Mike Bobyn had one thing in mind when growing up on the prairies.
It was not to be a doctor of a Western Hockey League team.
He wanted to play on one.
Lacing up his skates while participating in minor hockey in Saskatoon, every second year he would play against current Kelowna Rockets owner and GM Bruce Hamilton.
Bobyn’s goal was to suit up for the hometown Blades, but that plan was quickly extinguished by then head coach Jackie McLeod.
“He called me in and said he wanted to do me a favour”, Bobyn recalls. “He said Mike, I’m cutting you.”
While hard to accept at the time, Bobyn ended up going to school at the University of Saskatchewan, where he became a doctor and took further training in Ohio before relocating to Kelowna to start his own practice.
“I heard the team was coming to Kelowna, so I went in to get some season tickets. My wife and kids are waiting in the van outside of the arena in +35-degree weather. I told them, I’d be 15 minutes and went inside. An hour and 20 minutes later I returned to the vehicle and told them I am now the physician for the team.”
That was 27 years ago.
He was following in the footsteps of his father, Pat Bobyn, who was the team physician for the Saskatoon Blades and the old Kelowna Buckaroos when the family moved from the Bridge City to Kelowna in 1976.
Over his time as Kelowna Rockets team physician, Bobyn has dealt with many players who have been injured, from broken noses to broken collarbones and concussions.
“We have seen a lot of good hockey and a lot of interesting personalities”, Bobyn said, searching deep into his memory bank. “Brett McLean was one of my favourites. I just liked the way he played. He was so skilled.”
His fondest memory was the 2004 Memorial Cup in Kelowna when the team won the ultimate prize.
But it isn’t for the reason you might think.
“I remember everyone is coming into the dressing room and Scotty [Scott Hoyer] and I, we still had work to do. We still had injuries to tend to and you could not move in our dressing room.
“There were more friends and family, and you could not move. I am looking for players that I need to patch up, and everyone is excited and celebrating, but we were still working. The place was absolute chaos.”
Bobyn doesn’t travel with the team during the regular season, but when it comes to important playoff games or the five appearances at the Memorial Cup, there is Dr. Bobyn in the dressing room with his trusty stethoscope around his neck.
“In hockey, people get a little superstitious. They get a little quirky”, Bobyn said with a chuckle. “Come playoff time, they [Rockets] want you around and want you to see their players. They don’t want anyone else seeing the players.”
Bobyn is like a comfort blanket for the team when it comes to injuries. Working hand-in-hand with athletic therapist Scott Hoyer, they make sure the athlete, if injured, receives the best care possible.
“My job is to look after the kids”, Bobyn said straight-faced. “You want to treat them like your own family. You want them safe. You don’t want them getting hurt.
“I have to be their advocate. If I think there is a chance they can go and hurt themselves further, or if they can have long-term consequences as a result of their injury, I have to bring out the caution card.”
Bobyn’s relationship with Hoyer is a special one, calling him, “a very good friend” on no fewer than two occasions during the interview.
“I usually go for a dog walk into the woods in the morning and he [Hoyer] calls me and we run through the injuries and what our game plans are. He will let me know if I should come down and see anybody and we will talk again in the evening about what new developments have happened.”
If you spend just five minutes with Bobyn, you would pick up that he has a heart of gold.
His gentle voice and calm demeanor are typical of what you would suggest a great doctor should be.
“I just like what I do”, Bobyn continued. “I have stumbled into this position of being the team physician, and through the 27 years, I’ve enjoyed it so much.
“The Hamilton family have been great to me. I am proud to be associated with them. I like looking after the kids and seeing where they end up. Not everyone is going to be a hockey player, they go into different walks of life. It is neat to see what they are doing now.”
As one patient wrote on the website ratemds.com, ‘He is the true example of a person born to be a healer. Beyond his wealth of knowledge, he is genuinely caring and compassionate and goes well beyond expectations.’
Rightfully, Bobyn was recently recognized with the WHL Distinguished Service Award.
It is presented annually to individuals who have worked tirelessly behind the scenes on behalf of WHL franchises over an extended period.
“I am not sure the award was there to kick me out of here”, Bobyn said with a chuckle. “Right now I am semi-retired. I retired from my general practice of medicine about three years ago and I am a long-term care physician now.
“My work with the hockey team isn’t work, it’s a hobby”.
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Sure “lucky” to have him still keeping an eye on things !! 🙂