CLYDE RIVER, P.E.I. —
Jonah MacMillan, 21, of Clyde River may just be the biggest Toronto Maple Leafs’ fan on P.E.I.
He is, at least, the most dedicated.
MacMillan has turned the family basement into a shrine that has caught the attention of Sportsnet, TSN and TSN personalities Jay and Dan, the NHL Network, current Leafs’ forward Auston Matthews and former Leafs’ great, and fellow Islander, Rick Vaive.
MacMillan, the son of Ross and Karen MacMillan said it has been his dream to turn the basement into a hockey rink, but he didn’t get around to it until last October after he and his father got back from a couple of games in Toronto where they met Matthews.
“I’ve wanted to do it for a long time, but I kept pushing it aside and never really got to it,’’ MacMillan said. “It took me just over a month to do the whole room.’’
MacMillan said he has been a Leafs fan his entire life, just like his father. Like many Canadian kids, MacMillan played hockey growing up, spending 14 years in the North River Flames system before hanging up the skates for good in midget.
His passion for the sport, and the Leafs, exploded last year when he got to work on his ultimate dream in his parents' basement. If he wasn’t pulling a shift at Sports Chek in Charlottetown, he was busy in the basement of his house.
The final result has to be seen to be believed.
The stairs to the basement are painted, each one featuring the name of one of the current players. One section of the basement resembles an actual hockey rink, complete with lines on the floor and a centre ice logo — the Leafs emblem, of course. On one end is a hockey net for him to shoot pucks into while the other end features a giant poster of Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby and Edmonton Oilers phenom Connor McDavid.
And, he’s got speakers hooked up and an impressive light display to boot.
His parents helped him with the Leafs crest in the middle. Karen created a little cutout while Jonah painted around it. As for the walls, Ross helped make sure the lines were straight “because you want the lines to look sharp.’’ Most of the work involved painting the floor and the walls.
Then on April 3, Jonah posted a video of the epic basement transformation on TikTok — and that’s where things went viral. Matthews saw it and responded with three fire emojis, signifying he liked it. Jonah couldn’t stop smiling.
“Oh man, I was literally shaking in my living room. I couldn’t believe it. For him to respond to me, being my favourite player, was pretty surreal.’’
Ross said he and Jonah’s mom are pretty proud.
“I’d say it’s pretty awesome, especially considering that he did it himself,’’ Ross told The Guardian. “He spent a lot of time on it; put a lot of effort into it. We helped him a little bit but very, very little. As far painting, none of us touched a paint brush. He did it all.’’
Jonah isn't sure what his future holds, but it wouldn't be surprising if he ends up somewhere in the world of sports. He took two years of golf management at Holland College and has worked in the past at Glasgow Hills golf course.
But while the world waits to return to some kind of normalcy, Jonah admits he’s spending a bit more time in his man cave these days. And he isn’t finished adding to it.
His next goal is to add a television and bench seating — to create the ultimate setting to watch the Maple Leafs.
Jonah MacMillan’s 10 favourite NHL players:
- Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs
- Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins
- Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
- Mitch Marner, Toronto Maple Leafs
- William Nylander, Toronto Maple Leafs
- Frederik Andersen, Toronto Maple Leafs
- John Tavares, Toronto Maple Leafs
- Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche
- Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks
- Brent Burns, San Jose Sharks
Check out Jonah MacMillan's Tik Tok video:
@jonah_macmillan Painted my basement in to a mini Toronto Maple Leafs rink!!!🔵⚪️##torontomapleleafs ##austonmatthews ##fyp @nhl @_torontomapleleafs @sportsnetcanada @tsn
♬ original sound - jonah_macmillan
