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All-Star Memoirs Although short and forgotten, games still can be special
I have probably watched 100 all-star affairs over the years and here are my most vivid memories. From baseball, it is Pete Rose bowling Ray Fosse over. Basketball -- Magic Johnson's return performance after leaving the NBA due to his HIV positive diagnosis. Growing up in Canada, football for me was twofold -- the CFL and the NFL. But, when it comes to all-star game memories, it is all CFL. My Uncle Mike took me to the 1972 all-star game in Hamilton, Ontario and I met Jim Young of the BC Lions. He was one of the best offensive players in the league. His football card listed his position as flanker (I actually used to know what that position was). Anyway, I was hovering around the players tunnel when I saw Young emerge. I went over and asked for an autograph and he obliged. He then asked if I would go get him a cup of coffee. He handed me a dollar and I went to the concession stand. I returned with his coffee, he thanked me and said he had to get ready for the game. I walked away, met back up with my uncle and showed him the autographed program. As we made our way to our seats, Young was still visible in the tunnel, finishing his coffee and cigarette, then crushing the cup as he tossed in the trashcan. That image has remained with me all these years -- the star preparing for the game, coffee and smoke in hand ( Mean Joe Greene, Canadian-style?!). Like my CFL experience at 11 years old - when reality and idolization intersected for the first time in my life -- my most memorable all-star game was an event that I was fortunate enough to attend. It was the 1993 NHL All-Star Game in Montreal, Quebec -- the last all-star game played in the old Montreal Forum. I was a few years removed from my playing days. I went with my friend, mentor, boss and owner of the software consulting company (who took in a former goaltender looking to develop a career after life as a player), Andy Stewart. His family emigrated from Scotland to Detroit in the early '50's, so he grew up with the "Original Six" and the passionate rivalries of that era. Let's just say that Andy became a devout Red Wings fan and an avid hockey fan. Yet, he had never been to the Forum. Hockey's Mecca. For Stewart, since the old Detroit Olympia was long gone, even he could entertain the notion of the Forum being significant. We decided to go as fans -- with no customers and no business agenda at all -- just a couple of guys hoping to glimpse hockey history.
Our pilgrimage began by driving from Detroit to Toronto. Then, to mimic that "Original Six" authenticity, we took the train from Toronto to Montreal. From the train ride into Montreal to the return trip home on Sunday, the experience was magical. Snowy Montreal --the picture perfect hockey backdrop framing the NHL all-star event. The Forum itself -- steeped in tradition that was palpable the moment we entered the building and reinforced by the casual attendance of hockey legends such as Maurice "Rocket" Richard. Personally, I was only a decade removed from my first trip to the Forum as a player. It was 1984, my third NHL game and the first in which my father was able to see me play professionally. And it was the first time my LA Kings teammates earned a point in the standings with me as their netminder. Yet, it was as if my playing days were irrelevant and unrelated to being at the Forum now. Andy and I took it all in with wide-eyed wonderment -- contented and consumed by the moment. We sat on the glass for the skill competitions and legends game, delighting in everything our surroundings had to offer (We both swore that even the chien chauds in the single-wrap toastie buns were the best hot dogs anywhere). No question -- had to be. In fact, the entire weekend had a special feel to it. Whether it was sharing a cab with legendary player and Hockey Night in Canada analyst Howie Meeker, or seeing friends and former teammates I had lost touch with over the years, every occurrence seemed ethereal. None more so than a chance encounter with Mario Lemieux. He was making his way to his suite, which was a true exaggeration in the venerable Forum, where luxury boxes were retrofitted plywood partitions placed precariously in the rafters and catwalks above the ice surface. I introduced myself, never presuming he would remember a journeyman goaltender whom he faced all of three times. If he didn't recall, he was gracious and personable regardless. He told he had arranged for a suite to accommodate family and friends when the NHL announced that his hometown Montreal would be the Host City. He hinted at his frustration and disappointment in not being able to participate. I wished him well with his health and somehow felt close to the league again, an emotion I hadn't had since leaving the game as a player. What does that have to do with this year's NHL extravaganza? Not much, I suppose. All-star games are fleeting by nature anyway -- enjoyed in the moment and then largely discarded. Every now and then, though, an all-star game can become one of those magic moments, an experience that transcends entertainment. Either way, I'll be watching.
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