Mood: Vaguely Sad.
Music: Eminence Front, The Who.
Game: World of Warcraft, Planetside, Auto Assault Beta, Dungeon Siege II.
Book: The Fountainhead, Ayn Rand.
Muffin: None.
At age 44, after 25 years in the NHL, Mark Messier has finally retired.
As far as I'm concerned, that pretty much puts the exclamation point on the missed season last year.
I'm sure I'll get some flak from sports fans on this one, but Mark Messier was unquestionably the best captain of any sports team in history.
Some will point to others in other sports, or even point to other players in hockey. They're all wrong. Messier was winning cups in Edmonton...and then they took away Wayne Gretzky, made him Captain. And he won another. Edmonton got rid of Messier to New York, who promptly made it his team (Adam Graves giving up number 11 to his former and future captain...) and led the Rangers to their first Cup in 54 years. Not convinced yet?
Along the way, he did it by scoring a natural hat trick in the third period in Game 6, on the road, against the New Jersey Devils to win that game after being down 2-1 (assisting on Kovalev's goal in the 2nd) after two periods to bring the series back to the Garden for Game 7. After guaranteeing the night before that the Rangers would win that game in the newspaper.
Sure, you can talk about Babe Ruth's called home run. You can talk about Namath's guarantee. Neither one performed a feat as ludicrous as scoring a hat trick in one period against a goaltender like Martin Brodeur to come from behind and win a must win game...after guaranteeing that they would. That's sheer willpower. No one on the Rangers wanted to make Messier a liar. That's being a captain.
When the Finals came down to Game 7, Madison Square Garden, series tied 3-3, the tension in the fans was unbelievable. The Rangers, known choke artists for half a century were about to blow it again...but not this time. Not with Messier leading. No way. Messier assists on the first goal: Messier to Zubov to Leetch. 1-0. The Rangers score again, Vancouver responds. 2-1, Messier at the left post to score the third goal, which stands as the Cup winner, as Vancouver scores their second. The last 90 seconds before the game ends was about as tense a 90 seconds as ever experienced by a fan in the history of sports. The Rangers icing the puck, checking madly, chasing pucks, blocking shots, Richter blocking anything and everything, players throwing themselves across the ice to block passes.
Does it happen without Messier on the ice to hold it all together? It doesn't even get to the Finals. It doesn't get to Game 7 in the Finals. The single most important reason the Rangers win the Cup. Yes, Leetch, Zubov, Kovalev...all brilliant. Richter phenomenal. People will talk about The Stop, the penalty shot Richter stopped against Pavel Bure in Game 1, forever. But Messier...none of it happens without him.
I own a lot of hockey sweaters. Some game-worn, some game-intended, some replicas, some authentic unworns. The sweater I own the most of? Messier. Number 11.
I was at his last game. I watched him score his last goal. In his spot, top of the left circle, in that trademark Messier wrist shot, right leg up, parallel to the ice. Usually, a left handed shot will shoot off his right leg...not Messier...never did. There must be a million photos of that pose. He shoots, he scores.
After he scored, the Sabres just cleared the bench and gave him a standing ovation. You couldn't have quieted the crowd. Have you EVER seen an opposing team applaud a goal scored against them? EVER? We knew we were watching his last game. He knew it. We knew it. The Sabres knew it.
After the game, with the lights out, he skated out, no helmet, spotlights on him, and bowed. He bowed to the fans, each corner of the Garden. The crowd was louder than they were when they retired Richter's number. They were louder than they were when they won the Cup...maybe not. But damned close. I couldn't hear a thing. The Sabres came out and hugged him, applauded, the Rangers surrounded him, hugging him, and I swear they were crying.
According to the stories in the papers, after the game, Messier spent about 2 hours signing autographs...for his teammates. His coaches. The trainers. The opposing team. No fans...just the people he played with, worked for, and led, for years. He knew.
If there's one thing that makes it almost OK that I don't have season tickets...it's knowing that I don't have to sit there and watch a Rangers team without a captain. Who do you make captain of the New York Rangers? Jagr? Are you kidding? There's no one with history, heart, soul...leadership abilities.
They'll recover, the Rangers. They always do. But this one is going to hurt.
Hell, it hurts now. And probably for a while to come.
Posted by Glenn at September 12, 2005 02:29 PM