The NHL defenceman who scored more points than any other defender in the league's history (1,579), paid a visit to the Energy City last week as the main speaker at the Sportsman's Dinner held in Affinity Place.
Ray Bourque, No. 77 of the Boston Bruins and for the final two years of his 22-year NHL career, a Colorado Avalanche, entertained a crowd of about 450 people during the fundraising event for the Estevan Bruins Jr. A squad.
Bourque retold the story of how agonizing it was to leave the Bruins to join the Avalanche who had a legitimate chance at winning the coveted Stanley Cup, something that the Bruins had never been able to accomplish during Bourque's tenure with them.
The dream came true in his second year with the Avalanche as they captured the cup, defeating the defending champion New Jersey Devils in a seven-game final.
Born and raised in Montreal, Bourque said he was a dedicated Canadien fan until he was drafted by the Bruins, in the first round, eighth overall in the 1979 junior draft.
He told the audience about his first modest contract that called for a $100,000 signing bonus and $100,000 salary, which manager Harry Sinden agreed to under more than a little duress and hints of threats from Bourque's former junior coach cum agent.
Joining the Bruins as a quiet but talented 18-year-old, Bourque said he learned a lot about being a professional hockey player by the team captain Wayne Cashman and the likes of Terry O'Reilly, "one of the toughest guys and hardest workers I've ever seen. I tried to follow his good work habits," said Bourque about O'Reilly's influence.
Later on, he said another defenceman, Brad Park, took him into his confidence as the youngster began to relax and started to enjoy the journey as a professional hockey player.
In his first season, Bourque served notice that he was going to be a force to reckon with by posting 17 goals and 65 points, earning him the rookie of the year award.
Bourque said that while posting big scoring numbers was one important part of his history on ice, there were other moments he will recall fondly for the rest of his life. He said the night that he joined with only a few others to set up the formal retirement of sweater No. 7 to honour former Bruin Phil Esposito was a touchstone event, because it was being done in a conspiratorial manner.
Bourque was first assigned No. 29 and then No. 7, Espositio's former number when he joined the Bruins as a starter on defence.
Espositio had left the Bruins under a cloud of disagreement with Bruin management, but eventually the air cleared and unknown to Espo, on the night that the sweater was to be retired, Bourque wore the number during pre-game warm-ups. He then slipped into the trainer's room and donned a No. 77 sweater under the 7 and just prior to the start of the game, Esposito was brought out and Bourque stripped off 7 to reveal his new No. 77 and handed the important No. 7 back to the former Bruin centreman.
"It's the first and only time we saw Esposito speechless," he said with a chuckle.
Bourque recalled another touching moment involving a former rising rookie sensation Normand Leveille who had joined the club. Being another Quebec phenom, Leveille didn't speak English so Bourque, who was comfortably bi-lingual, took him under his wing. Not too long after that, Leveille suffered a debilitating stroke and his short hockey career was quickly over.
"But in 1995, we had the last hurrah in the old Boston Gardens before moving into the new rink. So we were all ready for our final memories of that old barn in a game against Montreal. Normand wanted to have that last skate on the Garden's ice with us and we gave it to him. He hung on to that stick and Bobby Orr and I and other guys guided him around that ice. Those are the moments, I remember, not the numbers."
Bourque then recounted the years when the Bruins had near-misses on a road to the Stanley Cup, but never achieved that ultimate goal in a hockey player's career.
"You have to be tough to achieve this goal and at 38-years-old I had a hard time getting to that place, and I needed a place where they could challenge," he said.
That was the Avalanche with goaltender Patrick Roy and players like Joe Sakic and Milan Hejduk. He said on Day 1 in Colorado the bar was set high and the team finally made it there with him on the second try, and he had the distinct honour of being the first player to hoist the cup, even before Captain Sakic.
"I remember the last three minutes of the game, we were up 3-1 and they kept throwing me out there, and I was nearly collapsing yet trying to stay in the moment and when that game ended I experienced an incredible flashback of all the great players I had ever played with including Team Canada and the Olympic team," he said.
Bourque got to take the Stanley Cup home with him that night and he and his friends placed it on the curb near his home and had a party with it until 5 a.m.
He got the cup a little later on that summer and after clearing it with City Hall, took the cup to Boston where he was welcomed "home" by about 20,000 hockey fans.
Being an NHL player is a great experience he said later during a question and answer period with broadcaster Rod Pederson. "You get to act like a 15-year-old every day yet treat people the right way."
In response to a question regarding the importance of being a team captain, a distinction he wore a lot, Bourque said "It's tough when your ship is going the wrong way. You gotta rally the troops and gotta get the guys to believe in themselves again. It can be tough."
But it can also be rewarding, as evidenced by the fact that Bourque currently manages his own charitable foundation, owns a high-end restaurant in Boston and continues to motivate young hockey players to be the best they can be.
