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Duncan Keith to become 16th member of the Penticton Vees’ Ring of Honour

The three-time Stanley Cup champion will be joined by longtime Vees broadcaster Al Formo
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FILE- Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Duncan Keith lifts the Stanley Cup after the Blackhawks defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 in overtime to win Game 6 of the NHL Stanley Cup hockey final June 9, 2010, in Philadelphia. Keith will be inducted into the Penticton Vees’ Ring of Honour on Nov. 23. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens, File)

Former NHL defenceman Duncan Keith, along with broadcaster Al Formo, will become the 16th and 17th members of the Penticton Vees’ Ring of Honour later this year.

Keith, who announced his retirement prior to the 2022-2023 campaign, suited up for the Penticton Panthers from 1999 to 2001 before playing 17 years in the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks and Edmonton Oilers. He won three Stanley Cups with the former, in 2010, 2013 and 2015.

Formo, meanwhile, first put on the headset in 1967 and went on to call more than 2,300 games, including the Vees’ historic 2012 RBC Cup title win in Humboldt, Sask.

“We are fortunate to have great alumni that gave so much to our program and to the game itself,” said Fred Harbinson, the team’s head coach, general manager and president. “Both Duncan Keith and Al Formo were integral in building the foundation of Penticton Junior Hockey. All of Penticton is proud of Al’s longevity in the sport and Duncan’s storied professional career and now they will have their names displayed forever in the rafters of the SOEC.”

The two will be inducted on Nov. 23, prior to the Vees’ showdown with the Salmon Arm Silverbacks.

Months before winning his first Stanley Cup, Keith was among those to capture a gold medal while wearing the red and white at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver — he did it again at the next Olympic games in Sochi, Russia, four years later.

Keith, though born in Winnipeg, grew up in Penticton. After his memorable junior hockey tenure in the Peach City, he went on to play in Kelowna for the WHL’s Rockets, winning the prestigious Memorial Cup in 2004.

While Formo served as the colour analyst on local radio broadcasts for more than four decades, he was also the Panthers’ bus driver for several seasons through the late 1990s and into the early 2000s.

He retired in 2012.

The ceremony will be the first duel induction since 2017 when Brendan Morrison and Paul Kariya were inducted during the Western Canada Cup tournament.

READ MORE: Historic 2012 Penticton Vees heading to BC Sports Hall of Fame


@lgllockhart
logan.lockhart@pentictonwesternnews.com