March 31, 2010
Ailing Pat Burns receives honor
by Stan Fischler/
Former Bruins coach Pat Burns in the fall of 2009 (photo: Getty)
A new hockey rink bearing the name of former Bruins coach Pat Burns is in the works.
It will be built in Stanstead, Quebec, on the campus of Stanstead College. Both students at the private school, as well as neighbors on the Quebec-Vermont border region, will be using the arena.
At a ceremony last Friday, it was revealed that the arena will be completed next year, which means Burns probably won’t be around to see it finished.
Burns, whom we saw earlier in the season on a visit to TampaBay, is now thin and frail. The cancer that attacked his lungs has left him with a raspy, high-pitched voice. He has stopped taking chemotherapy, yet attended the arena announcement ceremony.
Canada’s Prime Minister, Stephen Harper – an avid hockey fan – also attended.
Ever courageous, Pat got a chuckle when he opened his speech with these words: “Excuse my voice – I don’t have the thundering voice I used to have to get players going on the ice anymore.”
Jacques Demers was the emcee and Lou Lamoriello (Providence, R.I.), who had hired Burns as Devils coach and won a Stanley Cup with him in 2003, was on hand. Ditto for Pat’s wife, Lynne, and children Jason and Maureen.
“It’s a tough time for my family,” Burns explained. “I know my life is nearing its end and I accept that. As for my career, I always said to my kids, ‘You don’t cry because it’s over, you’re happy because it happened.’
“That’s the main thing. I’m very happy that it happened.”
And we’re tickled that the Stanstead Arena will be named after a true hockey hero, Pat Burns.
Observations
* Teemu Selanne often has been compared with Jari Kurri as the foremost Finnish contribution to the NHL.
While Kurri may have had the Stanley Cups – and Wayne Gretzky – he was a virtual zero when it came to selling the sport. By contrast, Selanne – over the years – has proven to be both artist and hockey salesman extraordinaire.
We love what Teemu has done for the league and will rue the day he retires.
Gossip
* Larry Robinson, who’s a roving instructor for Lamoriello’s Devils, reports that former BostonCollegestar Mike Mottau (Avon, Mass.) was one of his favorite finds. “Mike had been in the minors for a while when he finally came to our camp,” Robinson said. “The more I watched him, the more I was impressed with Mottau’s smarts and the way he handled himself on the ice.”
Mottau currently is a key member of New Jersey’s oft-named No Name Defense.
* With all deference to ex-NHLer Ken Linseman, the rodent nickname for contemporary stickhandlers belongs to Matt (The Rat) Cooke. We’re wondering when the Pitt pesty-pain will step over the jurisdictional line and how he’ll be punished by NHL warden Colin Campbell.
* Since the Penguins already have been involved in the Winter Classic, why would a Pittsburgh-Washington scenario be considered for next New Year’s Day?
Answer: Sid Crosby vs. Alex Ovechkin.
If Sid-Alex prevail, the venue likely will be Pittsburgh’s PNCPark, home of the Pirates. Second choice would be Heinz Field, but only with the Steelers’ permission.
The mere fact that Pittsburghwould be involved in a second Classic so soon after the Buffalo event is testament to Sid’s pull in the NHL marketing scheme.
* When we asked Howard Baldwin why he’s opening up at Hartford office to market the Whalers NHL brand, he had a neat reply: “My best analogy is about a university. Remember when you graduated college and you had so many classmates who were touched by it? Well, if that college folded, there still would be thousands who had been touched by it.
“And that’s how I feel about the Hartford Whalers. It had such a positive impact on so many hockey fans – not only in Connecticut– that I’m sure we can develop renewed interest.”
Stan Fischler can be reached at FischlerReport@aol.com.
