Hockey broadcaster, former player Jim Fox gives keynote speech at annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast
L.A. Kings broadcaster Jim Fox showed off his NHL 2012 championship ring to the audience at the annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast on Thursday, saying that one of the keys to the victory was trust.
The stars of other popular sports such as basketball and baseball may play the whole game, but not with hockey.
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“In hockey, the best player plays half the game, so you need everyone,” Fox said. “You’ve got to build that trust.”
A former player for the Kings in the 1980s and an announcer since 1990, Fox was the keynote speaker for the annual event at the Glendale Civic Auditorium.
Fox constantly travels with the team, so he sees what goes on behind the scenes. One of his most memorable moments was hearing a quote from center Anze Kopitar, who Fox called the team’s star player.
Fatimah Omar gives a spiritual reading from the Quran at the 53rd annual Glendale Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast at the Glendale Civic Auditorium on Thursday, March 10, 2016.
“He said, ‘if everyone plays good, no one has to play great,’” Fox said. “That’s coming from your best player. He’s saying I can’t do it alone.”
And coach Darryl Sutter does his share of mentoring, he added. In the spring of 2012, the Kings suffered a tough loss in Detroit by giving up a 3-1 lead. The following morning, while the players hit the showers, Sutter stripped down and joined them, despite having his own locker room, Fox said.
“Here’s the leader of the team, but he’s no better than them … It was primitive and fundamental,” he said. “By stripping down and going in and showering with the group, I think he sent the message that they’re all in it together.”
Two months later, the Kings won their first Stanley Cup. In 2014, they won it again.
So whether it’s professional hockey or everyday life, Fox said he wanted to pass on some of the lessons he’s learned over the years about teamwork and trusting one another. However, it might not always be so simple.
“The Kings team did what they did not because they cared who got the credit. That’s very, very much easier said than done,” he said.
As in previous years, the Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast began with opening remarks from local religious leaders of multiple faiths and readings in English, Arabic and Hebrew.
Mayor Ara Najarian greeted the more than 100 community members and city officials in attendance and spoke about the significance of keeping the event a tradition and maintaining the role of faith in the community.
“Congregations are woven into the fabrics of our community and provide a moral foundation of community awareness necessary for the success of a city,” he said. “Glendale’s faith communities have contributed to the success of Glendale by encouraging virtue, providing social services and community volunteering, education, civic skills training and more.”
Arin Mikailian, arin.mikailian@latimes.com
Twitter: @ArinMikailian
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