the 4th star

With Saku Koivu’s signing with the Minnesota Wild to be announced any second now, Red Fisher penned a nice (albeit way too brief) farewell to the former Montreal Canadiens captain at the end of his column today. Classic Fisher here — reminding the crazies in hockey-crazed Montreal of who the true winners are in the organization. He seems to be the calm eye in the storm, and he has been for a long, long time. The only problem with this piece is that it’s way too short.

In recent seasons, he has had a target on his chest for all of the wrong reasons and you know what they are. No current player wore the jersey with more pride. None wanted more to start and finish his career wearing it. Year after year, he was at or near the top of the Canadiens’ points list. He delivered all he had on the ice and gave back to the community more than any player – yet that wasn’t enough.

I have covered this team for more than a half-century, and I cannot recall a night to match the excitement when he returned to the lineup after missing the first 79 games of the 2001-02 season because of his life-threatening battle with cancer. I can’t remember any Canadiens crowd more giddy with pleasure welcoming him back.

…..

“Saku! Saku! Saku!

He raised his stick, waving it as if it were a wand signalling the magic of this moment, and who can say it wasn’t on this night only moments away from the Canadiens’ 80th game of the season? And then … another high and soaring moment: the Ottawa starters skated to their bench, leaving Koivu alone with his starting colleagues.

“Saku! Saku! Saku!”

Now: he’s gone – and I’ll miss him greatly.

So will Canadiens fans.

Michael Jackson dies. People go crazy with their ‘love’ for the guy. Memories are shared, impact is debated, and tributes are prepared. It’s all very touching, in some weird celebrity/fan sort of way. Sticking with the tributes for a second, I wondered how long it would take for a football player to use Jackson’s death as an opportunity to get their face on the highlight shows. With the NFL still off-seasoning, it was up to the CFL to carry (or drop) the torch.

Think about it for a second. A ‘tribute’ to Jackson would be easy, right? I mean, the white glove is pretty inoffensive and somewhat tasteful. Get into the endzone during a game? That’s a perfect opportunity to break out a moonwalk. Hell, it’s the CFL. Score a touchdown and you can pull four of your brothers out of the stands and start singing ABC if you want. The options are plentiful.

Arland Bruce, you really suck:

After scoring on a 21-yard pass from Kerry Joseph to put Toronto ahead 6-0, Bruce removed his helmet, shoulder pads and uniform top and laid down in the end zone. Bruce said he was simply honouring the memory of Michael Jackson by pretending to be buried.

You read that right. Honouring the memory of Michael Jackson by pretending to be buried. How touching.