Georges Laraque by Georges Laraque

Author:Georges Laraque
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Group (Canada)

12

FROM THE DESERT TO THE PENGUINS

All summer long after that heart-rending loss, every person I met wanted to talk about the Oilers’ playoff run, and how magnificently we had played. I was grateful for all those congratulations, of course, but it was difficult to accept them— they really just rubbed in the bitterness of how close we’d come to what we wanted so badly. I would change the subject as quickly as I could.

Edmonton’s mayor and city council wanted to organize a ceremony in our honour at City Hall. After consulting the players, the Oilers’ management simply declined the offer. Sure, we’d had a good run, but we hadn’t won the only game we wanted to. There was no way we could stand in front of our fans with our heads held high, as if we were champions of some kind—there is no silver medal in the NHL playoffs.

The other subject everyone wanted to talk about wasn’t any more pleasant to my ears. They all wanted to know what the future held in store for me. The last game of the finals had been in the middle of June, not even two weeks before July 1—the first day of my free agency. I was still stinging from the worst defeat in my career, and there I was, a player without a team. Even though about fifteen teams had made me an offer or at least shown an interest, in my heart and soul I was still an Oiler.

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