NHL star Brad Marchand made a surprise appearance at a Halifax U18 hockey game on Wednesday night to support a longtime friend whose young daughter died recently.
JP MacCallum is the head coach of the March and Mill Company Hunters, but he’s taking time away to mourn his 10-year-old daughter, Selah Panacci-MacCallum, who died after a battle with cancer.
Marchand, a forward with the Florida Panthers, is in the thick of the NHL regular season but said he didn’t hesitate to come home and fill in for MacCallum on the bench.
“It’s a very devastating time. Selah was an incredible girl with so much love and joy and touched so many people’s lives,” Marchand told CBC News on Wednesday night. “So I had to be there for them.”
Selah passed away on Friday. Marchand said she was sick for a long time, but was a fighter.
“She had such a big heart and she was so strong. She had such an incredible group of friends and family around her and she lived life to the fullest and she made a huge impact on my life, on my family’s life, my kids, and we all grew to love her so much,” Marchand said.
More than a thousand people showed up at the Halifax Forum on Wednesday night to support the family.
Marchand said he has been friends with JP for 25 years and that he wouldn’t be where he is today without him.
“We’ve formed into brothers and our families are extremely close. He’s been in all the big moments, all the tough times he’s been there for me. He’s been there every step of the way,” Marchand said.
Marchand said the Panthers have been supportive of his decision to come home for his friend.
“They basically said go home and come back when you’re ready,” he said.
The game was a fundraiser, with proceeds from a bake sale and 50-50 draw going to Selah’s family. There will also be a jersey auction.
Paul Graham, president of the U18 Major Hockey League, said it was stunning to see so many people out to support Selah’s family — but not surprising.
“Especially Nova Scotia hockey players and alumni, that’s what we do. We support each other,” Graham said.
Graham said Marchand dropping everything to support MacCullum shows deep respect for his home community and the people who helped him.
“Brad is a stakeholder in that team … he’s the primary sponsor with that team and he’s an alumni of our league and he hasn’t forgotten where he’s come from,” Graham said.
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