Dean Lyon

A young hockey player from Columbia will get a chance to compete next month with the best of the best in his age group.

Dean Lyon, the 12-year-old son of Dean and Jamie Lyon, is a member of the 2005 St. Louis AAA Blues youth hockey team that will participate in the World Championship of Pee-Wee Hockey in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.

This is one of the most prestigious minor hockey tournaments in the world and will be celebrating its 59th year in February.  Over its 50-year history, many stars from the NHL have played in this tournament at the age of 12, including Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux.  

The tournament takes place over 11 days in February and draws an annual attendance of 200,000 spectators with 2,300 players representing 16 countries.

The teams are picked from the most elite 12-year-old players in their respective cities throughout the U.S., Canada, and Europe. Only 18 kids were picked for the St. Louis team following an intense tryout.

“The kids are coached by Mike Zuke, who was a St. Louis Blues NHL player back in the 1980s, so they are getting some unique coaching experience as well,” Jamie said.

Deano, as family and friends call him, attends sixth grade at Columbia Middle School and started ice skating at the age of 4.

“His dad played hockey and signed him up to see if he would like it,” Jamie said. 

In Deano’s words: “Hockey was a ton of fun and I have always loved playing. It’s fast-paced and physical. The biggest thing that hockey has taught me is that hard work pays off and if I set goals for myself it pushes me harder to achieve them. 

“If you want something, you have to work hard to achieve it.”

Deano’s favorite hockey player is current Blues star Vladimir Tarasenko.

“I like how he moves the puck and gets open for shots,” he said. “He came to my practice one time and the whole team got our sticks signed so we all had to ask for new sticks from our parents. That stick is now hanging from my wall in my bedroom and has all of my hockey medals hanging on it.”