DORIAN GEIGER / KYLE IRELAND
Sports Writers

    Mike Danton, a former NHL player, currently on parole after a five and a half year stint in prison, is looking to get back into the game of hockey, and he could be lacing up soon for the University of Saint Mary’s Huskies in Halifax.

In a bizarre series of events, Danton was arrested in the spring of 2004 for his role in a murder-for-hire plot, with the alleged target to be his agent David Frost. Other speculation has cited Danton’s estranged father Steve Jefferson as the supposed target of the assassination conspiracy. As to why Danton resorted to such action is unclear but it has been rumoured Frost’s over-manipulative conduct was to blame. Danton plead guilty to the charges and after being granted parole in September 2009 from a Kingston, Ont. prison, announced his plans to play hockey once again.

The possibility of a 29-year-old ex-convict with NHL experience joining a university hockey team has been the subject of much debate since the announcement.

    The only thing in Danton’s way is the Correctional Services of Canada, which must approve of Danton’s plans before he will be able to officially join the team.

Danton is already enrolled at St. Mary’s and if things go his way, he could receive permission from Corrections Canada within two weeks, clearing his path back to the ice. Danton’s class load isn’t hefty by any means, however, and it is reported he is enrolled in only three classes.

Danton, who was drafted 135th overall by the New Jersey Devils in 2000, played 92 NHL games with the Devils and the St. Louis Blues and collected 14 points over his career. 

Danton should be able to adjust to the level of play fairly easily but it remains to be seen whether he will prove a distraction in the locker room. How might his future teammates react to the controversies of his past?

The issue at hand becomes interesting because of Danton’s extensive background in the spotlight and the current media exposure surrounding his return to hockey. This kind of attention is something university athletes are not as used to, as opposed to professional athletes.

There is a good chance it will irk some St. Mary’s players that Danton will get more media attention in a Huskies jersey than some of them have received their entire lives. One thing is for sure, Danton will be a hot topic of discussion over the remainder of the season should he be given permission to play. 

St. Mary’s athletic director Steve Sarty said Danton left a message on head coach Trevor Stienburg’s phone last week about the possibility of lacing up for the Huskies. Sarty doesn’t think Danton will have a distracting influence in the dressing room and emphasized that education is Danton’s primary focus right now.

“Every single one of them wants him to be part of the hockey club and not necessarily for his skills on the ice but more the fact that the players (who) are on the team — they get to be involved in something much bigger than themselves — so much bigger than hockey actually,” said Sarty.

“And they’re thrilled about that opportunity so right now they’re anxiously awaiting Mike to be on the team because they want to surround him in that network of support that they can offer,” he said.

    Danton would be joining a Huskies team who are ranked seventh nationally and are third in the standings of the CIS’s Atlantic conference. However, it is unlikely that Danton will find approval until the later stretch of the season. Danton may find a spot on the Huskies roster in coming weeks, but Sarty was apprehensive in saying when exactly that would be.

Another criticism surrounding Danton’s questionable re-emergence in the hockey world is his age.

The 29-year-old Danton would be playing against opponents as young as 18, as there are no age restrictions in Canadian Interuniversity Sport. Danton, by playing in the NHL, has used up two years of college eligibility and under CIS rules has three years of eligibility remaining.

This all means that Danton could potentially compete in the CIS until the age of 32.

“That’s certainly not the norm,” said Sarty. “But there have been people who have participated in CIS sports right up to the age of 47 years old. There is no age limit so it’s entirely within the rules of the CIS.”

Even if things go well for Danton, his return to the NHL will likely be impossible due to his criminal record, which prevents him from travelling to the United States.

And despite his notoriety, don’t expect Danton to propel the Huskies to the top of the CIS, either.  

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