Vincent Lecavalier gets an arena re-named in his honor

Tampa Bay Lightning center Vincent Lecavalier fires a second-period goal past New York Islanders goaltender Dwayne Roloson during an NHL hockey game Thursday, Feb. 4, 2010, in Tampa, Fla. Lecavalier got hit with a stick above his eye on an earlier shift. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara)

AP

Nirvana once said that they knew they “made it” when one of their songs was parodied by “Weird Al” Yankovic. When it comes to sports athletes, the barometer might be: a) appearing on a show like Saturday Night Live or b) something being named after them.

Tampa Bay Lightning forward Vincent Lecavalier qualified for choice “b” as an arena in his hometown will be renamed to honor the one-time Stanley Cup winner.

Vincent Lecavalier put Île Bizard on the hockey map and now the island is returning the favour.

On Thursday, the arena at Sport Complexe Saint-Raphaël will be renamed after the island’s most famous native son.

There is already a Pavillon Vincent Lecavalier in Île Bizard. The community centre is located next to the soccer and football fields and outdoor hockey rink where Vinny, now 30, played as a youth.

But a hockey arena bearing his name seems more fitting for the NHL star who left home as a teenager in the 1990s to pursue his hockey dream, but still comes home every summer to spend time with family and friends.

I must admit that I often find myself a bit distracted by where Lecavalier falls short; after all, he came into the league being foolishly touted as “Hockey’s Michael Jordan” and is struggling to justify the enormous amount of money he’s being paid.

Yet at 30 years old, he’s within striking distance of a 1,000-point NHL career (he currently has 326 goals and 413 assists for 739 points). He might fall just a bit short of a Hall of Fame career, but he still made good on most of his very high expectations.

In other words, he’s more-than-deserving of having a number of things named in his honor.