By JD Lagrange – When the Canadiens received the Boston Bruins at the Bell Centre on Sunday night, it was a very emotional night. A tribute to Guy Lafleur, who had passed a couple of days before from a battle with cancer, followed by a 10 minutes standing ovation by the 21,000 plus fans gathered at the game. Players from both teams, as well as coaches and a few Canadiens Alumni, joined the crowd in paying their respect to Guy.
As we discussed just yesterday, it is very unfortunate that the refereeing in that game wrecked a perfectly memorable night. It was so bad, it took over social media discussions, taking away from what the true focus should have been: the passing of a Habs’ legend.
Gallagher the leader
The Canadiens’ players left it all on the ice on Sunday. As if having to beat a team 50 points ahead of them in the standing wasn’t enough, they battled through mind boggling officiating to build a come back from a 4-1 deficit in the third period. Unfortunately for them, with the Canadiens within one, Patrice Bergeron scored in the empty net to make the final score 5-3 Bruins.
After the game, Brendan Gallagher gathered his teammates and got them to skate with him to the end of the ice where Guy Lafleur’s banner was hanging, still lit by a spotlight. He insisted on his teammates to pay a last tribute to Guy, as players raised their sticks towards the banner in the rafters.
Gallagher’s initiative didn’t go unnoticed and after the game, coach Martin St-Louis had high praise for his veteran player.
“It was a huge sign of respect and I’m happy that Gally did that. You learn how to conduct yourself by watching the ones who were there before you. It’s important to pass it on to the next generation and it happened through what Gally did there.” ~ Martin St-Louis
More reading…
- Jordan Harris – Leaving A Good Impression by JD Lagrange
- About Last Night – Referees Ruin Lafleur Tribute Night by JD Lagrange
- The Future of Carey Price by Bob Trask
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