At 71, Leo Gould is still skating strong

Fitchburg Oldtimers League Hall of Famer Leo Gould, center, poses with sons Mike Gould, left, and Brian Gould before Tuesday's game at the Wallace Civic Center. At 71 years old, Leo Gould's love of hockey is still going strong. SENTINEL & ENTERPRISE / GARY FOURNIER

FITCHBURG -- Family means everything to Leo Gould.  So does hockey. 

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The 71-year-old is still going strong as a forward on the Christian Party Rental ice hockey team in the Fitchburg Oldtimers League. He's cherishing the opportunity to play with both his sons, Mike and Brian, while also chasing the 1,000-point milestone in the Tuesday Night League at Fitchburg State University's Wallace Civic Center.

"It's an incredible sport that you can play at my age," said Gould, who registered an assist Tuesday night in a 3-1 victory over O'Brien Construction to move to 994 career points. "Still, at my age, I can play."

Blending family and hockey into one, the Goulds -- who also all work in the family business at Christian Party Rental in Hollis, N.

Leo Gould is 12 points away from 1,000 for his career in the Fitchburg Oldtimers League. SENTINEL & ENTERPRISE / GARY FOURNIER

H. -- wouldn't have it any other way.

"The camaraderie is unbelievable, and to play with your two sons, that's incredible," Leo Gould said.

Mike, 52, says playing with his brother and father on the same team -- the first time the Goulds have ever been able to do this -- is an opportunity many families never get.

"It's definitely something that rarely happens," he said. "We're loving having him. It's been a lot of fun having him."

Leo Gould finished last season with 988 career points (475 goals, 513 assists) and now has added two goals and four assists this year to his point total. The Fitchburg Oldtimers Hall of Famer currently is third on the league's all-time scoring list, trailing only Jean-Guy Gagnon (1,600) and Chris Housser (1,398) in total points.

"I don't know how many years (left) he has playing, but he still does pretty well for 71," Mike said.

Reaching that 1,000-point plateau is clearly an attainable goal.

"It's kind of a goal you set for yourself," Gould said. "I kind of set that as I was going along. If I get to that point I'll be a happy camper. I may not give it up. I'm not that far off.

"I'm pretty close. I should get it this year."

Mike has no doubt that his dad will enter the elite 1,000-point club by the end of this season.

"He'll be there sooner than later," he said. "He's got that knack. He's a scorer, that's for sure."

Gould -- a decorated hockey player, coach, owner and scout -- says he still plays the same style game that he did as a teenager.

"I get feisty, I hit guys and I do a little bit of everything," said Gould, donning a red, white and blue No. 16 USA hockey sweater and wearing glasses with tape in the middle to hold the frames together.

"But at 71, it's time to slow that down and stay away from it as much as you can."

Gould's youngest son, Brian, 50, admits his old man still has that feistiness during games.

"He's very chippy," Brian said. "He doesn't get a lot of penalties, but I think the refs know him. They let him get away with a lot."

It's not a shocking development that Gould's skills have deteriorated over the years. They're not gone completely yet, though. The old tough guy still has more gas in the tank, even playing against some real young guns sprinkled in on various teams.

"When I was younger, I had all kinds of stuff going on," he said. "I had skill, I could score goals, I was dirty and tough and mean, and I (ticked) off a lot of people along the way. I still have some skill now, but I'm playing with guys that are 35 and 40 years old and my legs just won't keep up. As far as my head, I know what to do and where to be at that time."

Born in Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada, Gould is also quick to point out that he still plays the game the right way.

"It's not all about scoring, it's plus/minus," he said. "Our line this year, we're minus-1. We've had one goal scored against our second line. I play both ends of the rink, which is very important to me. A lot of guys just want to go out and score goals."

He's still a protective proud papa on the ice even though both his sons are grown men with kids of their own.

"If someone goes out and gives your son a shot, you go right after them," said Gould, while slightly gritting his teeth. "At 71 years old, you want to get that guy back."

The game of hockey has been very good to the Goulds -- an admitted diehard hockey family.

And the children say they owe their love and passion for the game to their dad. 

"We started when we were little kids here and we grew up playing hockey with him," Brian said. "He's our mentor, our dad and our coach. He's everything.

"He's been always there for us. We both have boys that play hockey, and he's mentored them, too."

Mike added: "Brian and I grew up with this game. I think it carved our whole life out with him getting us involved (in hockey). Not to say we would have gotten in trouble without hockey, but it kept us busy. It's such a big part of our lives, even today more than ever because all our sons play.

"It's a great game. He's a great role model obviously with hockey, but other things. We're just fortunate that he's still here and we work together. Most people couldn't do that, work together and play together."

And Gould couldn't be happier that his boys took up the game that he loves and still plays to this very day.

He wouldn't trade the experience of working and playing with his sons for anything in the world.

"The passion is there, but the gratification of it is just incredible," Leo said. "To be able to get dressed together and to go out and play and to come back off the ice and have a beer and talk about it, there's nothing like it."

Family and hockey.

It means everything to the Goulds.

Read more: http://www.sentinelandenterprise.com/sports_topsports/ci_24676458/at-71-leo-gould-is-still-skating-strong#ixzz2nC8cZuSN

Read more: http://www.sentinelandenterprise.com/sports_topsports/ci_24676458/at-71-leo-gould-is-still-skating-strong#ixzz2nC9BE8v5