Barenaked Ladies in town for charity hockey game

BY MARC LALONDE

marc.lalonde@transcontinental.ca

Watch out, St. Lazare. It’s about to get a little more naked in your neck of the woods.

The Barenaked Ladies, the pop-music group that gave street hockey its props in their video (the remake of the Bruce Cockburn hit Lovers in a Dangerous Time) will play hockey for charity in a game at the St. Lazare Sports Complex this Sunday. Pointe Claire radio station 94.7 HITS FM is organizing the game, which station director Marty Lamarre is hoping will bring in about $10,000 for the Club Optimiste St. Lazare.

The guys that gave the world ‘One Week,’ and ‘Brian Wilson,’ will take to the ice for a couple of reasons: because they’ve got a day off in their tour schedule and because they love hockey. Guitarist and lead singer Ed Robertson, bassist Jim Creegan and drummer Tyler Stewart are locks to appear, and “all five members might be on hand,” when the charity game kicks off at 1 p.m., Lamarre said. Members of the 94.7 HITS FM/Montreal Canadiens alumni team include the Habs’ last 50-goal scorer Stephane Richer, Sergio Momesso, P.J. Stock, Lucien Deblois, Enrico Ciccone, and Richard Sevigny.

Lamarre is hoping the event will bring in cash and attention for the charity group.

“We’ve sold seven spots on the Montreal Canadiens’ team for $500 each and so we’ve collected $3,500 before a single ticket is sold,” he said, adding he’s hoping up to 700 fans will pack the rink and rock the house.

Lamarre managed to rope in the Ladies, who grew up mostly in Ontario, by appealing to their love of hockey.

“We were organizing our annual media/celebrity hockey-marathon tournament and we inquired about their interest. The timing for that event wasn’t good, but their tour manager told me they had a day off when they come to Montreal (for a Feb. 19 show at the Bell Centre), they’d be interested in a charity hockey event,” Lamarre said.

Tickets to the game are available by calling the Ste. Lazare Recreation Complex, 1850 Rue des Loisirs in St. Lazare, off Bedard Avenue, at 450-510-1850 and are $10 for adults.