While you could argue all day about who the biggest star in the 2010 NHL Playoffs was, it’s clear that one guy’s legacy is well recognized by the fans in the city he used to play in. Current Blues goalie and former Habs playoff hero, Jaroslav Halak, got a chance to say his official good-bye to the fans in Montreal today as he signed autographs for charity, the Ste. Justine Children’s Hospital in Montreal. The response was stunning.
A line-up of fans estimated at 5,000 stretched the length of the Fairview mall in Pointe-Claire, Que., and a long way outside the building.
“It feels weird, but I have good memories in Montreal and that’s why I wanted to say thank you to the fans,” Halak said.
While some Montreal fans may have stayed away or even gotten critical with Halak’s agent Allan Walsh via Twitter, there’s no doubt that doing something like to this to help benefit a children’s hospital and to thank the fans is one of the nicest things any player could do in such a situation to help quiet critics either of Halak or of Habs management for trading him. After all, if you can’t put that aside to do something nice to help the kids, perhaps some soul searching is in order.