Knights on Ice

National Hockey League alumni game supported by Knights promotes charity and fraternity

11/1/2025By Elisha Valladares-Cormier

11/1/2025

Flying up the left wing, John Scott — an eight-year NHL veteran and MVP of the 2016 NHL All-Star Game — took a pass from a Montreal Canadiens teammate and fired the puck past the Detroit Red Wings’ goalkeeper. Montreal 5, Detroit 2.

The crowd roared, horns blared, and Scott’s teammates shared congratulations. But no Stanley Cup was at stake, nor were players vying for a big contract. Instead, the two squads — rosters filled with alumni from their storied franchises — were facing off to raise funds for children with disabilities.

The GH Pastor Foundation hosted its third annual NHL Alumni Game last March at Big Boy Arena in Fraser, Michigan, about 20 miles north of downtown Detroit. The Canadiens would go on to win 9-6, but the real victory couldn’t be found on the scoreboard. The game — organized with support from George F. Monaghan Council 2690 in Livonia and several other Knights on and off the ice — raised about $35,000 to benefit sled hockey programs for youth with disabilities and other organizations that support families with children in need.

John Pastor, a member of Council 2690 whose family established the GH Pastor Foundation, helped plan the event, and additional council members volunteered during the game as ushers and clubhouse attendants. Angelo D’Amico, who spent six years as an NHL linesman, and John Horrigan, an Emmy-winning announcer for the Boston Bruins Alumni, are Knights who reprised their professional hockey roles for the game.

For D’Amico — a member of St. Christopher Council 13272 in Mississauga, Ontario, and the son of Hockey Hall of Fame linesman John D’Amico — the game was a clear expression of what it means to be a Knight.

“Blessed Michael McGivney inspires us to make a difference,” D’Amico said. “This game is not in my community, but I traveled here to make a difference with fellow Knights. That’s what this brotherhood is all about.”

Pastor explained that the GH Pastor Foundation was established in 2023 to give back to organizations that had supported children facing serious medical challenges — including his own son, who had a brain tumor; a niece with epilepsy; and the son of a business partner, who was diagnosed with autism and trisomy 21, commonly known as Down syndrome.

Hockey had long been a shared passion among the families, so the foundation explored the idea of a charity game featuring former NHL stars, with proceeds benefiting children with disabilities and serious health conditions. One of the foundation’s long-term goals, Pastor explained, is to create a residential facility for people with trisomy 21 who no longer qualify for government assistance.

“That’s the value of hockey,” he said. “The reason we’re doing this event is for our love of the game and to raise money for the different charities. And it’s what the Knights of Columbus is about: giving back to our community, helping people who don’t have the same things we do.”

The foundation launched its NHL Alumni Series in its first year, with Red Wings alumni taking on a different NHL team’s alumni squad each year; more than $100,000 has since been donated to children’s charities. The event also features a sled hockey competition between Canadian and U.S. teams that include Paralympians and other athletes with disabilities.

The 2024 sled hockey game saw Vladimir Konstantinov, a Red Wings legend and Stanley Cup champion, return to the ice for the first time since 1997, when a car crash left him partially paralyzed and ended his career. This year, he appeared as an honorary captain for Team USA.

Cliff Liptak, grand knight of Council 2690, said the sled hockey game was a key reason the council chose to get involved.

“The Knights of Columbus has always supported programs for kids with disabilities, so this is something we have a big interest in,” Liptak said. “We want to make sure they are supported and have access to the things they’re interested in.”

Though not its primary intention, this year’s game was also an opportunity to bring athletes and fans from Canada and the United States together, following tensions surrounding the NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off tournament the month prior.

“One thing we felt was that hockey unites us as one, and it gave us an opportunity to celebrate why we’re there — for the greater good,” D’Amico said. “If individuals from two different countries can combine their efforts to make a difference in someone’s life through faith and charity, it’s a win.”

Scott, who was born in Alberta and now lives in Michigan, agreed that camaraderie and charity go hand in hand. “We’re different players with different teams coming together for a common goal to achieve some good,” he said.

Several Knights reflected on the long-term impact they hoped the event would have — long after the final buzzer.

“We hope to continue to support these families, make their lives comfortable and give them quality of life,” said Pat Maher, a past grand knight of Council 2690. “Blessed Michael McGivney was all about family, community, fraternity, charity … and that’s what today is all about: seeing families get together, raising money for charity and supporting each other.”