John Chapman Joins the Sutters for the Wall of Honour Induction Banquet Hot Stove
OKOTOKS (July 23, 2025) — John Chapman is returning to Okotoks.
Chapman, who was inducted into the Western Canada Professional Hockey Scouts Foundation’s Wall of Honour a year ago, will be in attendance at the 2025 induction dinner at the Viking Rentals Centre on Tuesday (July 29).
The evening is being billed as A Night With the Sutters and is expected to feature two Hot Stove sessions. Chapman, who as a head coach guided three of the six hockey-playing brothers from Viking, has agreed to participate in the Hot Stove chatter.
“We couldn’t be more pleased,” Garth Malarchuk, the foundation’s chairman, said. “John has been a close associate of the Sutter boys for a long time. Having him there to take part in things on Tuesday can only enhance the evening for those in attendance.”
From Stettler, Alta., Chapman was the head coach of the AJHL’s Red Deer Rustlers, who won the 1980 Centennial Cup as national junior A champions. His lineup included Brent Sutter and twin brothers Rich and Ron.
When the 1980-81 season began, Chapman was the head coach of the WHL’s Lethbridge Broncos and the three youngest Sutter brothers followed him.
One could make a case for Chapman having coached four of the brothers. Duane played for the 1977-78 Rustlers with Chapman as an assistant coach.
Of the six Sutter brothers who played in the NHL, only Brian and Darryl didn’t play for Chapman, the coach, both having moved on from junior hockey by the time he took over as the Rustlers’ head coach.
Chapman went on to scout for the NHL’s New York Rangers, Tampa Bay Lightning and Florida Panthers, before joining the Philadelphia Flyers in 1995. He served as an amateur scout, pro scout, director of player development and director of player personnel before retiring in 2023.
He was a member of the Wall of Honour’s inaugural induction class in 2025.
Tickets for Tuesday’s Wall of Honour dinner are sold out, but don’t worry – you can watch the banquet live from home thanks to HNLive.ca! Tickets for the livestream are just $12 and are available for purchase here.