'Shift Work' shares life lessons

Retired NHL tough guy Tie Domi has gone by a lot of different titles throughout his life. He's been known as a bodyguard, a goon, a villain, and a hero, and now he can add the title of best selling author to that list.

Domi's book Shift Work was released on Nov. 2 and has taken top spot on BookNet Canada's best seller list for hardcover non-fiction.

The former New York Ranger, Winnipeg Jet and Toronto Maple Leaf is touring all over the province promoting the book and meeting with fans and he will be in Sudbury on Nov. 22 at the Sudbury Arena between noon and 2 p.m.

Shift Work details Domi's life before, during, and after the NHL, chronicling his journey as an NHL enforcer, but shifting the focus more towards the values he lived by, values that were instilled in him by his parents.

“There's not many people on this planet who have faught as many times as I have and I didn't really want to talk about it too much, it kind of speaks for itself,” said Domi. “At the end of the day it was more about the mental side of the fighting and the mental side of life in general and I tried to get as many life lessons into the book as a I could.”

Sales have been a pleasant surprise for Domi, but he says that he's been more overwhelmed by the response he's had during the tour.

“There's so many cities that I just didn't really get a chance to visit while I was playing hockey and it's really overwhelming and humbling the amount of Domi jerseys I see when I go visit these cities,” said Domi.

The 46-year-old father of three has been retired since 2006 but his love for the game has not changed and he now enjoys hockey through watching his son Max play for the Arizona Coyotes. Domi opens up about his family life in Shift Work, speaking not only about Max, but his two daughters Carlin and Avery.

Hard and honest work, along with respecting others are values that Domi holds dear and that he has passed down to his children.

“When Max was playing for the London Knights he would always make sure to go say hello and goodbye face to face with everyone,” said Domi. “From the zamboni driver, to the parking lot attendants, the security guys, the ice crew, that's the kind of stuff that makes me proud, that makes me prouder than him ever winning any scoring titles or anything like that.”

Though character is something that Domi puts a lot of stock in, he admits that his son's heroics during last year's World Junior Hockey Championships made for a pretty amazing moment.

“It was pretty surreal to hear a huge crowd at the Bell Centre in Montreal cheering for him,” said Domi. “I never thought I'd see the day that a Montreal crowd would be chanting 'Domi'”.

With the wild success that his book has had so far and the overwhelmingly positive responses he's had on tour, Domi says it's been a bit of a whirlwind, but as with much of his career, he's taking it all in stride, but with no plans for a second book any time soon.

“There's enough stories for six books but right now I'm just enjoying this first one and trying to balance being a father and this tour,” said Domi. “There's already been different offers for movie rights but that's not even on the table for me right now as far as where I'm at.”

To keep up with Domi's book tour and for more on the man himself, check out www.tiedomi.com.