Anthony Duclair Continues Work In South Florida, Opens New Rink

LAUDERDALE LAKES — On the morning his charitable foundation opened what is believed to be the first public synthetic ice rink in Florida, the city of Lauderdale Lakes declared Wednesday to be ‘Anthony Duclair Day.’

What a day it was.

After years of planning, the new 100×50 sheet of synthetic ice — whose regulation boards were built to withstand hurricane-force winds — was officially opened at Boyd Anderson High School.

As was the case a year ago when Duclair hosted a groundbreaking event at the school, the BA marching band showed up to add a festive touch to the proceedings.

“I couldn’t wait for this day to happen. I am very excited,” Duclair said before cutting the ceremonial ribbon according to NHL.com.

“I want to say how much it means to be standing here, especially in a community that has shown me so much love, and to celebrate something really special today. … I am going to try to be here as much as I can to try and lead the way, to be here for the kids and try to teach them something I was taught at an early age.

“I’m going to be here. I played here with the Panthers for three years, and you guys really left a mark on my family and me. So, I decided it [is] home.”

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With friend and Pittsburgh Penguins forward Bokondji Imama on hand, Duclair was quick to slip on his skates and take a few laps around the ice with the youth players who showed up to try things out. 

“I have been looking forward to this day for a very long time,’’ said Duclair, who signed a four-year contract with the Islanders this past offseason.

“We have talked about this for years now going back to the launch gala in 2023. I made a promise to South Florida, and this is me fulfilling that promise. This is going to be the first of many. I am just glad it went according to plan and we can keep building things up. To see the kids, and the smiles on their faces, is something special.’’

It certainly is special to Boyd Anderson and its students.

Principal James F. Griffin II said he thinks students in the neighborhood around the school are going to enjoy hockey now that they have a chance to experience it.

Not only will the high school students be part of a new hockey program that will utilize the ice surface, but students at the neighboring elementary and middle schools will as well.

“To see this come to fruition, to see kids actually be outside on ice skates is just phenomenal,’’ Griffin said. “You saw the kids and how they’re enjoying this. Once you bring the opportunity to them, they take it. We have made the impossible, possible, here today. We are excited to be a part ofthat journey with the NHL and the Anthony Duclair Foundation.”

Duclair building his first synthetic ice rink in a largely Haitian community was by design.

“I’m from Montreal, Canada, and I have a Haitian background,’’ Duclair said. “Playing hockey, you don’t see too many people of my skin color playing this game. I went through a lot of hardships and learned a lot of things from a young age, and it made me the man I am today. So, I am here to share those experience with these kids, these students, and make sure that whatever they want to do in life, make sure no one can tell them they can’t do it.’’

He later added: “We wanted to target a neighborhood with people who looked like me, people of Haitian descent which is very important to me. I wanted to put this in a neighborhood where people didn’t really follow hockey — or even watch hockey. This is now a pathway, an opportunity to introduce the game and hopefully the kids here run away with it. Or they learn something from it, get inspired by it. Anything they can take away from this hockey rink is the goal here.’’

One of the biggest obstacles to getting kids to play ice hockey is the cost. Not only is equipment expensive, but so is just getting onto the ice.

While there are more and more ice sheets in South Florida, it is still expensive and hard to book time.

This outdoor rink cuts a lot of the cost — and gives an alternative to driving to Pembroke Pines, Coral Springs, or even a few miles east to Fort Lauderdale.

As far as the cost goes, the Duclair Foundation joined with the NHL/NHLPA Industry Growth Fund to construct the Glice rink; the NHLPA Goals & Dreams Fund donated $50,000 to purchase sticks, pads, helmets, goal cages, and skates for use on the rink.

Boyd Anderson already has a faculty member ready to get kids on that ice.

“The opportunities this gives kids to just go out and play without having to worry about booking and paying for ice times is great,” Peter Worrell said.

“This is a great way to bring it back to what the game was. We lose a lot of potential players because of cost. This will dramatically cut costs down. It’s so good not just for our area, but for every place hockey is played. This is something special, and the neighborhood we’re in makes it even more special. This is not your traditional hockey base. If you get 10 kids who never thought about hockey want to play, or just watch a Panthers game on TV, that’s a great start.”

After the festivities were over, Duclair took a quiet moment alone in the corner of the rink talking with some students from the high school. 

“I was a Haitian kid just like these students we saw here today, and I was one of them not too long ago,’’ Duclair said.

“Whatever they go through in life, I think through perseverance, leadership, and hard work, you can accomplish anything.For me, growing up, this isn’t something I ever dreamed of. Playing in the NHL was my only dream. But now that I am here, I have other dreams and you obviously evolve as you grow older. This project is close to my heart. I am thankful to everyone who helped make it happen.’’

Note: FHN Publisher George Richards covered the Duclair Foundation event at Boyd Anderson for NHL.com and wrote the story credited in this report.

ON DECK: GAME No. 58

SEATTLE KRAKEN at FLORIDA PANTHERS

• When: Saturday, Feb. 22, 6 p.m.
• Where: Amerant Bank Arena, Sunrise
• Local TV: Scripps Sports — WSFL 39 (Miami/FtL); WHDT 9 (WPB); LAFF 36.3 (SWFla)
• Streaming: Panthers+, ESPN+
• Radio: WPOW 96.5-FM2; WBZT 1230-AM (Palm Beach); WCTH 100.3-FM (Florida Keys); SiriusXM
• Panthers Radio Streaming: SiriusXM 932, NHL App
• Season Series (Panthers Lead 1-0) — At Seattle: Panthers 2, Kraken 1 SO (Dec. 11). At Florida: Feb. 22.
• Last Season: Tied 1-1
• All-Time Regular Season Series: Seattle leads 4-3-0
• Up Next for the Panthers: Feb. 25 at Nashville Predators, 8 p.m.