By Mike Commito, Sudbury Wolves Team Historian
The year that Dan Buckland graduated from studying athletic therapy at Sheridan College, there were six teams in the OHL that were looking for athletic therapists. One of those clubs happened to be the Wolves, but Buckland recalls that none of his peers were interested in the position in Sudbury.
Although Buckland grew up in the Guelph area, he spent his summers camping in Mattawa, so he understood what Northern Ontario had to offer.
“It was a no brainer when it got offered to me to come up this way,” Buckland said recently after practice at the rink.
That was nearly 16 years ago, and Buckland has been here ever since.
Buckland, who goes by Bucky to the players and staff, serves as both Athletic Therapist and Equipment Manager for the Wolves.
In Buckland’s line of work, the perfect game is when you don’t notice him behind the bench. Seeing him ply his trade means that a player needs work done or there has been an equipment malfunction.
While Buckland prefers to work behind the scenes, the spotlight will be on him in a few days. When the Wolves take on the Petes in Peterborough on Family Day, Buckland will be appearing in his 1,000th career game.
It’s an incredible accomplishment and a testament to his dedication to the team, but Buckland admits the milestone has caught him by surprise.
“It kind of snuck up on me a little bit,” he said. “You always have it in the back of your mind when you’re looking at your game’s worked.”
While Buckland didn’t expect to reach the benchmark when he first started his career with the Wolves, he’s proud to be part of a growing community of athletic therapists and equipment managers who have made a long-term impact in the OHL.
“You think when you get started, you think you’ll be here for a few years and then you’ll move on, but then there’s other guys in the league who are hitting 2,000 games and 2,500,” he explained.
“There’s a number of us who are kind of cemented in the OHL and working in junior. It’s awesome to share that experience with those guys and hit those milestones altogether.”
One of the keys to Buckland’s longevity has been his calm demeanour under pressure. He even goes as far as saying that some of the players laugh at him because even in a tense situation, Buckland always appears poised. But it’s all part of a day’s work.
“There’s the odd game where a skate holder blows up on you, and you’ve got a short bench as it is, so you have to rip an entire skate apart and put it back together as fast as possible,” Buckland explained.
And while Buckland knows time is of the essence, rushing through it won’t get it done any quicker.
“You kind of have to slow down and take a breath and realize the smoother you can do it, the faster it goes,” he said.
When Buckland thinks back on his nearly two decades with the Wolves, there’s not one particular moment that comes to mind. Sure, visiting Russia with the team in back-to-back years is something he will never forget, but what he cherishes most is his time with the players.
“Just being around the guys is rewarding enough,” he said. “Regardless of the outcome of the season, the relationships you have with the players is what makes it worthwhile.”
While Buckland prefers to have the attention on his players, the humble athletic therapist has earned every bit of the adoration that he received from the home crowd before he reaches the milestone on the road.
Although it’s natural to look ahead to the next landmark, Buckland is in no hurry.
“If I hit 1,500 great, if I hit 2,000 that’s cool, too,” he said. “Let’s see where it goes.”
