Alumni

As John explains it, his 38-year career in hockey started by being on the right street corner at the right time.  At the age of 18, Ken Carson, the trainer of the Pittsburgh Penguins took a chance and hired him as his assistant in 1970.  His only asset being the love of the game.

After three seasons he returned to school at Sheridan College in Oakville, Ontario, enrolled in their athletic training program, and interned with the Kitchener Rangers. Following that year, he spent the next two working for the Lansing Lancers of the IHL and Erie Blades of the N.A.H.L, made famous in the movie Slap Shot which was written during his time in Erie.  John can confirm the film’s scenes with experiences he saw and had that year.

The 1976 season resulted in his return to Pittsburgh as his mentor Ken Carson became the first trainer in Toronto Bluejays history.  John spent the next eleven seasons with the Pens before not having his contract renewed after the 1987-88 season.

During his summers in Pittsburgh, John attended the University of Pittsburgh, receiving a degree in Business Administration.

The next three years, he worked as a bracing and casting salesperson with 3M in their Health division.

In 1990 he joined the New York Islanders as their equipment manager for six seasons.

John likes to say, most people work themselves up the ladder, I took another route and worked my way down.

For the next fifteen seasons he plied his trade in the IHL, AHL, ECHL and UHL.  His last season was 2011-2012.

During his career, he worked a total of 2860 games with 1556 at the NHL level.

During his NHL time he worked the 1996 ASG in Boston and served on the PHATS Executive Committee as Secretary-Treasurer.

John was one of the Co-Founders of the PHATS/SPHEM Alumni Association and continues as the Co-Chairman of the group.

He is also the creator of “The Family Tree” which documents the training and equipment staff of every NHL team through the years.

Mark Brennan
30 years, 19 NHL seasons: HOF 2010, SPHEM President, Alumni Co-chair
Florida Panthers 11, Detroit Red Wings 8
Adirondack Red Wings 1 (AHL), New Westminster Bruins 2 (WHL), & Portland Winter Hawks 8 (WHL)

Mark Peaches Brennan, a native of Toronto and a graduate of Sheridan College?s Athletic, Training and Management Program, began his career while attending Sheridan College in Oakville, Ontario.

During his studies at Sheridan, he was fortunate to work for the two-time Canadian Champion Agincourt Rawlings Baseball team as trainer and equipment manager. As well, he was the Assistant Trainer and Equipment Manager for the Toronto Blizzard of the old North American Soccer League, spent one season with the Burlington Cougars of the OHA and two seasons with the varsity Bruins at Sheridan College.

Upon graduation in 1983, he began his hockey career with the New Westminster Bruins of the Western Hockey League. After two seasons in Junior A hockey, he moved onto the Adirondack Red Wings of the American Hockey League and won a Calder Cup with them in 1986.

The following season, he was promoted to the Detroit Red Wings and spent seven seasons as their Head Equipment Manager.  During his tenure in Detroit he was selected to be the equipment manager for old Cambell Conference in the 1993 NHL All Star game, played for the last time in the old Montreal Forum.

After leaving Detroit, he and his family moved to Florida and he was fortunate to spend many seasons as the Head Equipment Manager of the Florida Panthers. During his time in Florida the team played in the 1996 Stanley Cup Finals, eventually losing to Colorado. Following the defeat of Florida in the finals, he was selected as the first Treasurer of the newly formed Society of Professional Hockey Equipment Manages. This was the first year that PHATS/SPHEM were two separate entities under one society. It was also during his tenure in Florida that the Panthers hosted the NHL All Star Game in 2003.

His professional accomplishments were a proud part of his time in the NHL. He has been a member of the Athletic Equipment Managers Association for 27 years and has been certified with the AEMA since 1994. Following two terms as Treasurer, he was elected President of SPHEM and served with pride for two terms. As well, he worked at helping to establish the National Hockey League standardization program, ice report forms and the establishment of the Injury Analysis Panel and served two terms as the representative for the Society of Professional Hockey Equipment Managers.

Upon his retirement from the National Hockey League,  he had worked over 1,500 regular season games, won the Norris Division twice, selected to work two All Star Games and made it to the Stanley Cup Finals.Peaches is still is involved with the two societies and has worked since taking up residence with his family in Portland, Oregon, on the establishment of the PHATS/SPHEM Alumni Association and continues to serve as the Chairman of the Alumni Association.

Born July 24th 1958, Gaetan began his tenure with the Montreal Canadiens in the fall of 1974 as a part- time assistant to Eddy Palchack and also then therapist Bob Williams. He worked with the Canadiens as a part time trainer while completing his undergraduate at Concordia University. In May of 1981 Lefebvre became the ATC with the Montreal Canadiens Hockey Club. He acted as assistant athletic therapist from 1981 to 1988. He was then promoted to the head therapist position in 1989. He remained in this role until August 2000. Gaetan had the honor of being part of the 1986 and 1993 Stanley Cup Teams.  In addition, he was the athletic trainer for the 1981-1984 and 1987 Canada Cup Tournaments.

In 2000 Gaetan then occupied the role of special assistant to the player development sector, overseeing medical documentation of newly drafted players and draft candidates for the Canadiens. He left the Montreal Canadiens in 2003 to successfully pursue his MBA at the John Molson School of Business from 2004 to 2006. In October of 2005 Gaetan Lefebvre co-founded Sutton Medical Systems.

Gates is the proud father of two daughters, Emilie and Florence and he shares his life with Fanny Preault.

Mark O'Neill is the youngest son of former NBA Los Angeles Lakers trainer Frank and mother Jean O'Neill. Mark started his professional career as an assistant to his father with the Los Angeles Aztecs of the North American Soccer League prior to joining the National Hockey League Los Angeles Kings in 1979.

Mark served as a trainer in 1979 and equipment manager from 1980-1993 with the NHL Los Angeles Kings hockey club sharing duties coordinating hockey equipment, supplies, maintenance, repairs and inventory used by the players.

During his time in Los Angeles, Mark also served as a basketball trainer at practice sites during the 1984 Summer Olympics at the Forum in Inglewood. In 1986, Mark traveled to the Soviet Union to work as equipment manager for team Canada during the World Ice Hockey Championships tournament at the CSKA Ice Palace in Moscow.

In 1981, Mark was a technical advisor for the fact-based film Miracle on Ice and provided wardrobe and equipment expertise for the 1984 HBO cable TV network American comedy series ?1st and Ten?.

In 1993, Mark left the Los Angeles Kings to become the first Head Equipment Manager of the Anaheim Mighty Ducks during the inaugural 1993-1994 season.

In 1998, Mark worked as equipment manager at the NHL All-Star game in Vancouver, British Columbia.  In 1998, Mark also worked as the equipment manager for USA Hockey in Switzerland at the IIHF World Championships. In 2002, Mark worked at the Easton service center at the Salt Lake City Olympics and in 2010 he also worked the service center at the Vancouver Olympics maintaining gear for the hockey athletes competing in Canada.

Mark retired from the National Hockey League in 2007 after the Western Conference Anaheim Ducks won their first Stanley Cup Championship defeating the Ottawa Senators in five games at the Honda Center in Southern California.

Mark O'Neill completed 29 seasons and 2,250 games in the National Hockey League.

Mark is still working in hockey today as a PHATS-SPHEM vendor with Jan-Al Cases, currently in his 8th  year as sports manger.    Jan-Al manufactures road cases, flight cases, wardrobe cases, etc. for the NHL, MLB, NFL, NCAA. He also provides cases for professional musicians such as Imagine Dragons, Fleetwood Mac, KISS and others.

Mark currently resides in Placentia, California. He has two sons, Daniel and Aidan, daughter, Audrey and two grandchildren Raya & Nessa O'Neill.