Saying his colon cancer battle made him realize “I’m way tougher than I ever thought I was” even as he acknowledged how others helped him, Blackhawks announcer Eddie Olcyzk accepted the Ace Bailey Courage Award on Monday at the NHL Alumni Awards Gala in Toronto.
“The support that I had from our sport will never be forgotten,” Olczyk said. “I would encourage anybody out there that knows anybody that’s going through a battle, it’s OK to call them, it’s OK to text them, it’s OK to let them know that you’re thinking about them, because that helped me get through what I did.
“I didn’t know what was going to happen on the other side, but to get those texts and calls and those visits helped us get through.”
Olcyck, 52, was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer last year. He underwent surgery to remove a tumor the size of his fist, then endured a trying six-month regimen of chemotherapy en route to a clean bill of health.
“It does question and test your will to live,” Olcyzyk said of his cancer fight in accepting the award named for Garnet “Ace” Bailey, a former NHL and WHA player who was the Kings’ director of pro scouting when he was among the airplane passengers killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
“Courage comes in a lot of different ways. I’m lucky that I had the support I did of my family, my friends, the game of hockey to help me through. There’s no way I could have done it by myself, and the alumni (are) a big part of that.”
A member of the 1984 U.S. Olympic hockey team, Olcyzk grew up in the Chicago area, played 16 seasons in the NHL — including two stints with the Blackhawks — and briefly coached the Penguins.
Olczyk developed into a top TV hockey analyst both locally on Hawks telecasts and nationally for NBC Sports, which also leans on his expertise as a horse racing handicapper.
This summer, he also became a twice-weekly co-host on David Kaplan’s WMVP-AM 1000 program, “Kap & Co.”
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