He had dreams of escaping the small prairie town where he was raised to one day play in the National Hockey League. He did. But as he neared the end of his 16-year professional career, he began to develop an appreciation for the values of the Western lifestyle.
Living in Denver, where he won a Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in 1996, he began attending the annual National Western Stock Show and found himself fascinated by bucking bulls.
"It was always the bulls that were the most interesting," he said. "The danger and how tough the riders are. That's what drew me to it."
Leschyshyn, 41, became a regular visitor to www.abbi.com and www.pbr.com, and soon came to realize that there was a way he could be involved in the sport that would satisfy his competitive desires.
"I saw an article on (NFL quarterback and bull owner) Chad Pennington," he recalled, "and I thought, 'Really?'"
"Having that chance to read about Chad Pennington is what really intrigued me about it," continued Leschyshyn, who then began researching more about No. 10 Bucking Bulls. "Honestly, that's how it started."
To the big time and back
Born in the province of Alberta, Leschyshyn and his family relocated to a small town of 2,000 people just outside of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.
Both parents grew up on farms, and his fondest memories as a child were the summers spent with his grandparents. "That, to me, was the ultimate freedom," said Leschyshyn, who spent the majority of his youth playing hockey.
In 1988, he was the third overall pick in the NHL Entry Draft by the Quebec Nordiques.
Eventually the Quebec team relocated to Denver in 1995, and that season, which culminated in June of 1996, the team captured Lord Stanley's Cup. Leschyshyn and his wife Laura felt right at home living in Colorado, which is why even though he was traded a year later, they still maintain a residence in the Denver area.
They enjoy a "very active" lifestyle of hiking and cycling.
However, in recent years, he and his wife have talked with their three children - Jake, 12, Anna, 9, and Kate, 7 - about moving back to the Saskatoon area.
While it would allow Curtis and Laura to be closer to family, it would also provide the kids with the same experiences their parents had growing up in the great outdoors.
"That's the simple lifestyle they want," said Leschyshyn, who added his son just wants a frozen pond to play hockey and the two girls look forward to owning horses. "They don't want to be riding motorized scooters. They want to enjoy the wide-open spaces."
The move will also afford Leschyshyn, who has recently struck up a friendship with Jason Davidson, an opportunity to be more involved with owning bulls that are featured on the Built Ford Tough Series and in events sanctioned by PBR Canada.
He admits that after a lifetime of working hard in the NHL, many of his former teammates ask why. They don't understand why he wants to return to the blustery prairies.
They ask, "Why bucking bulls?"
The answer is as simple as the lifestyle: "It's just something I really love."
"I just feel comfortable being around the guys when I'm at an event," said Leschyshyn, who added that he admires what the PBR stands for and the personalities of those involved.
It's in the blood
Leschyshyn was known as a hardworking defenseman during his playing days. His primary focus was on being as good a teammate as he could be, and, of course, winning.
In the new profession, the goal remains the same. "I just want to win," he said, "and that's what drives me to be successful in this industry."
Leschyshyn may never relive the feeling of winning a Stanley Cup, but a recent ABBI futurity event came close.
"As an athlete," he explained, "whenever there's some sort of competition on the line ... for instance, when I go to watch the futurities, I'm so nervous. I'm a nervous wreck because I have no control over it, whereas as an athlete at least you have some control.
"Like in hockey, I could run over somebody or whatever the situation might be. I still had some control, but when you put the dummy on the bull and it clicks off after 4 seconds, you're really at the mercy of the animal.
"Adrenaline-I still get that. For me, competition is what drives me."
New kinds of goals
Like Pennington, Leschyshyn is not experienced enough to raise bucking bulls.
Instead he said he has partnerships with "several guys," and while he might not be involved in the day-to-day handling of bulls, he does his due-diligence before making any investments.
"I think you need to try and do your own research," he said, "and speak to as many people as you can about it, but don't get me wrong, I know there's a lot of risk involved in it ... it's not something you just want to throw dollars into."
His job is to watch as many bulls as he can, either at events or online, and research their genetics.
"I try to identify talent and then find somebody who's able to take that talent and refine it and make it into the champion that he possibly could be."
Investing in bucking bulls is a commitment that takes years.
"You're going to have your successes and certainly you're going to have more failures," Leschyshyn said. "I think you need to stay focused and understand what your long-term goal is.
"For me, my long-term goal is to have a world-championship-caliber bull, and that I can say I've had that bull since he was a yearling, or he was a world champion 2-year-old and continued down that road."
(Pictured: Leschyshyn with his youngest daughter Kate in Stephenville, Texas, for the ABBI Spring Fling.)
-by Keith Ryan Cartwright
New goals
Source: http://www.goteamsgo.com/forum/rodeo/150514-new-goals.html
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