'It's nice to show another side of me': Retired Sask. hockey player turned actor ready for season two of sitcom
A former professional hockey player well-known for dropping the gloves is trying his hand at acting and will star in another season of the Canadian sitcom Shoresy.
Jon Mirasty was an enforcer in the American, Kontinental, and Western hockey leagues before his time on the Letterkenny spin-off.
"A lot of people know me for my hockey career and fighting, so it's nice to show another side of me,” Jon told CTV News.
He said knowing the cues and memorizing the lines was the biggest learning curve.
"I've been hit in the head a lot, so my memory is not the greatest,” he said with a smile.
Jon said with season one under his belt, he’s excited to use his experience in season two.
His character belongs to a trio, he plays Jim number one, and former hockey stars Brandon and Jordan Nolan play Jim number two and three.
While Jon said he can’t comment on the specifics of season two, he said fans might hear more from the Jims.
“Our lines were pretty simple in the first season. I think they're going to get a little more difficult in season two,” he said.
When Jon is not on set, he works with troubled youth on his ranch in the community of Flying Dust First Nation.
“I just want to give some opportunities back to the kids around here. I keep doing that and just setting an example for not only my kids, but all the kids on the reserve,” he said.
Jon said he wants to be a strong role model like his dad, Gary Mirasty, who supported him in his career. Gary would bike beside him and give him words of encouragement while he ran.
“He got so fast at running that I couldn't bike beside him and keep up with him anymore, so I had to use my quad and quad beside him,” Gary said.
Even though Jon is retired from hockey, he said filming often reminds him of playing sports again.
“It’s almost like playing hockey again because when you leave hockey, playing professional hockey, that's the stuff you miss. It’s not actually playing the game, but being able to hang out with the boys in the dressing room and kind of that team bonding,” Jon said.
Jon said he plans to do more team bonding by bringing the cast for a fishing trip in Northern Saskatchewan.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
An Ontario senior thought he called Geek Squad for help with his printer. Instead, he got scammed out of $25,000
An Ontario senior’s attempt to get technical help online led him into a spoofing scam where he lost $25,000. Now, he’s sharing his story to warn others.
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.