N.B. Businessman Travels 10,000 Kilometres To Watch 18 Hockey Games And Writes A Book About It
SAINT JOHN – Jim Kokocki admits that when he sets his mind to something, he can become quite obsessive about the task. The Saint John businessman has always been a man of many goals. During his career, he has been involved in real estate, public speaking (including his time as a Toastmaster), and consulting.
For several years now, Kokocki has been semi-retired and, in the cold winter months of 2019, another ambitious idea crossed his mind: visit all 18 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) teams throughout Atlantic Canada and Quebec and write a book, Winter. Road. Hockey.
“My gosh, 18 teams are a lot – 12 in Quebec. How do you manage all those?” says Kokocki. looking back at his adventure. “So, I had to manage my schedule. Plus, it’s wintertime, so you need to manage the weather.”
In January of 2019 Kokocki geared up his 2014 Honda Civic and travelled 9,790 km in 49 days, all on his own. As much as Kokocki enjoyed the hockey aspect of his trip, he was just as interested in the journey.
“I love hockey, but it’s not entirely about hockey… For me it’s about the excitement of the road trip – the idea that it would be cool to cross them all off the list,” explains Kokocki.
“It was the height of winter, so there’s some storms to endure, some beautiful territory. There’s a fjord drive from Chicoutimi up towards Baie-Comeau that was just stunning. Learning about the geography and some of the scenes were just phenomenal.”
But the origins of this hockey travel story began as a baseball one. Over a period of years, Kokocki managed to visit every Major League Baseball team in North America. He gave a speech about this experience, and the positive reception gave him the idea to write a book about it.
“I gave the speech just for fun, and I was surprised by the reactions; a lot of people thought that was super cool,” said Kokocki.
“But I found my information was disorganized and I couldn’t pull it together. But while I was doing that I thought, ‘you know what would be cool? It would be cool to visit all the Q-league teams.’”
During his 49-day trip, Kokocki got to see some first-rate hockey talent who would make the leap to the NHL in the two years to follow. As a longtime fan of both the Saint John Sea Dogs and Detroit Red Wings, seeing Joe Velano play was one highlight of his trip. During the 2018-19 season, Velano was playing for Drummondville, following a big trade from the Sea Dogs, and put up 42 goals and 62 assists in 59 games.
Other QMJHL standouts Kokocki saw during his trip include Noah Dobson (now with the New Islanders) and, of course, NHL #1 draft pick Alexis Lafreniere (Now with the New York Rangers).
But as great as the hockey was, Kokocki is still taken aback by the roads he travelled and the scenery he experienced.
“Just a beautiful ride in February on a cold, clear day, that was a major highlight for me; just the geography, the drive, time in the car,” he said.
“I learned of some places that I’d like to go back and visit; there’s some beautiful territory, some wonderful people and it’s just a fun trip to do.”
One of his favourite stops was Bathurst, home of the Acadie-Bathurst Titan. Back in 2018, he visited a little diner in town and was served a tremendous meal of fried smelts. So when he went back for his road trip in 2019, he was hoping to have the same meal.
Upon not seeing the smelts listed on the menu, he made a “soft complaint,” after which he was told they did have some smelts handy.
“What a beautiful meal,” says Kokocki.
The book can be ordered on Amazon.ca or can be bought in-person at Coles at McAllister Place in Saint John.