs. stay tuned! :)
I saw the 61 cup with Mike >Lagattuta when we both taught at the Brown School across the street from the Chicago Stadium. In reference to West Side interest in Hawks I can mention that in the 50