How a Toronto blind hockey player got the NHL’s attention by helping others

Mark DeMontis had a vision for his hockey career. He would impress in minor hockey, earn an NCAA scholarship and get drafted by an NHL team.

Then, at 17, the Toronto native suddenly lost his central vision and was diagnosed with a rare eye condition known as Leber’s optic neuropathy. He was crushed.

“I was in a lot of denial when it happened,” said DeMontis, who is legally blind and has only peripheral vision. “The first question I asked the doctor was not about how much sight I was going to lose. It was about whether I would still be able to play hockey.

“It didn’t matter that I wasn’t able to read or drive or see faces anymore. What mattered was whether I would be able to play the game that I love.”

He eventually would. 

And 17 years later, the pivotal moment that sent him on a different hockey journey is the reason why he is one of three finalists for the NHL’s Willie O’Ree Community Hero Award in Canada. A second winner will be chosen from among three finalists in the United States. 

Established in 2017, the award goes to individuals whose efforts have had a positive impact on a community and culture. O’Ree, the NHL’s diversity ambassador, was the league’s first Black player and competed professionally for 21 years despite losing the sight in his right eye at a young age.

The first few years following DeMontis’s diagnosis were tough and he struggled through depression. But he managed to turn his life around, slowly rediscovered his love of the game and made it his purpose to help others.

“There was this fire in me to try and create opportunities,” he said.

It began after he joined the Ice Owls, a Toronto hockey program for blind or partially sighted youth. While it was nice to be playing hockey again, DeMontis realized accessibility and affordability were challenges for those in his situation.

Hockey is expensive and blind hockey requires special equipment, including adjusted nets and large discs that emit noise for players to follow in lieu of traditional pucks. Programs that offered services for blind or partially sighted people were few and far between. And where they did exist, there were still issues with transportation, accessibility inside arenas and  a lack of trained coaches.

“That really hit me hard, and made me realize that it wasn’t fair for thousands of kids,” he said.

DeMontis founded Courage Canada, a charity that became Canadian Blind Hockey, providing hockey programs and competitions for Canadians of all ages who are blind or partially sighted. It runs 10 programs for adults and others for children. DeMontis also serves as the chief accessibility officer at The Substance Group marketing agency, getting corporations to embrace accessibility. And he works to increase community awareness of the barriers blind hockey players face, once rollerblading across Canada to raise money.

The O’Ree nomination is bringing more attention to the cause. The other Canadian finalists: Vancouver’s Mark Burgin, founder of Diversity Athletics Hockey and a board member of BC Hockey working on equity, diversity and inclusion; and Hamilton’s Allen Hierlihy, a volunteer with the Hamilton District Sledge Hockey Association. The winner, to be announced June 13, will receive $25,000. The other finalists will get $5,000 each, donated to their charities of choice. 

Win or not, DeMontis is happy to see lives being changed for the better.

“Hockey is hockey to anyone, regardless of how they play it, whether it’s blind hockey or sledge hockey or amputee hockey or power hockey or bold hockey,” he said.

“For a lot of kids growing up now who play blind hockey, it may not be realistic for them to dream of playing in the NHL, but they can actually dream now to play for their country.” Toronto Star Article