Cape Breton junior hockey volunteer remembered with plaque at Membertou Sport and Wellness Centre

A plaque to honour Greg Mayich was unveiled at the Membertou Sport and Wellness Centre Saturday night. (Courtesy: John Mayich)

When the Membertou Jr. Miners faced the Eskasoni Eagles in a Nova Scotia Junior Hockey League game Saturday night in Membertou it was an evening to remember a dedicated volunteer with the home team.

“He’s the definition of what a father should be, in my opinion,” Greg Mayich’s daughter Jenna Parsons told CTV Atlantic on Saturday.

The late Greg Mayich spent eighteen years volunteering with the Junior B team. He was the team’s videographer, equipment manager and for years played the music at games.

Mayich was best known as the play-by-play announcer on the team’s livestreams.

His call of a highlight reel goal by Miners forward Sonny Kabatay in March 2024 was shared across the country.

“When he walked into a rink, he just lit up in a way that I can’t even describe,” Parsons said.

On Saturday night, Mayich’s family watched proudly as a plaque was unveiled in his memory inside the new broadcast booth at the Membertou Sport and Wellness Centre.

“He loved this team and he had this special way about him,” said his other daughter, Shelby Mayich. “We miss him so much and this is such a special night for all of us.”

Mayich passed away in June 2024 at the age of 59.

His daughters said he had been diagnosed with cancer two years earlier and lived about 20 years with multiple sclerosis.

Along with the plaque dedication, the league will hand out an annual bursary in Mayich’s name to a player on one of its three Cape Breton-based teams.

They have also created the Greg Mayich Memorial Cup, which the Jr Miners, Eskasoni Eagles and Strait Pirates will compete for each season.

“I think this is an incredible way for him to be remembered because he poured his heart and soul into hockey and his family,” Parsons said.

Mayich’s daughters added that their dad was a mentor, both at the rink and at home.

“He was the first person we would call in any time of need,” Parsons said. “He was there, and I feel like not only we felt like that but also any guy on the team felt like that.”

“As a good man, as a giving man,” Shelby Mayich added, when asked how she would like her father to be remembered. “As somebody that could teach you and be patient with you. He was a good man.”

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