"Beloved." A word used so often to describe those who have passed on. Very wise and perceptive family members chose this single word to describe Mike. So apropos for he truly was and is. They and many others I'm sure would add "Determined."
Mike spent his early years on the playgrounds and ice rinks of Saint Paul's East Side, an unassuming place where solid values are taught and hard work wins respect. His athletic prowess was clearly evident by the time he entered Hazel Park Junior High School. As fate and good fortune would allow, Mike went on to attend Johnson Senior High School where hockey was already a tradition in the making, a sport for which Mike had unbounded enthusiasm and relentless talent. Mike's determination was clearly a factor in the 1963 Minnesota State High School tournament which the Johnson Governors won. It was the era when the "Govies" earned the nickname "The Grand Army of Phalen Creek" bestowed upon them by a Pioneer Press sports writer. Upon graduation from high school Mike entered the University of Minnesota and continued his hockey career with the Golden Gophers.
After college, he entered the NHL system where he played for the Johnstown Jets of the Eastern Hockey League, a feeder team from which Mike was soon to be drafted by the Detroit Red Wings. Sadly, it was a dream that was never to be.
Someone once said that hockey is life. It certainly was true for Mike, for both came to a sudden end late one cold January night in a tragic automobile crash.
Beloved. Determined. Unforgettable. All these years later the University of Minnesota Hockey team still honors Mike's life and legacy each season by presenting one outstanding Gopher player with "The Mike Crupi Most Determined Player Award" for the heart they put into hockey, the spirit that makes them successful and for their determination - just as that unforgettable guy from the East Side for whom it was named.
-RT
1) Fifty years later, Mike’s Johnstown Jets legacy lives on:
https://www.tribdem.com/sports/mike-mastovich-nearly-50-years-after-tragedy-former-johnstown-jets-legacy-lives-on/article_7ee3203e-b72d-11e5-b84c-bb1982470ff7.html
Mike spent his early years on the playgrounds and ice rinks of Saint Paul's East Side, an unassuming place where solid values are taught and hard work wins respect. His athletic prowess was clearly evident by the time he entered Hazel Park Junior High School. As fate and good fortune would allow, Mike went on to attend Johnson Senior High School where hockey was already a tradition in the making, a sport for which Mike had unbounded enthusiasm and relentless talent. Mike's determination was clearly a factor in the 1963 Minnesota State High School tournament which the Johnson Governors won. It was the era when the "Govies" earned the nickname "The Grand Army of Phalen Creek" bestowed upon them by a Pioneer Press sports writer. Upon graduation from high school Mike entered the University of Minnesota and continued his hockey career with the Golden Gophers.
After college, he entered the NHL system where he played for the Johnstown Jets of the Eastern Hockey League, a feeder team from which Mike was soon to be drafted by the Detroit Red Wings. Sadly, it was a dream that was never to be.
Someone once said that hockey is life. It certainly was true for Mike, for both came to a sudden end late one cold January night in a tragic automobile crash.
Beloved. Determined. Unforgettable. All these years later the University of Minnesota Hockey team still honors Mike's life and legacy each season by presenting one outstanding Gopher player with "The Mike Crupi Most Determined Player Award" for the heart they put into hockey, the spirit that makes them successful and for their determination - just as that unforgettable guy from the East Side for whom it was named.
-RT
1) Fifty years later, Mike’s Johnstown Jets legacy lives on:
https://www.tribdem.com/sports/mike-mastovich-nearly-50-years-after-tragedy-former-johnstown-jets-legacy-lives-on/article_7ee3203e-b72d-11e5-b84c-bb1982470ff7.html
"Beloved." A word used so often to describe those who have passed on. Very wise and perceptive family members chose this single word to describe Mike. So apropos for he truly was and is. They and many others I'm sure would add "Determined."
Mike spent his early years on the playgrounds and ice rinks of Saint Paul's East Side, an unassuming place where solid values are taught and hard work wins respect. His athletic prowess was clearly evident by the time he entered Hazel Park Junior High School. As fate and good fortune would allow, Mike went on to attend Johnson Senior High School where hockey was already a tradition in the making, a sport for which Mike had unbounded enthusiasm and relentless talent. Mike's determination was clearly a factor in the 1963 Minnesota State High School tournament which the Johnson Governors won. It was the era when the "Govies" earned the nickname "The Grand Army of Phalen Creek" bestowed upon them by a Pioneer Press sports writer. Upon graduation from high school Mike entered the University of Minnesota and continued his hockey career with the Golden Gophers.
After college, he entered the NHL system where he played for the Johnstown Jets of the Eastern Hockey League, a feeder team from which Mike was soon to be drafted by the Detroit Red Wings. Sadly, it was a dream that was never to be.
Someone once said that hockey is life. It certainly was true for Mike, for both came to a sudden end late one cold January night in a tragic automobile crash.
Beloved. Determined. Unforgettable. All these years later the University of Minnesota Hockey team still honors Mike's life and legacy each season by presenting one outstanding Gopher player with "The Mike Crupi Most Determined Player Award" for the heart they put into hockey, the spirit that makes them successful and for their determination - just as that unforgettable guy from the East Side for whom it was named.
-RT
1) Fifty years later, Mike’s Johnstown Jets legacy lives on:
https://www.tribdem.com/sports/mike-mastovich-nearly-50-years-after-tragedy-former-johnstown-jets-legacy-lives-on/article_7ee3203e-b72d-11e5-b84c-bb1982470ff7.html
Mike spent his early years on the playgrounds and ice rinks of Saint Paul's East Side, an unassuming place where solid values are taught and hard work wins respect. His athletic prowess was clearly evident by the time he entered Hazel Park Junior High School. As fate and good fortune would allow, Mike went on to attend Johnson Senior High School where hockey was already a tradition in the making, a sport for which Mike had unbounded enthusiasm and relentless talent. Mike's determination was clearly a factor in the 1963 Minnesota State High School tournament which the Johnson Governors won. It was the era when the "Govies" earned the nickname "The Grand Army of Phalen Creek" bestowed upon them by a Pioneer Press sports writer. Upon graduation from high school Mike entered the University of Minnesota and continued his hockey career with the Golden Gophers.
After college, he entered the NHL system where he played for the Johnstown Jets of the Eastern Hockey League, a feeder team from which Mike was soon to be drafted by the Detroit Red Wings. Sadly, it was a dream that was never to be.
Someone once said that hockey is life. It certainly was true for Mike, for both came to a sudden end late one cold January night in a tragic automobile crash.
Beloved. Determined. Unforgettable. All these years later the University of Minnesota Hockey team still honors Mike's life and legacy each season by presenting one outstanding Gopher player with "The Mike Crupi Most Determined Player Award" for the heart they put into hockey, the spirit that makes them successful and for their determination - just as that unforgettable guy from the East Side for whom it was named.
-RT
1) Fifty years later, Mike’s Johnstown Jets legacy lives on:
https://www.tribdem.com/sports/mike-mastovich-nearly-50-years-after-tragedy-former-johnstown-jets-legacy-lives-on/article_7ee3203e-b72d-11e5-b84c-bb1982470ff7.html
Family Members
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
Advertisement
