Wanna blog? Start your own hockey blog with My HockeyBuzz. Register for free today!
 

Hockey 911 - What They Said

November 17, 2020, 9:34 PM ET [296 Comments]
Karine Hains
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Follow me on Twitter by clicking the following link for all Habs updates!

Gregory Charles hosted the evening and interacted with the numerous guests: Graham Rybend, Dr. Mulder, Shea Weber, Nick Suzuki, Claude Julien, Brendan Gallagher and Laurent Duvernay-Tardif. The event started at 18:30 and went on for quite some time so here are my highlights from the session.

Graham Rynbend: The Habs head trainer was a core piece of the team this summer, working in the bubble was quite a drastic change and it came with a lot of responsibilities. There was a lot of testing, a lot of cleaning and they had to work in three places; the hotel, the practice rink and the arena. He said it was really intense and that it took him quite a few weeks to fall back into a normal rhythm after coming out of the bubble.

Chantal Machabée: The RDS journalist told us about the worst injuries she had seen in hockey. The first one in 2000 when Trent McLeary was hit by a shot in the neck and his larynx exploded. From the injury to the start of the operation, only 22 minutes elapsed and that is probably what saved his life. The second one was the famous Chara/Pacioretty incident in 2011, she was in Afghanistan at the time visiting troops with Habs alumni. They were watching the game in an auditorium and when Pacioretty went down, no one spoke anymore, everyone was shocked and concerned. She said that Mario Tremblay was fighting back tears, it’s one thing for fans to see their favorite players go down with an injury but it’s quite another when you know those players personally.

Shea Weber: The captain was worried about going to the bubble to play the latest playoffs, he was skeptical as to whether it would work but he wasn’t worried. Weber also mentions that it’s very weird to not be playing in the Fall and that he cannot wait to be back on the ice with the guys. He even chuckled a bit when he spoke of Nick Suzuki’s play this Summer, saying “I don’t know what he did during the Covid break, but for sure he did a lot of stickhandling in his basement!”. Clearly, the youngster impressed him not only by the offensive side of his game but because he plays both ends of the ice and he still has so much growth potential. Finally, he added that the medical staff’s input is just so important to what they do, the players get paid a lot of money to perform, but if they aren’t healthy, they just can’t and they owe a lot to all medical staff.

Nick Suzuki: For the rookie, this Summer was special, he had no idea what to expect going into the bubble, but once he got in the swing of things and got used to a certain routine, it really was just all about playing hockey games, but without fans in the seats. Suzuki also said that it was incredibly exciting to watch the moves the team has made this offseason and that he cannot put into words how excited he is to get back on the ice with the team and meet the new guys. He’s been lucky so far and hasn’t experience any big injuries, but he states that it can be quite tough mentally when teammates go down to injuries.

Claude Julien: A lot has been said about the cardiac event he experienced in Toronto, but tonight, the coach put the spotlight on Rynbend’s and Dr. Mulder’s work and involvement in convincing him to go to hospital, even if it did mean leaving his team and not being able to coach the rest of the series against Philly. The coach is looking forward to getting back on the ice and show what his new look team is made of. For now, he says that we’re seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and that we should make the most of the time we have before life becomes oh so fast paced again.

Kirk Muller: Interestingly, Muller had never watched the 93 Stanley Cup playoffs so he enjoyed the broadcasts during the pandemic, watching it with his family. He said that he tries to hide those tapes from today’s players because they don’t want to see how slow they played back then (funny because that’s exactly what I thought watching it). He also said that the worst injury of his career came on his very first shift of the first game of the series with the Nordiques in ’93, he tore some cartilage in his collarbone and if it hadn’t been for Dr. Mulder, he wouldn’t have been in the line-up after that.

Brendan Gallagher: As per usual, the diminutive winger was the most vocal guest, you can tell that Brendan Gallagher enjoys interviews and answering all kind of questions. For him, these playoffs were different, he had to deal with injuries from the get go, and getting medical treatment in there meant wearing the full Covid protective gear. The medical staff was great and made sure that everyone was safe at all times. When asked what went through his mind as he stayed slumped against the board after the Niskanen hit he laughed and said not much really I was just trying to collect myself… was lucky to fall sat down like I did, it prevented blood from getting everywhere. Obviously, I knew something was wrong with my teeth, but I made sure the ref knew I was both upset and injured on the play and then, well, I just got on with it.



He’s had several role models of guys who gave their all through injuries in Montreal, he mentions that when he lived with Josh Gorges, sometimes, he could barely move at home because of the pain he was experiencing, but he would always find a way to play. Same for Brian Gionta who once nearly got his bicep ripped off and just kept going. Playing through the pain just comes with the territory but when you really get injured and you have to go under the knife, like with his hand for the first time, it’s really scary because you don’t know what to expect. For the second hand injury well, what he felt was anger first and foremost because he knew what was wrong and what was coming. Laughing, he said that everyone told him to just get out of the way, Price is played very well to stop pucks and that’s not what he should be doing. As for the jaw injury, he once again laughed saying that it was a near miracle that he made it to 28 years-old with all of his teeth considering his style of play. He’s lost one after the Niskanen hit and he has a few others that are dying right now, but that’s part of the risks of being a hockey player.

Gregory Charles also asked him what was scarier; a contract negotiation or a Weber slap shot? Gallagher simply replied that you don’t see the shot coming and it’s over in the blink of an eye, but negotiations are quite something. Even though it only lasted a few days, it seemed to drag on forever for him and it forced him to ask himself questions he didn’t want to answer such as would he be ok playing in another city? Putting on another jersey? He’s very grateful to Geoff Molson, Bergevin and his agent for getting it done and letting him sign a deal he couldn’t be happier with.

As for the upcoming season, he says that the Canadiens will have a tough challenge ahead of them. They want the ultimate prize, but they will have to make all the new pieces fit in a hurry and that won’t be easy in what looks increasingly likely to be a shorten season. Charles also asked him if he’s got friends on other teams because it sure doesn’t look like it watching him play, to this, Gallagher laughed once more and said that yes he does, but once the puck drops, there are no friends. He mentions Nate Thompson as a friend and said that once the series against the Flyers was over, the first thing he did was call him to make sure he was alright. He also said that while he has a lot of respect for Brad Marchand, he’s not as close to him as he was back when they won the World Championship with a smile. That being said, Boston is still his favourite team to play against, just a great rivalry and so much fun to play and win in TD Garden.

Finally, when he was asked about Alexander Romanov he said: “Oh he is good and so strong, he will push people around! He’s so excited to play in the league and he worked so hard this Summer in the bubble even though he knew he wasn’t going to play”.

As for Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, well, I’ll only say that he truly is an inspiration for so many people. The man already has a Superbowl to his name and is still so down to earth, so logical and eloquent, it’s a joy to hear him answer the questions that are thrown his way. It takes a special kind of human being to walk away from a year of NFL salary to help deal with the Covid pandemic and It’s absolutely brilliant that the NFL Hall of Fame has decided to put his scrubs and masks in its exhibition.



There you have it, hopefully, you enjoy reading these quotes. It was impossible to write everything that was said but it truly was an interesting evening and once again, I was impressed with how at ease Gallagher looks in front of cameras, this is definitely our next captain.
Join the Discussion: » 296 Comments » Post New Comment
More from Karine Hains
» Pregame: Canadiens vs Flyers
» In Hainsight: One for the Coach
» Pregame: Canadiens vs Avalanche
» In Hainsight: Canadiens Defeat the Cracked Kraken
» Pregame: Canadiens vs Kraken