A former member of the Coquitlam Express is facing a new challenge. But it’s not on the ice.
Greg Lapointe, who led the BC Hockey League team in scoring in the 2019-20 season with 60 points in 56 games, has been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.
According to a GoFundMe page launched by Lapointe’s cousin, Laurie Murray, to raise money for research into finding a cure for the rare cancer of the lymph system, the 20-year-old forward from Granby, Que., was diagnosed June 5. That was only three months after he helped the St. Lawrence University Saints win the East Coast Athletic Conference championship and an automatic berth into the NCAA championship tournament. But the team was unable to compete for a national title because one of its members subsequently tested positive for COVID-19.
Lapointe joined the Saints last December after the BCHL’s initial exhibition season was shut down by tightened public health restrictions in mid-November. He had an immediate impact, scoring his first collegiate goal just 3:42 into his first game, against the Quinnipiac Bobcats. He finished the season with four goals and four assists in 15 games.
In a post on its Twitter channel, the Express urged fans to donate to the fundraising campaign in support of Lapointe, “Frenchie, you’re a warrior, you’re a fighter, you’ve got this.” The club also pitched in $500.
Former teammate Ryan Tattle added, “I know you’ll get through this brother.”
Several former teammates and their families are among the campaign’s listed donors, as it’s already surpassed the $10,000 goal set by Lapointe’s family when it launched July 22.
