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Chris Neil laughs when asked if his old friends in North Bay ever thought he would play more than 1,000 NHL games.

“A lot of people probably thought I wouldn’t play one,” said Neil, who registered 65 goals, 91 assists and 596 penalty minutes during his career with the Centennials from 1996-99.

Friday was Neil Night in North Bay as the community paid tribute to that history and his outstanding, unlikely career with the Ottawa Senators.

Neil, now an alumni ambassador for the Senators organization, says he has nothing but fond memories from his junior days.

“The friendships last a lifetime, we were all just kids,” he said. “It’s back to the grassroots. We were 23 buddies who were just like brothers. And you can make jokes about the players now, saying they’re soft or whatever. Junior hockey was awesome.”

kwarren@postmedia.com

Twitter.com/Citizenkwarren