Theo Fleury overcomes the odds

by KELLY FRIESEN

Journal editor

Theo Fleury delved into the adversity that he's had to overcome in his life while in Humboldt this past week. To say he's had his share of obstacles would ultimately be a blatant understatement.

From overcoming major odds on the ice to dealing with sexual abuse to growing up in a tough home life, Fleury has learned how to dig deep with his back up against the wall.

Fleury wasn't supposed to make the National Hockey League. At 5-foot-6, he was simply too small to compete in the big leagues. It was a time when players his size couldn't cut it in a rough and rugged style of play.

The Oxbow native wouldn't take no for answer, though. Regardless of how many critics or doubters he had, he was going to make it to The Show through hard work and determination.

"I knew I was going to make it regardless; I was willing to do anything," said Fleury. "When I competed against you, I lined up against the faceoff dot and laughed at you because I was willing to die in order to win and I wanted to see if you were. If you weren't, I could take you anywhere on the ice and do anything I wanted to you. But if you matched that competitiveness, that's when it got fun because I had to elevate my game to another level."

He started gaining traction with the Western Hockey League's Moose Jaw Warriors. He scored 108 and 129 points respectively in his second and third seasons in the league. Yet because of his smaller stature, he dropped all the way to the eighth round in the 1987 NHL entry draft, where the Calgary Flames picked him with the 166th overall selection.

But the doubters were still there. Sure, he could dominate against teenagers in junior, but against men in the pros is a whole different ball game.

A Stanley Cup, gold medal, 1088 points and 1840 penalty minutes later, it's safe to say Fleury proved all of his critics wrong.

Fleury's on-ice battles don't even scratch the surface of everything that he's had to overcome, though. While playing in the WHL, Warriors head coach Graham James was sexually abusing him. In addition, Fleury's mother, Donna Fleury, was addicted to prescription drugs and his father, Wally Fleury, was an alcoholic.

With Fleury going through all of this and later having drug and alcohol addictions, he feels it's a miracle that he's alive today.

"I would say so (that it's miracle I'm alive today)," said Fleury. "The things I put in my body, the people I hung out with and the choices and the decisions I made - it is truly a miracle that I'm here. But more than that, it's a miracle that I go to sleep at night."

For the majority of Fleury's life, he felt his identity lied in hockey. It was and still is much more to him than just a game, but he now feels his purpose in life is to help people who went or are going through notable trauma.

"Hockey gave me the voice that I needed to have in this phase of life," said Fleury. "For many years in my life I thought I was just a hockey player. And I think for the first half of my life hockey saved my life. But God put me on this earth to help people and to let them know that they are not alone."

Fleury, 45, is on a mission to spread awareness on trauma. He wants to let people know they're not alone and that it's important to talk about it.

"I try to speak to as many people as I possibly can," said Fleury. "Trauma is the biggest epidemic on the planet and we are not all immune to it. And after Playing with Fire came out I realized how big this was. It takes so long to coming to grips with having that first reveal so to speak. For me it took me 27 years to get to that point. I try to tell people you're definitely not alone and the shame attached to something like this is not yours to bear; it belongs to the abuser."

Fleury no longer focuses on sexual abuse, however. He has widened his speeches on various trauma-related issues.

"I call it trauma now," said Fleury. "I've taken the word sexual abuse out of it because for many years I focused on it with Graham James being that thing that got me on the right path. But it was my family origin issues where I suffered the most trauma and that trauma set me up for the next part of my life."

The former Calgary Flames superstar gives full credit to his faith for his work in trauma awareness. He says he has never written a speech; he simply leans on God for the right words and insight when he walks up on stage.

"The big guy up stairs hasn't failed me one day since I asked for this to happen," Fleury said. "When I speak it's not really me speaking; it's me challenging my spirituality. Before I speak, I ask God to have me say everything he wants me to say."