Odjick, who returned to Vancouver following his playing days, suffered from amyloidosis, a rare form of blood disease that attacks organs, particularly the heart. He announced it publicly in 2014, indicating the disease was incurable and he had little time left to live. Experimental treatments did not achieve the expected results and, in 2020, he indicated that the disease was back in force and that he would undergo a series of new treatments.
Odjick played 12 seasons in the NHL between 1990 and 2002, suiting up with four teams. He began his career with the Canucks, before wearing the colors of the New York Islanders, the Philadelphia Flyers and ending his career with the Montreal Canadiens after being acquired in return for a 6th round draft choice and P.J. Stock on December 7, 2000.
In 605 games, he was assessed 2,567 penalty minutes - the 17th highest total in NHL history. He collected 137 points, including 64 goals, and was a popular figure among fans.
A fifth-round selection (86th overall) of the Canucks in 1990, he enjoyed his best season in his fourth campaign in Vancouver in 1993-94, with 16 goals and 29 points. The 6-foot-3, 215-pound giant Odjick added 142 penalty minutes in 44 playoff games, as well as four goals and an assist.
Gino Odjick was born on September 7, 1970, on the Algonquin reserve Kitigan Zibi, near Maniwaki in the Outaouais. He was the only boy in a family of six children. He was introduced to hockey at an early age, but it wasn't until the age of 11 that he joined an organized league run by his father, Joe. He remained on the reserve until the age of 15 and moved on to play in Hawkesbury and then for the Laval Titan.
Following his active career, he returned to live in Vancouver, where he never missed an opportunity to share his legacy with Aboriginal youth. He operated a golf club on the Musqueam reserve, where he lived, and performed duties in the community on behalf of the Canucks. In 2021, Gino Odjick was inducted into the British Columbia Sports Hall of Fame.
