Unexpectedly, I ran into Ron Duguay at an event at the Hockey Hall of Fame. While the forward, who died on October 22, 2026 at age 69 from colon cancer, had a good 12-year career, he was not a Hall of Famer—unless we are talking about his epic flow. Or in attracting paparazzi.
I’d been working on projects related to paperwork, and had recently seen Duguay’s tryout form with the Toronto Maple Leafs—a team he never suited up for; he’s mainly associated with the New York Rangers, but also played in Pittsburgh, Los Angeles and Detroit.
Pulling out my recorder, which I always had on hand, I cornered Duguay and asked him about the Leafs tryout and of his career.
“I think I was 34 at the time,” he said in 2016. “I felt in my prime at the time. They thought that they were looking for a centreman, a third-line centreman, a big, strong guy, so they brought me in. I felt like my first week I was fine, and not to make excuses, but I started to have problems with my skate blades and I just wasn’t myself. I sort of lost some confidence, so I didn’t play well. Bottom line, I didn’t play well to make the team.”
He certainly wanted to suit up for the blue and white.
“I grew up as a Leaf fan. I’m from Sudbury, Ontario, surrounded by Montreal Canadiens fans. When I grew up, I felt like, ‘This is too easy. They win all the time.’ So I went against the grain, as I do with a lot of things, and I started rooting for the Leafs. The Leafs were my team and George Armstrong wore #10 and I end up wearing #10 because of George Armstrong.”
It was not to be.
“Here I am, towards the end of my career, and have an opportunity to be a Leaf. I came in, and I was in great shape, so wanted to play. Played a couple of exhibition games. I ended up playing a little bit with Wendel Clark, and I got to know Al Iafrate and some of the guys on the team, so it was a great experience. I was disappointed I didn’t make the team, but it is what it is. As you get older, it’s harder; you can get replaced by a younger player.”