EVERYDAY IS BRUCE BOUDREAU DAY

Jack and Bruce Boudreau after a game at Nationwide Arena in Columbus last season

It was a great scene Wednesday at the Dauphin County Commissioners office in downtown Harrisburg, where for at least one day, Bruce Boudreau was back. The former BEARS head coach turned Washington rock star was honored along with BEARS President/GM Doug Yingst for their outstanding achievements. Bruce was on the receiving end of praise for his NHL Coach of the Year award and Washington’s Southeast Division championship, while Doug got his deserved props for HERSHEY’S recent successes and his 2008 Thomas Ebright award from the American Hockey League. The room was filled with a lot of fans and well-wishers, including Bruce’s wife Crystal, HERSHEY Entertainment and Resorts VP Bill Simpson along with many hockey and HERCO staff, Louis Robitaille and a throng of local media.

Regrettably, I don’t get to see Bruce as much as I used to, for obvious reasons. I get to Washington as much as I can, and he is occasionally back in the area as well, but it’s not like the “old” days when I used to start a lot of my mornings by checking in the head coach’s office at GIANT Center to shoot the bull with the man they call “Gabby.” But the upside to that is when I do get the chance to catch up with him, I’m more acutely aware now how grounded and true to his character he is. I was reminded of that yesterday when I saw him in Harrisburg.
Bruce is an amazing head coach, a fact that we here in Hershey knew long before last Thanksgiving. His players love him and will fight for him not just because of his great knowledge and strategy, but because of his heart. He himself was a fringe player in the NHL, and knew what it was like not to be in the lineup every night. I can’t tell you how many times he told me how much he hated sitting players out, because he really felt badly about doing it. There’s not a lot of lip service from Bruce; what he says is how he feels. I think of guys like Troy Milam and Pete Vandermeer in the 2007 Calder Cup Playoffs when Bruce talks like that. Troy and Pete didn’t play a lot during the postseason, but were ready to go when called upon, and I know they understood their role. Milam’s number two star performance in Game 4 of the Conference Finals against Manchester came after virtually no ice-time during the entire playoff run. That in part is a testament to his character, and partly also because Bruce did a great job of keeping players focused and “in the loop.” I don’t believe anyone in that locker room was made to feel slighted because they thought the coach didn’t care about them. Bruce cares about everybody, and that includes my son Jack.

I came through the door yesterday at the DCC, and Bruce and Doug were already there chatting with the Commissioners. Keep in mind, it had been a few weeks since I’d even seen Bruce, and the last time I talked to him, I was congratulating him on winning the Jack Adams. I think even before he said hello to me yesterday, he said “Hey, I called you about Jack (my son, not Adams) the other day. How is he doing?” He was referring, if you have been a reader here, to his surgery last Friday in Cincinnati. I told him that he got out of the hospital Monday, and that he was getting better and resting at home. It’s been very nice and meaningful to me that so many people have either asked or e-mailed about him over the last week or so. But Bruce took it to the next level yesterday. “I wanted to talk to him and get him some Caps stuff to make him feel better” he said. “Can you get him on the phone?” As a parent, you always want the best for your kids, and in Jack’s sports-oriented life, it doesn’t get much better than a pro head coach giving you a call just to check in with you. So, on Bruce Boudreau Day in Dauphin County, as announced by the Dauphin County Commissioners, with a full room of people showering praise upon him for his accomplishments, Bruce’s first thought when I walked into the room was to do something that make a child’s day. Rest assured that he did. Bruce called Jack and talked to him for a couple of minutes, asking him about his surgery, what he was doing to pass the time, and then made sure he was coming to see the Caps when they came to Columbus this season. He also promised Jack to find an Ovechkin stick to send his way the next time Dad was down for a game in Washington. Needless to say, that part was the biggest highlight. It was an incredibly selfless act, and one that I’m sure big Jack will be talking about for a long time to come. The whole exchange gave me pause to wonder: how cool would it have been if I were 10 years old and got a get-well phone call from the reigning NHL coach of the year. That kind of stuff goes a long way with kids (and adults too!), but to Bruce, it’s just all in a day’s work. If you want to know why Bruce Boudreau wins wherever he goes, I’ve always believed the reason is two-fold. The first part is his love and knowledge of the game. The second is how he treats others. He lives the Golden Rule : Do unto others as you’d have done to you.

The Boudreau family will be living full-time out of Washington soon, and our community will miss him very much. But I’m sure I speak for the entire HERSHEY hockey community here when I say how proud we are of his accomplishments, both on and off the ice. From the BEARS front office, to the fans, to the countless people he’s touched here to the incredible moments we experienced together, we will be cheering for Washington’s success even if some of us have other NHL allegiances. I grew up in Minnesota and lived and died following the North Stars. If anybody asked me after 1993 what my favorite NHL team was, I said I didn’t have one. When the Stars pulled up stakes for Dallas, a bit of childhood innocence was lost. I never thought I could be that passionate for an NHL team again. That changed for me last Thanksgiving when Bruce was promoted and now my son and I both can feel that passion for a hockey team together. I guess Jack has a leg up on me in the passion department, because it’s not like former Minnesota bench bosses Glen Sonmor, Lorne Henning or Pierre Page ever called me at home to check in on me. Now if anyone asks my rooting interest, it’s 100 percent behind the Washington Capitals, and that has 100 percent to do with their head coach. The Caps have never won a Stanley Cup in their history. If karma and heart have anything to do with winning, maybe they’ve just been waiting for the right head coach to come along.

Thanks for a great day yesterday Bruce. Congratulations on what you’ve accomplished so far, and for what lies ahead. Go Caps Go!