Page 10 - Sports Energy News, Cornwall, Issue No 9

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CORNWALL Presents...Cornwall Royals Edition

BAR-B-Q
RESTAURANT Then and Now...Mario Vien:

Switching Position Equals Great Career Move

By Morley Seaver It’s destiny.”
At 15, Vien found himself starting
ans of the Cornwall Royal’s star

Fgoalie Mario Vien can thank the first game of the 1971 season,
after being invited to training camp
his teammate for providing the by GM Norm Baril. “I guess it was a
opportunity to shine. Yvon Disotell, tough year for goalies on the Royals
later a skilled forward with the that year,” says Vien, “so I got a great
Royals, started out as a goalie in opportunity. I started the first game

minor hockey while Vien was a in Quebec City against the Remparts.
forward. During a game Disotell Our captain was Mike Ruest at the
took a hard shot to the head which time. We got beat 8-1 but they won
shook him up.
the Memorial Cup that year so it was
“Yvon was very good,” remembers not a big surprise, I guess. I only
Vien. “He was one of our top goalies played a few games that year since
but the old masks we used to have I was playing Junior B Royals at the
then were not very good. After he same time.”
got hurt, he decided he didn’t want Vien remembers being lucky
to be a goalie anymore and went as a enough to watch Richard Brodeur up
forward so I decided to take his place close and observe his work ethic. He
in nets.”
was also part of a team that went on
From there, the young goaltender to win the Memorial Cup in 1972. “I
never looked back. Originally from was getting the best of everything. I
Lachine, Quebec, Vien played his was playing steady midget every day
minor hockey in Cornwall and was and going to great tournaments. Then
impressive enough to get drafted by I got to practice with the Royals every
Ottawa. “There was no draft for the day and go on all the road trips.
Royals at that time,” he says. “I was “We had a lot of guys from
drafted by Ottawa at 16 years-old. the Cornwall area. We had Brian
That was actually my second year McCullough --- a very good

because the first year I was playing defenceman, John Nazar, Robbie
both midget and practicing with the
Royals every day and traveling with Bingley, Johnny Wensink from Mario Vien, Cornwall Royals 1974 / 75 Season Supplied Photo
them. I was playing with Tom Wynne Maxville, Blair MacDonald from
Green Valley. We had a lot of Earlier in the playoffs we had lost our minor leagues. But with the WHA,
and Richard Brodeur who was the #1 local talent winning a national captain, Bob Murray, with a broken you had a better chance of cracking
goaltender.
championship. It was quite leg against Sorel in the semi-fi nals. the lineup and that’s what happened,
“What happened was the 67s lost something.” I’m sure he would have been a big I did.”
Bunny Larocque to pro and they help.”
After Brodeur turned pro, Vien After retiring from hockey, Vien
drafted me. But I decided to stay assumed the #1 goalie role. “I ended Vien was drafted by both the LA went to work at Domtar Fine Papers.
with Cornwall. My parents never up playing most of the games in my Kings and Toronto Toros of the His memories of playing days with
had a car and we lived two blocks first year after Richard Brodeur left,” WHA in 1975, and signed with the the Royals are still vivid. “Winning

away from the Water Street Arena. he says. “It was excellent. We went Toros, playing with NHL stars like the MVP of the QMJHL was a real
So to play for the QMJHL Cornwall to the finals and to the seventh game Paul Henderson. “Well, at the time I honor,” he admits. “But best of all was

Royals and live two blocks away against the Quebec Remparts. It was looked at the options,” he remembers, playing with all my friends that I grew
from where you played, it kind of a carbon copy of the year before “and they were offering a very up with. Guys like Mike Conway, and
helped my decision. It’s not because where we played them at home and good chance of making the lineup Yvon Disotell…so many great guys.
I didn’t want to go to Ottawa. But beat them. This time we went to the compared to LA. In LA, you never And I loved playing in Cornwall. It
that’s the way it happens sometimes.
seventh game and lost in Quebec. knew if you would end up in the was always a great place to be.”

Owners George, Paul and Tom have been involved with Cornwall
CORNWALL community sports since 1975.
The original and longest operating Family Restaurant in Cornwall, providing
BAR-B-Q a healthy choice with our famous barbecued rotisserie chicken.

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436 Second Street West, CORNWALL • 613-933-1000 • www.cbbq.ca