The Official Montreal Canadiens Habs Suck Hockey thread
- Thread starter Doc Holliday
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Last-place Habs lose 5th straight
TAMPA, FLA. - If you’re rooting for the Canadiens to finish at the bottom of the NHL standings, you loved the result Tuesday night as the Canadiens lost 2-1 to Tampa for their fifth consecutive loss. Steven Stamkos and Adam Hall scored for the Lightning while David Desharnais deprived former Canadien Mathieu Garon of the shutout.
That sinking feeling: The Canadiens remain mired in last place in the Eastern Conference. They are three back of Carolina and the Islanders and 11 back of eighth-place Washington.
http://www.montrealgazette.com/spor...fth+straight/6224619/story.html#ixzz1nll1OPwt
TAMPA, FLA. - If you’re rooting for the Canadiens to finish at the bottom of the NHL standings, you loved the result Tuesday night as the Canadiens lost 2-1 to Tampa for their fifth consecutive loss. Steven Stamkos and Adam Hall scored for the Lightning while David Desharnais deprived former Canadien Mathieu Garon of the shutout.
That sinking feeling: The Canadiens remain mired in last place in the Eastern Conference. They are three back of Carolina and the Islanders and 11 back of eighth-place Washington.
http://www.montrealgazette.com/spor...fth+straight/6224619/story.html#ixzz1nll1OPwt
I used to be a fan of team 4 years ago. Having played hockey myself on a Junior level I always enjoyed watching a couple habs games back in the days, but at one point I simply realized that Montreal (the fans and media) put so much pressure on the players and the organization overall that it is impossible for someone to perform well. I'm not even talking about the fans that would bash any players for no reason because they think he's not performing or isn't as good as he should be for the money that Molson is paying him, (like if it was peoples money - it's just a business at the end). We've seen players get exchanged a have success in other teams. There's a countless number of examples. So why is Montreal such a big problem for most of the players? I watched so many games cheering for the habs when they used to be first in division in the beg. of the season a while ago. Every time I go play hockey I see people leaving to go see the game of the habs, etc, etc.. The team has been god for some of the people. At some point everyone started to like the habs, whether it was a chinese guy from college or some random girl that never saw a puck in her life or an ice rink.
I always told those people "they keep losing, they suck...why would I waste my time?" . To enjoy hockey as some of them would say? A sport that they never played or are good at. I would even tell some of them, you should practice yourself..it is always more fun to play than watch. Now every game that habs lose I am closer and closer every NHL season to my thoughts that this team is destined to lose no matter who is playing or managing it. The only way they could win is by bringing over superstars and top coaches like Babcock. There's no other way this team could win. It is not like any of them would come here anyway, who wants to deal with the taxes? Montreal will never spend more than 8 million a year for a top player anyway. Sigh, I hope people realize how bad this team is and that they won't win the stanley cup in the next 20 years unless there's a war.
I always told those people "they keep losing, they suck...why would I waste my time?" . To enjoy hockey as some of them would say? A sport that they never played or are good at. I would even tell some of them, you should practice yourself..it is always more fun to play than watch. Now every game that habs lose I am closer and closer every NHL season to my thoughts that this team is destined to lose no matter who is playing or managing it. The only way they could win is by bringing over superstars and top coaches like Babcock. There's no other way this team could win. It is not like any of them would come here anyway, who wants to deal with the taxes? Montreal will never spend more than 8 million a year for a top player anyway. Sigh, I hope people realize how bad this team is and that they won't win the stanley cup in the next 20 years unless there's a war.
And I ask again, what does a post relative to a former player have to do with what is wrong with the current teams season? Your response is lame and a stretch to save your board vanity at best. Give it up.
And telling me what to do?!? Bwahaha...I don't think so. Who the hell do you think you are keyboard cowboy...?! You obviously missed school on the day they had the "Just shut the f%$# up when you are wrong and move on" class. I can't believe you are still defending your mistake...are you that clueless? Let alone that classless
. In my day, we used to have blanket parties out in back of the gym for guys like you......
The thread's title says it all...I don't give a crap about your transparent ramblings in the first post.
Thanks for the reply though...shows me just how much I get under your skin...:eyebrows:...don't know why, oh yeah...the truth hurts...:thumb:.
Well, kinda my point...he certainly displayed more class in this case than you did.
And telling me what to do?!? Bwahaha...I don't think so. Who the hell do you think you are keyboard cowboy...?! You obviously missed school on the day they had the "Just shut the f%$# up when you are wrong and move on" class. I can't believe you are still defending your mistake...are you that clueless? Let alone that classless
. In my day, we used to have blanket parties out in back of the gym for guys like you......The thread's title says it all...I don't give a crap about your transparent ramblings in the first post.
Thanks for the reply though...shows me just how much I get under your skin...:eyebrows:...don't know why
, oh yeah...the truth hurts...:thumb:.Please refer to the disclaimer of this tread:
Dedicated to le bleu, blanc. rouge. This thread is dedicated to what has gone wrong all season long to this once-great franchise, now one of the most poorly run professional franchises on the planet.
If you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen. If you are too thin-skinned to participate in this thread, don't. If you do not have a sense of humor, it's not my problem & you should keep away from this thread. You may not like what you read. The truth hurts. You've been warned.
____________________________________________
Where is it written that this tread's purpose is to 'degredate' the Habs? This is a conclusion that YOU made. The disclaimer is clear: it's dedicated to the blue, blanc, rouge....the Habs. It doesn't always have to be negative, however, considering that they've spent pretty much the entire season near the basement (and are now IN the basement), it's kind of difficult to find positive things about their season.
So if you're so high & mighty, Mr. 47, why didn't you take the initiative & post the story on Beliveau in the other hockey threads if you felt that this isn't the place for it? Look who's talking about having no class! Once again, you're talking out of your ass, and you obviously do not have the gonads to be a rational participant in this thread. On top of that, he had a stroke. He didn't die. Hundreds of thousands of people have strokes on a daily basis, and there is no age limit for strokes. Some people pass away from complications due to strokes, others make complete recoveries. As far as i know, Believeau will be sent back home in a few days. I hope so. Heck, someone still owes me an autographed photo from him.
Now, you seem to enjoy participating in the Leafs 'death watch" thread, so may i suggest to you that you go back posting in that thread or in the other useless threads? Now go post in the lame Jason "I dumped my wife to fuck Heidi Watney" Varitek thread. You'll be much happier there.
Well, kinda my point...he certainly displayed more class in this case than you did.
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All-time Habs vs Leafs? No contest
To the throng of Maple Leaf supporters shoehorned into the Air Canada Centre on Saturday night, watching the ceremony honouring the leading scorer in franchise history will be a special moment indeed.
A well-deserved moment that Mats Sundin has definitely earned.
At the same time, you have to wonder what will be going through the minds of long-time Montreal Canadiens staff members, media and observers when they see Sundin’s banner being hoisted prior to the game.
Once it takes its rightful place in the rafters, it will fittingly dangle among those of such all-time Maple Leaf greats as Borje Salming, Darryl Sittler, Johnny Bower, Doug Gilmour, Wendel Clark, Turk Broda, Hap Day, Red Kelly, King Clancy, Tim Horton, Charlie Conacher, Ted Kennedy, George Armstrong, Frank Mahovlich, Ace Bailey and Bill Barilko.
Question is, are any of those players better than, say, one of the top five Montreal Canadien players of all time?
Even the top 10?
For Habs followers who have witnessed similar festivities in Montreal for legends such as Maurice (The Rocket) Richard, Jean Beliveau and Guy Lafleur, where would Sundin have fit in the pecking order had he worn the bleu blanc et rouge instead of Leafs blue and white?
Let the debate begin.
Keep in mind that this is a very polarizing issue. Leaf fans and Canadiens supporters have been at each other’s throats for so long, you would swear the rivalry dates back to the days of Upper and Lower Canada, even though we all know hockey’s two most storied franchises didn’t sprout up until long after those titles had been changed to Ontario and Quebec.
As such, there will be no shortage of emails and tweets of disagreement. So be it. That’s what happens when arguments are made based on opinion, not fact.
Having said that, it says here that no Maple Leaf player would crack the Habs’ all-time top 5.
Who would you replace? The Rocket? Le Gros Bill? Guy? Howie Morenz? Doug Harvey? With apologies to the likes of the Dave Keons and Syl Apps, who easily were stars themselves, there isn’t one Leaf who would usurp this scribe’s five best Canadiens, a list that includes Richard, Beliveau, Lafleur, Harvey and Morenz, the Stratford Streak.
Even in their respective eras, Keon was overshadowed by Beliveau, Sittler by Lafleur. And there are those of us who strongly feel that the Rocket belongs with Gretzky, Lemieux, Orr and Howe in any conversation about the best players ever to grace an NHL ice surface.
If you expand the list past the top five, it’s still a grey area.
Take goaltenders, for example. When it comes to the Leafs, Broda, Bower and Terry Sawchuk are among the game’s elite and are all in the Hall of Fame. Sawchuk, to be fair, is probably better known for his time in Detroit than in Toronto.
Having said that, is that trio better than Montreal’s troika of Jacques Plante, Patrick Roy and Ken Dryden? If you don’t believe Dryden belongs there, you could always insert Bill Durnan, who won four consecutive Vezina Trophies until Broda ended the streak in 1947-48.
On the blue line, Leaf supporters can make a legitimate argument for the inclusion of Hall of Famer Borje Salming. Fair enough. But whenever Salming stepped onto the ice at the Montreal Forum, he could look across at Guy Lapointe, Serge Savard and Larry Robinson, three defencemen who also would go on to be inducted into the Hall.
Harvey versus Horton? While you could make legitimate cases for both, consider that the Hockey News voted Harvey as the second-highest ranked defenceman behind Orr in its Top 100 NHL Players of All Time.
Up front, the likes of Sundin, Keon, Sittler, Gilmour, Apps, Mahovlich, Armstrong, Conacher and Busher Jackson, among others, deserve respect and consideration. Then again, so do some of the Hab forwards we haven’t mentioned, guys like Henri RIchard, Jacques Lemaire, Steve Shutt, Yvan Cournoyer, Aurele Joliat, Elmer Lach, Toe Blake and Bernie (Boom Boom) Geoffrion.
It’s a fun debate to have. At the same time, when it comes to all-time greats, it’s obvious that the Habs come out ahead in this argument.
[email protected]
To the throng of Maple Leaf supporters shoehorned into the Air Canada Centre on Saturday night, watching the ceremony honouring the leading scorer in franchise history will be a special moment indeed.
A well-deserved moment that Mats Sundin has definitely earned.
At the same time, you have to wonder what will be going through the minds of long-time Montreal Canadiens staff members, media and observers when they see Sundin’s banner being hoisted prior to the game.
Once it takes its rightful place in the rafters, it will fittingly dangle among those of such all-time Maple Leaf greats as Borje Salming, Darryl Sittler, Johnny Bower, Doug Gilmour, Wendel Clark, Turk Broda, Hap Day, Red Kelly, King Clancy, Tim Horton, Charlie Conacher, Ted Kennedy, George Armstrong, Frank Mahovlich, Ace Bailey and Bill Barilko.
Question is, are any of those players better than, say, one of the top five Montreal Canadien players of all time?
Even the top 10?
For Habs followers who have witnessed similar festivities in Montreal for legends such as Maurice (The Rocket) Richard, Jean Beliveau and Guy Lafleur, where would Sundin have fit in the pecking order had he worn the bleu blanc et rouge instead of Leafs blue and white?
Let the debate begin.
Keep in mind that this is a very polarizing issue. Leaf fans and Canadiens supporters have been at each other’s throats for so long, you would swear the rivalry dates back to the days of Upper and Lower Canada, even though we all know hockey’s two most storied franchises didn’t sprout up until long after those titles had been changed to Ontario and Quebec.
As such, there will be no shortage of emails and tweets of disagreement. So be it. That’s what happens when arguments are made based on opinion, not fact.
Having said that, it says here that no Maple Leaf player would crack the Habs’ all-time top 5.
Who would you replace? The Rocket? Le Gros Bill? Guy? Howie Morenz? Doug Harvey? With apologies to the likes of the Dave Keons and Syl Apps, who easily were stars themselves, there isn’t one Leaf who would usurp this scribe’s five best Canadiens, a list that includes Richard, Beliveau, Lafleur, Harvey and Morenz, the Stratford Streak.
Even in their respective eras, Keon was overshadowed by Beliveau, Sittler by Lafleur. And there are those of us who strongly feel that the Rocket belongs with Gretzky, Lemieux, Orr and Howe in any conversation about the best players ever to grace an NHL ice surface.
If you expand the list past the top five, it’s still a grey area.
Take goaltenders, for example. When it comes to the Leafs, Broda, Bower and Terry Sawchuk are among the game’s elite and are all in the Hall of Fame. Sawchuk, to be fair, is probably better known for his time in Detroit than in Toronto.
Having said that, is that trio better than Montreal’s troika of Jacques Plante, Patrick Roy and Ken Dryden? If you don’t believe Dryden belongs there, you could always insert Bill Durnan, who won four consecutive Vezina Trophies until Broda ended the streak in 1947-48.
On the blue line, Leaf supporters can make a legitimate argument for the inclusion of Hall of Famer Borje Salming. Fair enough. But whenever Salming stepped onto the ice at the Montreal Forum, he could look across at Guy Lapointe, Serge Savard and Larry Robinson, three defencemen who also would go on to be inducted into the Hall.
Harvey versus Horton? While you could make legitimate cases for both, consider that the Hockey News voted Harvey as the second-highest ranked defenceman behind Orr in its Top 100 NHL Players of All Time.
Up front, the likes of Sundin, Keon, Sittler, Gilmour, Apps, Mahovlich, Armstrong, Conacher and Busher Jackson, among others, deserve respect and consideration. Then again, so do some of the Hab forwards we haven’t mentioned, guys like Henri RIchard, Jacques Lemaire, Steve Shutt, Yvan Cournoyer, Aurele Joliat, Elmer Lach, Toe Blake and Bernie (Boom Boom) Geoffrion.
It’s a fun debate to have. At the same time, when it comes to all-time greats, it’s obvious that the Habs come out ahead in this argument.
[email protected]
Typical last post of habs fans in general, as always, living in the past. :lol:
Nice to see the habs are now trying to live up to the bruins as far as the thug stuff goes, but do tell Ryan White that boston does it alone, they dont need a teammate to hold the other player while they beat him, ala White tonight. Total disgrace to hockey that kid is. Hope he gets 5 games at least.
Nice to see the habs are now trying to live up to the bruins as far as the thug stuff goes, but do tell Ryan White that boston does it alone, they dont need a teammate to hold the other player while they beat him, ala White tonight. Total disgrace to hockey that kid is. Hope he gets 5 games at least.
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I totally agree with you & your analysis is spot on! White is a little rat/cheapshot artist....what he did tonight was an embarrassment to the entire league!!!
I didnt see the game but heard that he mouted off in a Marlies/bulldogs game recently and Kadri decked him. Could this be the type of RAT that Burke was saying the NHL can do without? White will fight but tonights display was pathetic, beating on a player as he was being held by another mtl player, just sickening.
Say what? The fact that the distinguised & classy Mr. Jean Beliveau having a stroke isn't something negative about the current hab season? Come on, 47 !!! The current hab season has been a disaster since the opening game, and now, their top ambassador & one of their best players in franchise history has a stroke.....what could be worse? It's just another sign of a disastrous season! I'd say the same thing if it would have happened to Bobby Orr, Phil Esposito, or Gerry Cheevers. It's just like..."Okay, we suck, what next? OMG! One of our legendary players just had a stroke! When will this season end? When will all the bad luck we've been having come to an end?" Get it?
Ill try to resume the situation in a couple words...
Pierre Gauthier... Decisions.... Scott Gomez.... Andrei Markov
You have probably the biggest problems...
Why, oh WHY, they got Gomez at the price he was is beyong me... That would be like if your friend brough a wrecked car for 5000$, that would be stupid, but if you buy it from it at the same price, your even worse than him...
Andrei Markov : Will they understand he is done? Its not a matter of " when he will be back" its a matter of "will he play 5 or 6 game this season" The guy come back, get barely hit, and is out for another season.... cmon... stop hoping and get better defenses...
Gauthier made some terrible decision, and i still have that old artwork that was in 7 jours back in the days of Alain Vigneault... It was saying "i sure want to put the time back together, but im missing some pieces" (in french) and it showed him trying to put back a puzzle(the logo) ...
Im all for young potential like Leblanc and Geoffrion(tought its a damn shame he does interview in english...) and even taking guys like Staubitz at the wavers... why not... but PLEASE let go the old ones that are done and over but still receive horribly hight salaries.
Pierre Gauthier... Decisions.... Scott Gomez.... Andrei Markov
You have probably the biggest problems...
Why, oh WHY, they got Gomez at the price he was is beyong me... That would be like if your friend brough a wrecked car for 5000$, that would be stupid, but if you buy it from it at the same price, your even worse than him...
Andrei Markov : Will they understand he is done? Its not a matter of " when he will be back" its a matter of "will he play 5 or 6 game this season" The guy come back, get barely hit, and is out for another season.... cmon... stop hoping and get better defenses...
Gauthier made some terrible decision, and i still have that old artwork that was in 7 jours back in the days of Alain Vigneault... It was saying "i sure want to put the time back together, but im missing some pieces" (in french) and it showed him trying to put back a puzzle(the logo) ...
Im all for young potential like Leblanc and Geoffrion(tought its a damn shame he does interview in english...) and even taking guys like Staubitz at the wavers... why not... but PLEASE let go the old ones that are done and over but still receive horribly hight salaries.
HM, i agree with you. However, you forgot to mention Tomas Kaberle. Obtaining this overpriced bum wasn't exactly a brilliant idea. Their stuck with this bum for another two seasons!
And let's face it: trading a player like Cammalleri for Bourque wasn't exactly brilliant. Okay, Cammalleri's contract was the main reason. But for Bourque?? The guy is a big floater!! He plays 1 out of 5 games!!! Cammalleri can get you 30-40 goals in most seasons.....but the other guy? Oh boy!!
As for Staubitz, well, he's on an expiring contract, so he came cheap & they don't have to re-sign him next season. But didn't they admit they made a mistake by releasing Georges Laracque by picking up Staubitz? What does this big stiff do that big Georges didn't? On top of that, they kept on paying Laracque for another season AFTER THEY RELEASED HIM. I don't get it.
And let's face it: trading a player like Cammalleri for Bourque wasn't exactly brilliant. Okay, Cammalleri's contract was the main reason. But for Bourque?? The guy is a big floater!! He plays 1 out of 5 games!!! Cammalleri can get you 30-40 goals in most seasons.....but the other guy? Oh boy!!
As for Staubitz, well, he's on an expiring contract, so he came cheap & they don't have to re-sign him next season. But didn't they admit they made a mistake by releasing Georges Laracque by picking up Staubitz? What does this big stiff do that big Georges didn't? On top of that, they kept on paying Laracque for another season AFTER THEY RELEASED HIM. I don't get it.
MONTREAL - A city – and a country – held its breath this week with news that 80-year-old Canadiens icon Jean Béliveau had been hospitalized after suffering a stroke at his home on Monday night.
Béliveau’s wife, Élise, told The Gazette’s Dave Stubbs on Thursday afternoon that the Hall of Famer was speaking, laughing and regaining some strength while he undergoes tests and remains under close obversation by specialists. She added that the family appreciates the outpouring of concern and affection being expressed, but asked that the family’s privacy be respected.
There has certainly been no shortage of prayers and hopes from hockey fans across Canada that Béliveau will continue on the road to recovery.
It seems like just about everyone who has ever been lucky enough to meet Béliveau in person has a story to tell about one of the great gentlemen in the history of sports.
One of the best descriptions I ever read about Béliveau came from an American, Steve Rushin, in Sports Illustrated after he attended a Canadiens game at the Bell Centre in 2003.
Wrote Rushin: “A ceremonial first puck was dropped by Canadiens legend Jean Béliveau, resplendent in a perfectly tailored suit, his silver coif immaculate. (If God got a $500 haircut, he’d look like this.) Beneath 24 Stanley Cup banners Béliveau gave a regal half wave. There were 21,273 people in the stands, and we all roared like the MGM lion. My skin, I noticed, was pebbled like a plucked chicken’s.”
The first time I met Béliveau was at the Forum in 1991 as a Gazette reporter. I was assigned to write a story about the Hockey Friendship Program, which Béliveau was a part of for 20 years, bringing together English and French youngsters from across the country in an attempt to gain a better understanding of each other’s culture. Béliveau promised me an interview as soon as he finished signing autographs. I stood there in awe for at least half an hour.
“Not one youngster, or parent, was refused a photograph or autograph as Béliveau patiently signed hockey gloves, sticks, hats, and anything else that ink would stick to,” I would write later. “At one point his pen ran out of ink, but it was no problem as he casually reached inside his jacket pocket for a new one without missing a beat.”
Over the years, I have received quite a few Letters to the Sports Editor with stories about Béliveau.
In October 2006, Cliff Butler of Léry wrote: “Several years ago, I was staying at The Baycrest in Vancouver and having breakfast in the dining room with some friends. The room was quite crowded. Suddenly, there was a lull in the conversation noticeable enough to make people look up. And then there was almost complete silence as almost everyone watched as Jean Béliveau walked into the room to get a table. A silent tribute to this great man, who did nothing but walk into a room with a pleasant smile on his face.”
In November 2006, Laval’s Frima Rosen wrote about how Béliveau had aided the East Foundation, which helps provide therapies for autistic children. Rosen wrote about how her 7-year-old grandson was mildly autistic and her son, Ian, wrote a letter to Béliveau to see if he could help the charity.
“Well, excitement reigned one morning at our business office when my husband picked up the phone and was told it was Jean Béliveau,” Rosen wrote. “Ian had a wonderful conversation with Jean, who said he would help in whatever way he could. Ian asked if he would sign a replica No. 4 hockey jersey and he said ‘with pleasure.’ As a little girl, Béliveau was my hero. He was as special as a movie star to the girls of my generation and today, all these years later, he is still my hero. Last Saturday night, the signed Béliveau jersey was auctioned off at the East Foundation Gala and raised well over $1,000 for this most worthy cause in helping special-needs children.”
Another letter came in January 2009 from Sharon Biskaborn of London, Ont., who wrote: “Although I left Montreal in 1976, my heart has always been linked to this great hockey player. As a youngster, I ran down Ste. Catherine St. calling ‘Mr. Béliveau! Mr. Béliveau!’ and he stopped and waited for me to catch up. I got his autograph and stole a kiss.”
One of my favourite Béliveau stories involves former Gazette entertainment editor Jim Baine, who wrote a first-person article about his experience in January 1989 under the headline: “How we went out to dinner with Jean Béliveau”.
Baine grew up in Toronto, but Béliveau was a hero to his entire family.
“When I was 7,” Baine wrote, “I could whip off just about any statistic you could ask for about Jean Béliveau.”
In March 1984, shortly after Baine moved to Montreal, his father decided to come for a visit, along with his daughter from Vancouver, and wrote a letter to Béliveau asking if he and his wife would like to join them for dinner. Baine’s father called Jim before the trip and stunned him with the news he had just got off the phone with Béliveau’s secretary, who said “he would be delighted” to have dinner with them.
The Béliveaus met the Baines at a downtown Montreal restaurant and they all sat down for dinner.
“I didn’t say a word for half an hour,” Baine wrote. “My jaw was in my lap.”
Baine would eventually loosen up and they enjoyed a lovely dinner and conversation. When they left the restaurant, Baine wrote: “People in cars along Ste. Catherine St. honked and people on the sidewalk stared in awe as the Béliveaus made their way down the block.”
Baine added there were three things that made him and thousands of other Canadian boys worship Béliveau: “Intelligence. Grace. And class.”
My wife had an opportunity to meet Béliveau about 15 years ago when I was playing for a media team in a charity hockey game against some NHL old-timers. I knew Béliveau was going to be the referee and left instructions with my wife to meet me at ice level with a camera after the first period because I wanted to get a photo taken with him. Béliveau happily posed for the photo and then asked if the woman with the camera was my wife. When I said yes, he skated over to her and spoke with her for about five minutes.
During the car ride home after the game, my wife was still beaming when she said: “I love you very much, but I would leave you in a second for that man.”
I think she was joking.
The truth is that everybody loves Jean Béliveau, and how many people can you say that about in today’s world?
Get well, Jean.
Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/spor...au+including/6242795/story.html#ixzz1o0ZDUN2J
Béliveau’s wife, Élise, told The Gazette’s Dave Stubbs on Thursday afternoon that the Hall of Famer was speaking, laughing and regaining some strength while he undergoes tests and remains under close obversation by specialists. She added that the family appreciates the outpouring of concern and affection being expressed, but asked that the family’s privacy be respected.
There has certainly been no shortage of prayers and hopes from hockey fans across Canada that Béliveau will continue on the road to recovery.
It seems like just about everyone who has ever been lucky enough to meet Béliveau in person has a story to tell about one of the great gentlemen in the history of sports.
One of the best descriptions I ever read about Béliveau came from an American, Steve Rushin, in Sports Illustrated after he attended a Canadiens game at the Bell Centre in 2003.
Wrote Rushin: “A ceremonial first puck was dropped by Canadiens legend Jean Béliveau, resplendent in a perfectly tailored suit, his silver coif immaculate. (If God got a $500 haircut, he’d look like this.) Beneath 24 Stanley Cup banners Béliveau gave a regal half wave. There were 21,273 people in the stands, and we all roared like the MGM lion. My skin, I noticed, was pebbled like a plucked chicken’s.”
The first time I met Béliveau was at the Forum in 1991 as a Gazette reporter. I was assigned to write a story about the Hockey Friendship Program, which Béliveau was a part of for 20 years, bringing together English and French youngsters from across the country in an attempt to gain a better understanding of each other’s culture. Béliveau promised me an interview as soon as he finished signing autographs. I stood there in awe for at least half an hour.
“Not one youngster, or parent, was refused a photograph or autograph as Béliveau patiently signed hockey gloves, sticks, hats, and anything else that ink would stick to,” I would write later. “At one point his pen ran out of ink, but it was no problem as he casually reached inside his jacket pocket for a new one without missing a beat.”
Over the years, I have received quite a few Letters to the Sports Editor with stories about Béliveau.
In October 2006, Cliff Butler of Léry wrote: “Several years ago, I was staying at The Baycrest in Vancouver and having breakfast in the dining room with some friends. The room was quite crowded. Suddenly, there was a lull in the conversation noticeable enough to make people look up. And then there was almost complete silence as almost everyone watched as Jean Béliveau walked into the room to get a table. A silent tribute to this great man, who did nothing but walk into a room with a pleasant smile on his face.”
In November 2006, Laval’s Frima Rosen wrote about how Béliveau had aided the East Foundation, which helps provide therapies for autistic children. Rosen wrote about how her 7-year-old grandson was mildly autistic and her son, Ian, wrote a letter to Béliveau to see if he could help the charity.
“Well, excitement reigned one morning at our business office when my husband picked up the phone and was told it was Jean Béliveau,” Rosen wrote. “Ian had a wonderful conversation with Jean, who said he would help in whatever way he could. Ian asked if he would sign a replica No. 4 hockey jersey and he said ‘with pleasure.’ As a little girl, Béliveau was my hero. He was as special as a movie star to the girls of my generation and today, all these years later, he is still my hero. Last Saturday night, the signed Béliveau jersey was auctioned off at the East Foundation Gala and raised well over $1,000 for this most worthy cause in helping special-needs children.”
Another letter came in January 2009 from Sharon Biskaborn of London, Ont., who wrote: “Although I left Montreal in 1976, my heart has always been linked to this great hockey player. As a youngster, I ran down Ste. Catherine St. calling ‘Mr. Béliveau! Mr. Béliveau!’ and he stopped and waited for me to catch up. I got his autograph and stole a kiss.”
One of my favourite Béliveau stories involves former Gazette entertainment editor Jim Baine, who wrote a first-person article about his experience in January 1989 under the headline: “How we went out to dinner with Jean Béliveau”.
Baine grew up in Toronto, but Béliveau was a hero to his entire family.
“When I was 7,” Baine wrote, “I could whip off just about any statistic you could ask for about Jean Béliveau.”
In March 1984, shortly after Baine moved to Montreal, his father decided to come for a visit, along with his daughter from Vancouver, and wrote a letter to Béliveau asking if he and his wife would like to join them for dinner. Baine’s father called Jim before the trip and stunned him with the news he had just got off the phone with Béliveau’s secretary, who said “he would be delighted” to have dinner with them.
The Béliveaus met the Baines at a downtown Montreal restaurant and they all sat down for dinner.
“I didn’t say a word for half an hour,” Baine wrote. “My jaw was in my lap.”
Baine would eventually loosen up and they enjoyed a lovely dinner and conversation. When they left the restaurant, Baine wrote: “People in cars along Ste. Catherine St. honked and people on the sidewalk stared in awe as the Béliveaus made their way down the block.”
Baine added there were three things that made him and thousands of other Canadian boys worship Béliveau: “Intelligence. Grace. And class.”
My wife had an opportunity to meet Béliveau about 15 years ago when I was playing for a media team in a charity hockey game against some NHL old-timers. I knew Béliveau was going to be the referee and left instructions with my wife to meet me at ice level with a camera after the first period because I wanted to get a photo taken with him. Béliveau happily posed for the photo and then asked if the woman with the camera was my wife. When I said yes, he skated over to her and spoke with her for about five minutes.
During the car ride home after the game, my wife was still beaming when she said: “I love you very much, but I would leave you in a second for that man.”
I think she was joking.
The truth is that everybody loves Jean Béliveau, and how many people can you say that about in today’s world?
Get well, Jean.
Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/spor...au+including/6242795/story.html#ixzz1o0ZDUN2J
Anyone who won multiple cups with 6 teams let alone having the market on a certain province of players all to themselves in the league is nothing to brag about, the other five teams as well. Consider the habs under the Curse of Roy and lets hope it lasts as long as the Curse of Babe Ruth did.
Let me remind your feeble brain that since expansion the Habs have won 9 Stanley cups to the Laffs 0.
Let me remind you also that the Laffs also had the market of a certain province all to themselves. Your arguments are just so lame and so pathetic. Typical loser mentality.
And there you go again talking of the past lol... I knew you'd bite, your too easy. Btw, the CURSE OF ROY is going on 19 strong years now :help: :yield:
The Leafs will win a cup before Mtl wins one again, bank on it, :hail: Joet :hail: promised me.
The Leafs will win a cup before Mtl wins one again, bank on it, :hail: Joet :hail: promised me.
Now now John...... no need for insults and name calling, lol... I know it's been a hard season to be a habs fan but just bend, dont break my man.
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