Patrice Bergeron welcomed as a hero in Quebec

The political debate surrounding the visit of the Los Angeles Kings to Quebec was relegated to the backstage on Thursday evening, when Patrice Bergeron was presented to the crowd at the Videotron Center. Within minutes, the NHL was back in the nation’s capital and the hometown hero was on the ice.

Retired for a little over a year, Bergeron was obviously not in uniform for this preseason game between the Kings and the Boston Bruins. For the first time since he hung up his skates, the ex-captain had traveled with his former teammates, heading to Quebec.

This is the team that I spent 20 years of my life with, that I grew up with in my adult world, that comes to play in the city that I grew up in. It sure is specialsummarized the former number 37 before the match.

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Being the center of attention isn’t my favorite part, but it’s my way of saying thank you to the people of the region, my family, my friends and those who have helped me on my journey.

A sign of the popularity of the six-time Selke Trophy winner in his hometown, Bruins jerseys were much more numerous than those of the Kings among the approximately 17,334 spectators present in the stands of the Videotron Center.

A plea for the return of the Nordics

Having only been informed that he was going to take the ceremonial puck drop, Bergeron was instead entitled to a proper tribute. Sidney Crosby, Zdeno Chara and Phillip Danault notably sang his praises in a video recap of his career, from the Blizzard of Saint-François Séminaire to the conquest of the Stanley Cup.

A video whose very first image, a childhood photo of Bergeron in a Nordiques vest, was probably not a coincidence.

The return of the Nordiques, I hope for the people of the region. I don’t think we need to prove ourselves. The market is there. We love hockeypraised the double Olympic gold medalist.

The presence of the Nordiques in Quebec during his childhood, he recalled, gave him models to follow in his hockey career. For future generations, it could be extraordinary.

Surrounded by two of his children, his brother and his mother, Patrice Bergeron was entitled to a long standing ovation before retreating into the bowels of the Videotron Center, leaving plenty of room for the first of two Kings preseason games in Quebec.

The Kings win

Kings president Luc Robitaille did not lie when he said that the star players would be in uniform in Quebec. Danault, Anze Kopitar and Quinton Byfield notably jumped on the ice for the Kings, David Pastrnak and Charlie McCavoy doing the same for the Bruins.

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After a scoreless first period, Byfield broke the deadlock by finding the back of the net with eight minutes remaining before the second intermission. Thirty seconds later, the 22-year-old center had already had time to score his second and watch the Bruins respond with a quick shot from Patrick Brown.

Byfield wasn’t done, however, as he completed his hat trick in the third period to guide the Kings to a 4-1 victory.

I know we’re in Quebec, but I was still a little surprised to see people throwing their caps on the ice. It’s just a bit of a shame that it’s in preseasonreacted the imposing attacker after the meeting.

As for the Bruins, head coach Jim Montgomery did not seem impressed by his team’s performance. However, he said he was happy to have found Bergeron around the team for a day. I already told him, but he reminds me of Jean Béliveaucompared Montgomery, who grew up in Montreal.

The Kings will hold another practice open to the public on Friday and some players will pay a visit to La Bouchée generous and a walkabout in the parking lot of the Fleur de Lys shopping center. The team meets the Florida Panthers on Saturday evening for its second and final preseason game in Quebec.