BY Jonathan Huntington
SASKATOON – Eric Grandberg couldn’t figure out what was happening at practice this week.
“I was so confused when I saw my parents walk in the rink,” said the Saskatoon Blazers captain. And there was a stranger standing on the bench.
But a few moments later, Grandberg put the pieces together when the Blazers honoured him for setting a record that might take decades to break.
The six-foot one-inch defenceman is now the club’s all-time leader in games played with 135 regular-season tilts to his credit. And he has played in 132 consecutive games – not missing a single game in the last three seasons.
The previous record of 134 games was set in 2013 by Matt McLeod – who was the stranger on the bench at practice this week.
“It was unbelievable,” remarked Grandberg of the surprise tribute at practice. “I can’t thank the organization enough.”
Taking over the captaincy last year when Kristian Lacelle left for the Regina Pats, Grandberg has developed into one of the top defenders in the league.
“He’s our hardest worker,” said Blazers head coach Troy Walkington. “He’s honest, trustworthy, efficient and the details of his game are impeccable.”
After playing for the Saskatoon Outlaws and Bandits, Grandberg played three games as an AP before joining the Blazers full-time in his 15-year-old season. The ironman streak almost came to an end last year after x-rays from a game in Regina. “I was a game-time decision to play the next game in Battlefords,” remembered Grandberg.
Now, the finish line is approaching for his Blazers’ career with the playoffs starting next weekend. “I’m going to give everything I’ve got and have no regrets,” he remarked.
FINISH LINES: Grandberg has verbally committed to play for the Melfort Mustangs of the SJHL next year… On the ice, Eric has been following his father’s footsteps. Geoff Grandberg played for the Blazers in 1989-90 before two years with the Spokane Chiefs. But off the ice, Eric plans to follow his mom’s footsteps and find a career in accounting.
