Winger backs his linemate
Published Wednesday November 11th, 2009
Hockey: Sea Dogs coach there to support Detroit teammate at induction ceremony
As his close friend Steve Yzerman stickhandled through a Hockey Hall of Fame acceptance speech more than two decades in the making, Gerard Gallant looked on with pride and admiration.
For nine years in Motown, Gallant, currently the head coach of the Saint John Sea Dogs, rode shotgun with Yzerman, providing a physical presence for a developing superstar and a rebuilding organization intent on winning the Stanley Cup.
So it seemed fitting that Gallant was among those seated front and centre as Yzerman headlined this year's class during Monday's annual induction ceremony in Toronto.
"Steve is a great player and to see him there, he was very proud," Gallant said after arriving back in Saint John Tuesday afternoon.
"His family was there and it was a well-deserved honour. Steve is a bashful guy and he doesn't like to talk about himself that much. He had a tough time and he looked pretty nervous up there."
Gallant and Yzerman have remained good friends since Gallant left the Wings for the Tampa Bay Lightning in 1993-94. They chat regularly about hockey affairs and Monday's event was another special chapter in their friendship.
"It was definitely a proud moment," Gallant said.
Yzerman isn't shy about singling out Gallant. In January 2007, when his number was being retired at the Joe Louis Arena, Yzerman cited Gallant as a key factor in helping the team establish itself as a Stanley Cup contender.
In the Detroit Free Press Tuesday, Yzerman recalled his start in Detroit, noting his early wingers.
"Playing with Paul MacLean and Gerard Gallant was a lot of fun," Yzerman said when asked what was his favourite line was as a Wing.
"We had success on the ice, but they were both really witty guys."
Yzerman, Luc Robitaille, Brett Hull and Brian Leetch were the four players inducted during Monday's event, along with Lou Lamoriello, the architect of the New Jersey Devils success, in the builders' category.
Gallant played with Yzerman in Detroit from the 1984-85 campaign to the 1992-93 season and scored 207 of his 211 goals in the big leagues during that span.
He also was part of the St. Louis-Detroit rivalry when Hull was at his goal-scoring best, skated regularly against Robitaille during his days in Los Angeles and Leetch, who starred with the New York Rangers.
"There were no battles with those guys," Gallant said. "I was just trying to catch those guys. They were skilled players, top notch, excellent players and any one of them was a no-doubter to be in the Hall of Fame.'
Monday was the first time Gallant attended an induction ceremony for the Hall and he was impressed.
"It touched every one of them so much," Gallant said. "They choked back their tears and they had some great speeches. It was definitely a proud moment for those guys. €¦€‰It was very exciting."
Gallant left Saint John Sunday evening after the Dogs downed the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies 6-3 at Harbour Station.
But because of the hectic schedule of activities, there was little time for meeting the new inductees.
However, he was able to chat with Yzerman's wife and family as well as and meet with many members of the Wings' organization.
He said each new inductee carried unique characteristics.
"Playing against Hull, he'd be laughing and joking with you the whole game," Gallant said. "Then he'd end up with two goals and two assists and he'd still be laughing after. He was a great player and he just liked to have fun."
He said Robitaille proved skeptics wrong, including many who questioned his ability to last in the National Hockey League after graduating from Hull of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
"Luc Robitaille was a guy who played the game hard. He wasn't supposed to be a good hockey player - (critics said) he couldn't skate, couldn't do this - and he ended up be one of the top scoring left-wingers of all time. He just had a knack for scoring goals and playing well."
As for Leetch, the meetings were less frequent because Detroit played against the Rangers just twice a year.
"He was a great player," Gallant said.
"Steve compared him to Bobby Orr in that playoff series (1994, when Leetch won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoff's most valuable player), he was phenomenal and he was just a great player who could skate and see the ice as well as anybody."
Lamoriello was credited for turning the Devils around and playing a pivotal role in securing three Stanley Cup tiles.
"He is a great GM," Gallant said. "He is the type of guy who had solid discipline on his team, his staff and you know what you got with Lou."
Gallant and the Sea Dogs are back in action Thursday when they host the Baie-Comeau Drakkar at Harbour Station, beginning at 7 p.m.
Disabled
Search Articles
More CE Network Sites & Partners:
