Random Access

No one ever worked harder in his alleged “retirement” than Mississauga freelance writer Gary McCarthy.
For the past six years, the Meadowvale resident has spent more time at the Hershey Centre than the Zamboni operator – ferreting out stories, chasing down rumours and giving the readers of The Mississauga News, both in print form and online, all the information they needed to know about their sometimes-beloved, sometimes-berated IceDogs.
In another life, McCarthy was a broadcaster, news editor, producer, executive producer and manager with the CBC National Radio news service. He left in 1999, spent some time monitoring free elections in Third World countries, then engaged his passion for minor hockey by signing on with The News to cover the IceDogs, and assorted other sports and political issues.
Gary made himself an authority on the Dogs and the Ontario Hockey League. In the past few seasons, he’s probably spent more time on air doing between-period interviews than anyone not named Dave Hodge, Dick Irvin or Ward Cornell.
Over the years, McCarthy has broken so many stories about the IceDogs, mostly to do with their five different sales, that you’d swear he must have been a fly on the boardroom wall. He had the story of Don Cherry selling the team first, had the story about the new buyer first, broke the subsequent Mario Forgione purchase and then his sale and then covered the Eugene Melynk Ice Dogs-St. Mike’s soap opera (As The Franchise Turns) from every angle.
In the past few months, McCarthy’s musings on the possible scenarios about the Dogs’ future kennel, posted regularly in his Big Dog Blog on this site, have been must-reading. He regularly had hundreds of hits for his entries as a result.
Somebody was obviously impressed, beside the readers. McCarthy has just taken on a new job as the director of communications and media operations for the new Niagara IceDogs.
If you ask Gary about his best memories of his time covering the Dogs, they are those of a hockey fan, not just a reporter. He cites the team’s first-ever playoff victory when Greg Jacina scored a great goal against Ottawa before one of the few large crowds the team ever drew at the Hershey Centre. And, of course, he cites their most successful season when they beat Toronto, Oshawa and Barrie before being swept by the Guelph Storm. “Hey, they were just four games away from the Memorial Cup,” McCarthy says.
That’s the thing about Gary: he’s a seasoned reporter who never lost the capacity to get intensely excited at the magical things a bunch of teenagers can do collectively on the hockey rink.
Whenever Gary blew into the newsroom — and never was a term more appropriate — there was inevitably a pause in the action for a good jaw-wag. A big paw would land on your shoulder and a welcoming hand would be stretched out in a greeting, with gripping gusto. If you were really lucky, there would be stories of Toe Blake, Sid Abel and Gordie Howe. There would be reminiscences of the press box on Opening day for Les Expos at Jarry Park and descriptions of the rabid fans behind the left field fence in “Jonesville.”
Mississauga, and the staff and readers of The Mississauga News, are really going to miss this man.