Mel Lis

FEBRUARY 22, 1939 - MARCH 14, 2026

OBITUARY - MORNINGSTAR NEWSPAPER MARCH 20, 2026

The Morning Star- Online Obituaries, March 20, 2026

Melvin Walter ("Mel") Lis passed away peacefully on March 14, 2026 at Vernon Jubilee Hospital with family by his side. He is survived by his loving wife Elaine of 56 years; daughters Nancy (Josh Plaw), Lorna and Janet (Tim Hackman), seven grandchildren; Toni (Meg) and Andrew Taufahema, Abigail, Madeline, and Morgan Hackman, Benno and Baron Plaw. He is also survived by his sister Margaret Radomski, sister in law Louise Lis as well as several nieces and nephews. Mel was predeceased by his parents Michael and Marie Lis, his brothers Andrew and William, and brother in law William Radomski.

Mel was born in the small farming community of Calmar, Alberta into a proud Ukrainian family. Discovering that the farm life wasn't for him, he found his way into a career with Texaco Explorations. Self-employment soon followed, and Mel pursued several projects throughout Alberta before moving his family to Vernon in November of1977 where they planted their Okanagan roots. Mel went on to establish and grow Lis Equipment Rentals in Vernon and Kamloops which remained in operation for over 20 years.

In 1986, when an opportunity to purchase the Vernon Lakers Junior A Hockey Team presented itself, Mel immediately accepted the challenge of bringing a championship hockey team to Vernon. The Vernon Lakers under Mel's careful watch competed in the Canadian Junior Hockey Championship Centennial Cup four consecutive years 1989 to 1992. A record that has yet to be broken.

After retiring from the rental business, Mel spent several years travelling in Arizona with stops in Lake Havasu, Yuma and Bullhead. While there, Mel and Elaine made trips to Anaheim to watch Mel's favourite teams; The New York Yankees play the Angels, or the Chicago Blackhawks play the Anaheim Ducks.

The Lis family would like to thank the medical staff on the 7th floor of the Jubilee Hospital and the loving staff at Heron Grove Cottage 2 for their compassionate care. Special thanks to Dr. Blair Stanley for his care and support.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Okanagan Humane Society or the Alzheimer's Society of British Columbia.

A Celebration of Life will be held on Sunday, April 19th at 2:30 at the Vernon Curling Club, 3400 39th Avenue, Vernon.

Original at: https://vernonmorningstar.com/2026/03/20/mel-lis/

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Lis leaves lasting hockey legacy in Vernon

by Roger Knox, Vernon MorningStar, March 24, 2026

Mel Lis even did the team laundry when he owned the B.C. Junior Hockey League's Vernon Lakers.

The architect of the Lakers' league dynasty is remembered as a man who would do anything for his players and the team.

Lis - who bought the Lakers franchise in 1986, and would watch his team win four league championships in the next six years, make four unmatched consecutive trips to the Centennial Cup Junior A Championship tournament, winning the national title twice - died March 14 in Vernon Jubilee Hospital.

He was 87.

Lis purchased the franchise from Quesnel's Carl Enemark, and began the process of turning the Lakers into a powerhouse.

His first team in 1986-87 would make the Interior Conference final, losing to the Kelowna Packers.

Then began the run.

The Lakers would win the Fred Page Cup BCJHL title in 1987-87 and 1988-89, lose the final in 1990 to the New Westminster Royals, before winning again in 1991 and 1992.

From 1989-1992, Vernon went to four straight Centennial Cup Canadian tournaments - hosting the national finals tournament at the Civic Arena in 1990. The Lakers won at home, beating the Royals in the all-B.C. final in overtime on Cam Sylven's memorable breakaway winner, and the next year in Sudbury, Ont.

Lis could be found in the Civic Arena, sometimes sitting at the south end, top row, chatting beside league co-founder Vern Dye. Or he could be found in what would become his viewing box, a room in the southwest corner watching his team, all the while smoking one of his favourite cigars.

Post-game, to help trainers Sonny Jenkins and Vic Chenier who were busy with other tasks, Lis would gather up the dirty hockey jerseys and socks, and wash them in the team's washer/dryer area off the club's north-end dressing room.

After losing to the Winkler (Man.) Flyers in Winnipeg in the 1992 Centennial Cup semifinals, Lis sold his beloved hockey team to Vernon oral surgeon Dr. Duncan Wray and his then-partner, former Vernon Daily News sportswriter Al Paterson.

"I'm convinced if I stayed, we would have went to the Centennial Cup again," said Lis in a 2006 interview with The Morning Star. "But life is short. You can't do the same thing all the time. What else can you do? You never know if you don't do anything else."

Lis was born in the small farming community of Calmar, Alta, but quickly discovered farm life wasn't for him.

He found his way into a career with Texaco Explorations, followed by self-employment, and he pursued several projects and opportunities throughout Alberta before moving his family to Vernon in November 1977.

Lis went on to establish and grow Lis Equipment Rentals in Vernon and in Kamloops which remained in operation for over 20 years.

His hockey legacy began in Kamloops as owner of the Lis Equipment Hawks in the Kamloops Ball Hockey League. The team was coached by then Kamloops Blazers coach Don Hay, and the roster included Stanley Cup winner Mark Recchi, Ed Dempsey, who would go on to coach the Blazers and Prince George Spruce Kings of the BCHL, and former Merritt Centennials coach/GM Al Glendinning.

Known as "Trader Mel," Lis had this uncanny ability to find players in the most unique places.

He was watching the old Vernon Pro Am Summer Hockey League which featured the likes of the Holland brothers, Ken and Dennis, Troy Mick, and Brent Gilchrist, established players getting ready for their upcoming seasons, when he noticed a Vernon kid with speed and a great shot.

Duane Dennis would play three years for Lis from 1987-88 to the national championship team of 1989-90.

"I'd kind of given up on hockey, but I went to Mt. Royal College in Calgary because my buddies were going there, and I ended up walking onto the hockey team," said Dennis, now 57, who owns and operates Cin City, a mobile food truck.

"I came back and was playing in the summer hockey league in 1987 at the Priest Valley Arena when Mel invited me to training camp. I credit my longevity to Mel having seen me play. Guys would do anything for him."

Need a quarterback for the powerplay? Lis found Tommi (The Tank) Virkanen from Finland in 1991, a player with a rocket for a shot from the blue line, and the following year he had Roland Ramoser, an Italian sniper who set a team record with 30 powerplay goals (still stands).

How about a Czech two-way forward? That would be Michal Sup in 1991-92.

What about speed up front? Lis found Scott Longstaff, maybe 5-foot-8 on skates, and maybe 130 pounds soaking wet. Longstaff went out in 1991-92 and set up 106 goals and finished with 160 points and a league scoring title. Both marks are still Vernon franchise records.

But perhaps Lis' greatest discovery came 30 kilometres down Highway 97 south, when he discovered a speedy forward in the Lake Country Adult Recreation Hockey League.

Jason Elders scored 67 goals for the Lakers in 1990-91, which remains a team record.

"I had tried out for a team before and I hated it. So I was playing for fun when Mel saw me and invited me to the Lakers camp," said Elders, 55, a labourer at Tolko, who played two years for Lis before earning a scholarship to the University of Denver, followed by a nine-year professional career, mostly in the East Coast Hockey League.

"Mel was a true leader, a successful businessman, and as a general manager, he knew what to look for and he won."

Four of Lis' players still hold a total of nine franchise records. At least five players - Dallas Drake, Jamie Steer, Dane Jackson, Dave Oliver, and Jason Marshall - were drafted by NHL clubs.

Marshall was on the Lakers team that went to the first of four straight Centennial Cup tournaments in 1989, where they went 0-3. Two months after, Marshall was drafted in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft, ninth overall, by the St. Louis Blues.

"I am so grateful for what Mel and his wife Elaine did for me," said Marshall, who went on to play 526 games in the NHL with St. Louis, the Anaheim Mighty Ducks, Washington Capitals, and Minnesota Wild. "I have really good memories of being at the Lis home many times with Elaine feeding us and Mel telling stories."

"He (Lis) was a player's dream," said Oliver in a 2006 Morning Star article on Lis, and who made sure to tell the owner how much he meant to him every time they got together.

Oliver was on the 1989 and 1990 Lakers teams, went on to play college at the University of Michigan before being taken in the seventh round of the 1991 draft by the Edmonton Oilers. Oliver played 233 NHL games with Edmonton, the New York Rangers, Ottawa Senators, Phoenix Coyotes, and Dallas Stars.

"Mel wasn't just an owner. He was a general manager with a good eye for talent and character, and friend to everyone on the team," said Oliver. "He was the only guy who gave me a chance to play in the BCJHL. I don't know if I would have played college or pro if it wasn't for him."

After he sold the team in 1992, Lis was invited to get involved in a new professional hockey venture, the Western Professional Hockey League, with head offices in Phoenix.

He was hired as a director of scouting and covered games in Texas. Two doctors bought a franchise in Shreveport, LA., and wanted Lis to run the team. The team, he said in 2006, was a mess when he arrived in Shreveport. There was a lawsuit and the two doctors pulled out and told Lis he was free to go.

That was the end of his involvement in hockey.

Lis continued to enjoy life and pursued self-employment interests in Redding, CA, Lake Havasu, Yuma, and Bullhead. He enjoyed his time spent down south with Elaine most notably enjoying watching his two favourite sports teams, the Chicago Blackhawks and the New York Yankees, when they were playing teams in Anaheim.

Lis is survived by his loving wife of 56 years, Elaine; daughters: Nancy (Josh Plaw), Lorna, and Janet (Tim Hackman); and seven grandchildren; Toni (Meg) and Andrew Taufahema, Abigail, Madeline, and Morgan Hackman, and Benno and Baron Plaw.

He is also survived by his sister Margaret Radomski as well as several nieces and nephews. Mel was predeceased by his parents Michael and Marie Lis, his brothers Andrew Lis and William Lis.

A Celebration of Life will be held on Sunday, April 19, at 2:30 p.m. at the Vernon Curling Club.

Read original at: https://vernonmorningstar.com/2026/03/24/lis-leaves-lasting-hockey-legacy-in-vernon/

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