His mom has been on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Perhaps Liam Stewart's achievement Monday night will land him a spot in the magazine's Faces in the Crowd feature.
Stewart, the son of rock 'n' roll star Rod Stewart and supermodel Rachel Hunter, scored the game-winning goal in overtime as the Spokane Chiefs defeated the Tri-City Americans 4-3 in the Western Hockey League playoffs.
“I just kind of closed my eyes and hoped for the best,” the 17-year-old center told the Spokane Spokesman-Review. “Luckily, the best came to me and it went in.”
The Chiefs' home victory pushed their Western Conference semifinal series to a deciding Game 7. The WHL is a top-tier junior hockey league that includes teams in western Canada and the US Northwest.
Liam Stewart scored 9 minutes, 33 seconds into overtime. He took a pass from teammate Connor Chartier on the left side and fired a shot high into the goal, past Tri-City goaltender Ty Rimmer. Stewart's teammates mobbed him on the ice in celebration.
“I didn’t think I’d be able to get the shot off,” Stewart told the newspaper, “but I think the puck was rolling and I just sent it at the net.”
Stewart had 14 goals and 12 assists in 66 games during the regular season. He led the team with four shorthanded goals.
Though his mom is from New Zealand and his dad from England, Stewart grew up in Southern California. He has had to leave home to find the best hockey competition available.
Befitting an ice hockey player, Stewart keeps it cool when it comes to his famous parents. (They divorced in 2006 after 15 years of marriage.)
“I’m privileged to have parents like that,” he told the newspaper for a feature story last year. “I’ve traveled the world, (but) I never thought of myself different than anyone in the room. I’ve never been too cocky about it or talked about it.”
The global nature of his parents' lives has opened at least one door for Stewart in hockey. He was born in London, which made him eligible for Great Britain's national program. He is a member of the Under-18 national team.
