Pride of the Blackhawks

If Keith Magnuson didn’t go to his final rest Saturday wearing a Chicago Blackhawk crest, no matter. He had one on his heart.

Anyone who followed hockey in the 1970s remembers Magnuson, and not only for his blazing red hair and gap-toothed smile that spoke of battles he’d waged honorably but rarely won. He was the consummate teammate and protector, and although he wasn’t always the last man standing, he invariably made his point: Mess with a Blackhawk and you’d have to answer to him, and you’d have bruises to prove it.

He symbolized the Blackhawks when they mattered in Chicago, which, sadly, was a generation ago. After his knees and shoulders gave out, no doubt worn out by his energy and constant motion, he became a successful businessman in the Chicago area. Even then he watched out for others and helped raise money for local ice rinks, Special Olympics, and scholarships awarded by the Blackhawks Alumni Assn. and the NHL Alumni Assn.

“I feel like I’ve lost one of my best friends,” TV play-by-play announcer Pat Foley said during an emotional on-air tribute, “yet, anybody who spent 10 minutes with Keith throughout his life would have said the same thing.”

Magnuson, 56, was killed a week ago while returning from a reception that followed the funeral of NHL Alumni chairman Keith McCreary. He was riding in a car driven by fellow NHL alumnus Rob Ramage when the car veered into the opposing flow of traffic. Ramage faces charges of driving while impaired and causing death and could go to jail. He was released from a Toronto hospital last week and returned home to St. Louis.

Magnuson’s family, as classy as he was, absolved Ramage.

“Keep Dad’s good friend Rob Ramage in your prayers,” Magnuson’s son, Kevin, told the overflow crowd Saturday at funeral services in Lake Forest, Ill.

It’s another in a series of sad losses this year. Herb Brooks, coach of the 1980 U.S. Olympic team, died in a one-car accident after he’d fallen asleep at the wheel, and Atlanta forward Dan Snyder died as the passenger in a car driven too fast on a curving road by teammate Dany Heatley. Had it been possible, Magnuson should have been buried at center ice in Chicago Stadium, where he created so many indelible memories and gave the Blackhawks and the NHL the zest and personality they lack today.

-- Helene Elliott