Jim Kyte: True trail blazer

Jim Kyte played with the Winnipeg Jets trough much of the '80s.

Source: https://globalnews.ca/news/5366531/former-winnipeg-jet-to-receive-community-award-at-convention-centre/

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There are so many hockey players who just go about their business, contributing wherever they can on the ice, patching together great NHL records, and essentially living outside the limelight.

Jim Kyte was one such player in the 1980s. I heard his name every time his Winnipeg Jets played on “Hockey Night in Canada” on Saturday nights on CBC Channel 9 on the peasant vision dial, or on “Flames Hockey” on Channel 2 and 7.

Yet, I really could not tell you much about him, beyond that he played for the Winnipeg Jets and some other NHL teams.

So, I was quite surprised when the latest list of people inducted into the Order of Canada came out and the only name I really recognized was Jim Kyte’s.

I wondered if he had made special contributions to the country after his time on the ice ended.

When I read his biography for the Order of Canada, I discovered quite the contrary.

Jim Kyte was recognized precisely because of his contributions on the ice.

It was only a few short days ago I learned that Jim Kyte was the first deaf player to play in the NHL.

He is a true trail blazer.

The early years
Jim Kyte was born with a genetic condition that triggered rapid hearing degradation, leading to a 100-decibel loss. He inherited the condition from his father, and all four of Kyte’s brothers were deaf too. That meant he wore hearing aids when he played hockey. In fact, the first ones back in the ‘80s were much more cumbersome, so he learned to absorb body contact while protecting his hearing aids.

Yet, Jim Kyte was also blessed with size, maxing out at six feet, five inches and a220 pounds, a good size for a defenceman.

He played his junior hockey for the Cornwall Royals for the 1981-1982 and 1982-1983 seasons. In his first season, he had four goals and 13 assists for 17 points in 52 games.

He was drafted 12th overall in the first round of the 1982 NHL Entry Draft by the Winnipeg Jets, and appeared in two games for the Jets late in the 1982-1983 season. He played the majority of the season in Cornwall, scoring six goals and adding 30 assists for 36 points in 65 games.

Turning pro
Kyte caught on full time with the Jets in the 1983-1984 season, scoring a goal and two assists for three points, and accumulating 55 penalty minutes in 71 games. In the 1984-1985 season, he appeared in 71 games, recording three assists and 111 penalty minutes. The next year, the 1985-1986 season, he had a goal and three assists for four points and 126 penalty minutes in 71 games. In the 1986-1987 season, Kyte had five goals and five assists for 10 points and 162 penalty minutes in 72 games. In the 1987-1988 season, he had a goal and three assists for four points and 128 penalty minutes in 51 games. In the 1988-1989 season, Kyte had three goals and nine assists for 12 points and 190 penalty minutes in 74 games for the Jets.

He was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins in June of 1989, staying with them for the 1989-1990 and part of the 1990-1991 seasons. He spent part of the 19901-1991 season in the minors with Muskegon, before he was traded to the Calgary Flames for Jiri Hrdina. He would bounce around from the minors to the NHL, playing with the Ottawa Senators and San Jose Sharks. His last NHL action was with San Jose in the 1995-1996 season, and his last professional action was with the Kansas City Blades of the International Hockey League in the 1996-1997 season. Wikipedia reveals that Kyre’s playing career came to an end because of a concussion he suffered in an automobile accident in 1997 that forced him to retire.

Jim Kyte concluded his NHL career appearing in 598 games where he recorded 17 goals and 49 assists for 66 points, while earning 1,342 penalty minutes.

Trail blazer
Jim Kyte was inducted into the Canadian Disability Hall of Fame in 2018.

In 2024, He was inducted into the Order of Canada as a Member by Governor General Mary Simon for the being the first legally deaf player in the history of the National Hockey League.

Parting thoughts
I cannot imagine how difficult it must have been for Jim Kyte to make it to the NHL and stay as long as he did. Hockey is a tough business that can be ruthless. Teams want to win so I can guarantee you, they were not keeping Jim Kyte as a charity case, going easy on him or giving him special treatment. If he wasn’t contributing to the team, he wasn’t sticking around.

That was obvious because in his 14-year career, he did his fair share of stints in the minors.

I suspect it was the opposite. He had to work harder, stay later and prove he belonged over and over because he is deaf.

Maybe it is a testament to inclusion that I never knew Jim Kyte was deaf.

He was just a tough, hard-nosed hockey player who provided grit and muscle to the line up of every team he played on.

That makes his accomplishments even more impressive.