Hockey Elite Expected To Turn Out For Peter Zezel’s Funeral
Posted May 28, 2009 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
They are friends, relatives, NHL stars, and fans. And they’re all at the DeMarco Funeral Home for one reason – to pay tribute to a local legend. Large crowds are expected at the funeral for Peter Zezel, a beloved member of the Toronto Maple Leafs and other pro hockey teams, who passed away from a rare blood disease on Tuesday.
He was just 44.
Zezel was a journeyman player and though his tenure in T.O. was relatively brief, his impact was long lasting, running popular hockey and soccer camps, and coaching the Don Mills Flyers of the GTHL. He played 873 NHL games, serving tours of duty with the Leafs, the Flyers, the Blues, the Capitals, the Stars, the Devils and the Canucks. He retired with 219 goals and 389 assists in 15 seasons.
On Friday, former teammates and fans will gather for the sad funeral for the fallen hero, who battled hemolytic anemia with courage for more than a decade.
The service will be held Friday morning at 11am at All Serbian Saints Church at 2520 Dixie Rd. in Mississauga.
In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that donations be made in Zezel’s name to the James Birrell Fund at the Hospital for Sick Children. Birrell is an eight-year-old boy who died of neuroblastoma, a fight he managed with the courage that Zezel also displayed in his own battle with a serious illness. Donations can be made online here.
