Skating With Markus

Not many kids can say they've laced up and hit the ice with Vancouver Canucks captain Markus Naslund.

Fewer still can say they've actually had their skates laced by Naslund, whose National Hockey League peers voted him the winner in 2003 of the Lester B. Pearson Award as the league's most outstanding player.

Eight-year-old Metchosin resident Spencer Bourne can say both.

Naslund was at G.R. Pearkes arena Saturday, as part of a Kraft Post Cereal Hockeyville essay contest. Bourne's eldest brother Taylor, 12, entered and won for his essay about his other brother Landyn Bourne, 9, who is autistic.

Taylor, who plays in the Juan de Fuca Grizzlies minor hockey system, got to choose 18 friends to join him on the ice for a full-gear practice session with the NHL superstar.

Before hitting the ice, Naslund met the young players in the lobby and spent a few minutes signing their bright yellow jerseys and a few other bits of memorabilia.

In the locker room, he chatted with the youngest Bourne brother and then laced up the youngster's skates.

Talking briefly with the media, Naslund said participating in events like this - the last of four across the country - is "refreshing," noting that Taylor's winning essay was a "touching" tribute to his younger brother.

"It's neat to see how much being here means to the kids," he said.