Absolutely unforgettable weekend at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto for the 2023 Inductions! I lived out a dream and truly so grateful to have been there for all the festivities. The reason I went was obviously for Henrik Lundqvist, but I really enjoyed learning about & celebrating all the other inductees: Pierre Turgeon, Ken Hitchcock, Caroline Ouellette, Pierre Lacroix, Mike Vernon and Tom Barrasso. So many memories made and wholesome moments that I’ll cherish forever.
I’m writing this blog for me, to document everything that happened so nothing slips my memory as time passes by. It’s definitely going to be lengthy, long-winded and filled with superfluous information that you most likely won’t care about. Feel free to skim, skip around or skip this one altogether…
Saturday, November 11th
The alarm clock sounded at 5am, but I woke up well rested feeling like a kid on Christmas morning. Smooth ride to LGA courtesy of my Dad and I found myself on the other side of security in record time. 15 minutes (!!!) elapsed from the time I was dropped off to plopping my belongings down at a seat by my gate. Didn’t even know that was possible at an international airport. Great start.
The flight to Toronto Pearson was smooth, no delays or turbulence in the air. I spent the hour and change reading The Franchise by Rick Carpiniello, a phenomenal recount of the history of the New York Rangers, from the beat reporter that covered the team from 1978-2021. Another blog coming on that behemoth of a book at some point.
I called the Chelsea Hotel in Toronto in the Uber from the airport. I needed to check in several hours before I was supposed to, in order to drop my stuff and get to the “Inductee Fan Forum” event at 1:30pm. I knew it was a long shot, because the hotel previously told me it wasn’t possible. Thank god my flight wasn’t delayed or anything either, otherwise I probably would’ve missed the event altogether. Miraculously, I was given a room early and dropped my stuff off before heading to the Hall of Fame with 15 minutes or so to spare.
At this point, I remember feeling somewhat overwhelmed. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect of this event and wanted to explore the Hall of Fame instead of standing on line, where I wasn’t even sure I was in the right spot. There were people buzzing around everywhere, but I wasn’t feeling particularly social. What’s ironic, the couple behind me ended up becoming good friends of mine, but we stood in silence at that moment.
Suddenly, I had a moment of panic, realizing I goofed on securing tickets to this specific event. Before I realized what I was doing, I aimlessly voiced my thoughts out loud. “Wait, you need a separate ticket for this???”
Just as I was sheepishly about to step out of line and fake a phone call, a kind fellow in a NYR lady liberty jersey slipped me a ticket behind his back! What’re the odds someone had an extra pre-paid ticket and what’re the odds they were standing right in front of me? The hockey community rules. One of many examples of the puck bouncing my way all weekend.
The Fan Forum event itself was tremendous, an intimate and relaxed Q&A hosted by TSN’s Gino Reda, with a couple questions from fans in the room. It took place in the Great Room, a cathedral style room tucked away upstairs at The Hall of Fame. I got a seat up front and to the right, not knowing that’s where Henrik Lundqvist would be positioned on the panel. I looked over my shoulder and saw his twin brother, Joel, and his parents seated two rows behind me. After making some quick inferences, I realized I was sitting among the Ouellette family. After further observation, I saw the Stanley Cup, Conn Smythe, Vezina, Hart, Calder trophies & more littered throughout the room in beautiful display cases. How is this real life and how am I all allowed to be here?
I couldn’t believe how real the conversations were. There were absolutely zero “pucks in deep” cookie-cutter, generic answers that often get fed to the media. All the responses from the inductees were honest and raw.
Lundqvist was as relaxed and content as I’ve seen him. He has this glow about him and commanded the attention of the room.
He shared the one guy who took him under their wing as a rookie in 2005 was Darius Kasparitis, the Lithuanian bruiser of a defenseman. Wouldn’t have guessed that one. Honorable mentions were given to Jaromír Jágr and Michael Nylander.
He told another pretty funny story about Jágr, where he was assigned to be his roommate at his first training camp. He called his brother Joel immediately, freaking out, wondering if he could handle himself in this situation. Lundqvist said he was petrified the entire time, remained completely silent under the covers and only moved about the room when Jágr moved, so as not to disturb him. Pretty silly to envision.
When asked to name the best trash talker he came across, Hank said Brad Marchand without hesitation. Apparently, Marchand was relentless in circling the net and continuously chirping. Turgeon blurted out “Sean Avery! Enough said!” which drew a hearty laughter from the crowd.
One fan gushed about his favorite game of Lundqvist’s being Game 7 in Pittsburgh, to finish off an epic comeback down 3-1 in the series in the 2014 Eastern Conference Semis. Lundqvist smiled ear to ear and said he lived for all of those Game 7s, but his favorite was playing alongside Joel for Team Sweden.
For me, playoffs aside, my favorite game of his was the 2012 Winter Classic against the Flyers in Philadelphia. I remember being so pumped up when he stopped Daniel Briere on a penalty shot in the closing moments of the game. Between the HBO 24/7 series leading up to it, the atmosphere that day at Wells Fargo, all the pageantry, those crisp beige NYR jerseys, all of it made for quite the moment in time.
To my dismay, a neanderthal fan without an ounce of class hopped on the mic to basically ask Henrik why he signed with the Washington Capitals and how it “broke her heart”. I visibly cringed, along with the rest of the room, and could not believe someone could be so bad mannered in this sort of setting. Henrik, of course, showed no signs of being flustered and answered the question with grace. The heinous question actually elicited a very insightful answer, and a fascinating look behind the scenes of his decision making process.
Henrik divulged that, along with his wife, he composed a list of 10 teams he would’ve went to. “Points” were awarded to each team, based on travel, comfortability of his family, Cup contention & more. It was an extremely difficult time, coming to gripes with post New York life and concerns bubbling under the surface about his own health. The Caps were the team with the most tallies in the end.
The follow up question of ‘who were the other 9 teams?’ hung in the air like a deafening helicopter. Someone finally blabbed “were the Islanders on the list???” Henrik responded, quickly and bluntly, “No”. Of course, he never played a game for Washington, and mentioned a few separate times throughout the weekend that it wasn’t meant to be – how the Rangers are family and New York is home.
I was also inspired by Caroline Ouellete, the Canadian hockey icon, with four Olympic golds and 12 IIIHF Women’s World Championship medals to her name. She spoke from the heart about the state of women’s hockey, how it needs to be on the same plane as women’s tennis, and pleaded with the room to give it a chance. She’s an impressive spokesperson for the game and her public speaking prowess was on display all weekend. I’m definitely going to get smarter around what’s going on with the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL).
I exited the Fan Forum feeling full of energy and disbelief. It was a real privilege to be in the Great Room that afternoon.
I had a few hours before puck drop at Scotiabank Arena for Leafs/Canucks. I rushed back to the hotel to change out of my Lundqvist jersey. I know better than to wear a Rangers jersey to a game the Rangers aren’t playing in. You never want to be that guy, it’s about respect!
Scotiabank Arena was awesome. I’ve been going deep on hockey history books lately, so I absolutely loved the experience of taking in a game at another “Original 6” barn. It felt rustic yet cozy. I’ll forever feel like a kid in a candy shop getting down low for warmups.
They unfurled a massive Canadian flag for fans to hold during the anthem, which was really special. Some drunk buffoon would undoubtedly ruin something cool like that at MSG.
I chatted with a few fans from Vancouver and more from the home province of Ontario. I love hearing other fans’ perspective on their own team, my Rangers and the NHL in general. The passion in Canadian hockey markets is very unique and hard to compare to anything else. I know Toronto has been catching some heat for “suits” watering down what used to be a lively atmosphere, but I was pretty impressed with the crowd that Saturday night.
The Leafs won 5-2 and I cashed my wager of over 6.5 goals. Hockey has always been the best sport to watch live, but the speed and skill oriented nature of the modern era make it such an unbelievable spectacle. I found myself zeroing in on Quinn Hughes of the Canucks and William Nylander of the Leafs throughout the night. Both sensational skaters and playmakers in their own right.
I retreated back to my hotel after game, exhausted from waking up so early and being on such a high all day. I could’ve left Toronto the next morning and been content with the trip.
Sunday, November 12th
I slept like a rock and woke up later in the morning on Sunday. I didn’t have much planned, other than the “Legends Classic” alumni game back at Scotiabank Arena at 3pm.
I took a leisurely stroll around the city before stopping at a breakfast spot off the beaten path, called Karine’s Fresh. Nothing particularly fancy, but the ambiance was great and the spread of food hit the spot.
After Karine’s, I made a beeline back to the Hall of Fame. I didn’t get nearly enough time the day before to walk through all the exhibits at the pace I wanted to.
I highly recommend checking out the Hockey Hall of Fame, regardless of your affinity towards hockey. I’ve only been to Cooperstown for the Baseball Hall of Fame otherwise, but I’ve heard the HHOF is in a league of its own.
They have the exhibits and displays set up in a maze of sorts, where you’re meant to meander throughout several rooms. You think you’ve seen everything and then you turn a corner into another fascinating nook. They have individual player showcases, booths to honor the great dynasties, international hockey displays, a wall of goalie masks over the years, a replica of the Montreal Canadiens locker room of the 1970’s, an interactive area to shoot pucks at a simulator and tons more. I felt an overwhelming wave of awe and appreciation exploring it all.
Again, worth the trip to check it out for yourself, my words and pictures don’t do it justice. Don’t take it from just me though, The Great One gave his own review and told a really funny story during the intermission of Flyers/Hurricanes recently on TNT.
After I got my fill at the HHOF, I walked on over to Real Sports, a gigantic sports bar across the street from Scotiabank Arena. After doing a little research, it feels like Real Sports has a monopoly over sports bars in Toronto. Not sure anywhere else is worth going to, if you’re looking for the best experience. Maybe that’s ignorant to say, who knows.
I enjoyed a surprisingly good chicken sandwich at the bar while watching NFL Sunday. I got talking with a friendly guy from Vancouver for a long while. It’s funny how wholesome bar conversations can be, and how deep too, knowing you likely won’t see them again. We talked hockey, hockey history, football, baseball, what Vancouver is like, how it compares to New York, Canadian provinces, relationships and about life in general. I’m grateful to have met him.
Around 2:30pm I left the bar and walked across the street to Scotiabank Arena. It was much less crowded than last night, but still the same jolly buzz about the arena. Just as I was getting to my seats, I looked to my right and saw the Lundqvist family! Acting on impulse, I walked right over and shook the Lundqvist parents’ hands and a few other family members. We chatted for a quick second, but I kept it moving. I felt like they appreciated that.
All weekend I was diligent about keeping things moving as I met hockey celebrities, Rangers legends and Twitter personalities. It was always me that ended the conversation. The last thing I wanted to do was linger a minute too long, or be a nuisance by asking for a picture or an autograph. I wanted to respect their time and also be able to look back on the interactions as pure.
The HHOF put on a tremendous ceremony for the 2023 inductee class prior to the Legends Classic game. Each inductee was presented with a HOF blazer jacket at center ice by Lanny McDonald. Lanny is a mustache overlord, 1992 inductee and current chairman of the board at the HHOF. It was abundantly clear how much Lanny is beloved by everyone and he was an awesome character popping up everywhere all weekend.
Gino Reda was there as well, to ask a quick question and allow for the inductee to share some thoughts. I thought he was tremendous too.
I found the game itself to be very engaging and entertaining, albeit played at a much slower pace than Leafs/Canucks the night prior. Plays obviously took longer to develop but I enjoyed it nevertheless. It was Team “Goal Scorers” vs. Team “Playmakers”, featuring a wide variety of NHL alumni and women’s hockey legends. Lundqvist was supposed to be on Team Goal Scorers, but I started to get more and more worried because periods 1 and 2 went by without him between the pipes. Once I saw fellow inductee Pierre Turgeon step onto the ice, I knew Lundqvist was next. Sure enough, he took the ice in full gear and a roar went up from the crowd.
The game was mostly for fun – to honor the inductees before the game, to skate around and have some laughs. Slapshots weren’t allowed and checking was kept to a minimum. Even still, I was 100% positive Lundqvist was coming into the game with the intention of allowing zero goals and winning. I had to laugh at what happened next.
Down 3-1 in the game, Lundqvist stole the show for the Goal Scorers. He stopped Turgeon on a breakaway, Ryan Getzlaf a few times, along with a couple on Peter Forsberg. I lost track of the amount of saves he made to keep his team in the game. Sound familiar?
Adam Graves assisted on the 2nd goal and Mike Gartner tied the game up at 3 before heading to a shootout. Where, you guessed it, Lundqvist stopped 7 or 8 attempts in the shootout while looking like his same, old, dominant self. The Goal Scorers won and Lundqvist was named first star.
It was beyond special for me to watch the King perform again. I’ve been so lucky the past 15 or however many years. My earliest memories of supporting the Rangers, watching hockey and just being stoked on the sport is right around 2005-2006, his rookie year. Turning on the TV or showing up to MSG and knowing he was in goal was knowing the Rangers could easily win that night. Watching him shut the door one more time, in a game that wasn’t even televised, felt like an honor and a blessing. I left the arena more emotional than I expected to be.
I headed back to Real Sports after the game, which I’m somewhat embarrassed to admit, because maybe I should’ve explored more of Toronto. I just wanted to watch the Rangers against Columbus at the top of the hour, and knew they’d be showing it. The bar was buzzing on a Sunday evening, with football and hockey on. I got talking to the same Ranger fan couple that stood behind me at the Fan Forum. Super nice to make friends with them and watch the game together, among other Rangers fans.
The Rangers game against Columbus was a bit of a slog. They looked pretty sloppy at times and Columbus was leading 3-2 late in the 2nd period and into the 3rd. Sure enough, Alexis Lafrenière broke through in the final minute to get the equalizer. Not only that, he scored an absolutely gorgeous goal in the shootout to win it. It was quite literally impossible for anything to go wrong for me that weekend in Toronto.
On my way out of the bar, I got a chance to meet Dan Rosen, senior writer for the NHL. Pretty cool moment, as I’ve read his work for years. I also took note of Ryan Miller, former NHL goalie and future HHOFer (??), but kept my distance. He was with his family at a booth and I wasn’t going to interrupt.
Next, I went to this “Library Bar” at the Fairmont Hotel with the Ranger fan couple, where we met another couple from Toronto. Highly recommend the Library Bar – awesome cocktails, surprisingly good food and a classy ambiance. I would’ve never found it on my own. Speaking of which, I had my notes app out while talking with the Toronto native we met. He gave a ton of great recommendations for places to eat and sights to see in his city. Always better to get tips that way than on Yelp. Once again, really awesome and meaningful conversations with gregarious strangers. I got back to my hotel in the best mood.
Monday, November 13th
I woke up on Monday in a state of hysteria. In a moment of clarity, it became clear I could not show up to this event in the tie that I brought. Not under any circumstances. It wasn’t nearly classy enough. This was the fashion icon Henrik Lundqvist’s night, not my buddy’s Sweet 16.
I cleaned up quick and left the hotel. Food first, though. It was nippy, but the sun was out, so I opted to walk over to Cafe Landwer. The #1 breakfast spot recommendation from my Toronto friend the night before didn’t disappoint. The vibes inside were immaculate, with vintage decorations and a bustling environment. They had a massive menu too. I’ll definitely be back next time I’m in Toronto.
I hopped in an Uber and headed to Ossington Avenue, another recommendation from my Canadian friend. He described it as a hangout spot for locals with plenty of food, shopping and bars. I spent some time walking around and enjoying the quiet and serene aura just outside the city. Part of my brain continued to panic about finding a good tie for later that night, but I brushed it aside.
Thanks to another recommendation by a local, I found myself in Tiger Of Sweden. It didn’t register at the time, but very on brand for the weekend to shop at a Swedish men’s fashion store. The guys in there were super helpful, and must’ve been laughing at me a little bit, because I have next to no fashion sense. I was also increasingly feeling myself in a rush, even though I had a ton of time before the ceremony later that night. I walked out with a new tie, a new blazer and a substantial hit to my bank account. Whoops! The exchange rate in my favor helped me justify the purchase, plus I’ll have the blazer/tie forever and will always remember where and when I got them.
I got back to the hotel room with a few hours to get ready. More time than I needed, but I didn’t want to be in a rush. I flipped TSN on the TV and spent way too much time ironing my clothes.
By 5:30pm I was ready to roll and left the hotel. I sat in traffic in the Uber and my nerves started to mount. I hadn’t been feeling any sort of anxiety throughout the weekend, but showing up to this event got the juices flowing.
Huge shoutout to the Hockey Hall of Fame & the NHL for putting on such a magnificent event. They had a red carpet rolled out to the street and all the way on down to the entrance of the Hall of Fame. Media and cameramen lined the sides of the red carpet, along silent auction tables closer to the Hall of Fame. I felt a bit silly walking the carpet and getting my picture taken by strangers. A bunch asked if I was a NHLer, which was a nice little ego boost.
I wasn’t quite sure what to expect of the little happy hour they had planned before the ceremony. I paid for food & drink, but figured it’d be a small little table that I probably wouldn’t want to wait on line for. Couldn’t have been farther from the truth.
They had several different cuisines scattered throughout the Hall of Fame, along with several different bar carts. I thought it was beyond cool they had the event amidst all the beautiful exhibits at the Hall of Fame. Every room and every corner had food & drink, along with servers walking around with wine and appetizers for convenience.
I was able to meet & chat with more media personalities, former NHLers and hockey celebrities than I imagined was possible. I had to pinch myself multiple times. The few that stood out: Sam Rosen, longtime play-by-play announcer for the Rangers, Adam Graves, 1994 Stanley Cup Champion with the Rangers, Benoit Allaire, legendary goalie coach for the Rangers (more on him later) and Chris Drury, former Ranger and current General Manager.
Sam Rosen was an absolute gem. He’s exactly the same guy that he is on TV talking to Joe Micheletti. It was an absolute treat to casually chat with him after listening to his iconic voice call games for over a decade. We chatted about the weekend, the Rangers’ stellar play this season and a little hockey book talk. He recommended anything by Stan Fischler, who he claims is one of the game’s best historians.
I can’t say enough good things about Adam Graves. He radiates incredible energy and positive vibes. I was genuinely astonished how zoned in to our conversation he was. He was asking about me, where I’m from, what I do for work and the logistics of how I got to the event. He repeated my name several times throughout the conversation and told me to pull him aside next time I see him at MSG or elsewhere to say hello. All-time classy guy that made me feel like I’d been friends with him for years.
Benoit Allaire was a quick hello, but a special one. He was so jolly and beyond friendly. I thanked him for all the magic he does behind the scenes and how even though he’s not always in the limelight, real Rangers fans know of his contributions. He laughed and said he prefers to stay in the shadows. More on him later!
Chris Drury was the most inorganic conversation of the bunch, but surreal nevertheless. I actually didn’t meet him at the happy hour, I met him upstairs on the set of the inductions, just before it kicked off. I watched him walk right by me to get to his seat, much closer to the front, and jumped on the opportunity to shake his hand. I thanked him for everything, how cool it is that he’s come full circle to be the GM and how I love the way he thinks the game. We shared a laugh at a quick story I told about my mom getting me his jersey, when Drury joined the Rangers in 2007 from Buffalo. I threw a temper tantrum that the letters/numbers were printed and not sewn on. Of all the conversations I had, this one was cut the shortest, out of respect. I was talking to the current Rangers GM, probably 15 minutes before the 2023 Induction Ceremony kicked off. What is this life?
The ceremony itself was elegant and picture perfect. I was overcome with gratitude as Lundqvist gave his acceptance speech. Most of the other people I met throughout the weekend weren’t able to get tickets to be in the live audience. I’m still not sure how I was able to.
Afterwards, the inductees filed out of the room and down the escalator, back to the Hall of Fame. A raucous crowd followed them downstairs, where everyone congregated to watch them sign their name into the official registrar. By that time, almost all of the bar carts were nearly out of booze and everyone was having a blast.
I hung around a bit after, meeting more people and taking it all in. I never wanted to leave.
Finally, I headed to a bar next door called The Bottom Line. My friend claimed some of the inductees and their families were headed there and he was right! We got some more drinks & poutine while toasting to 2023 inductee Mike Vernon and his whole family. I felt honored to be in the same bar as the whole Vernon clan, as they partied it up and celebrated Mike. Caroline Ouellette and her whole crew walked in at some point, where she was greeted with a warm applause. I was waiting for Henrik, but knew in the back of my mind that this wasn’t exactly his scene. I didn’t get a chance to meet him over the course of the weekend, but wasn’t necessarily bothered by it. I have this hunch it’ll happen someday.
Tuesday, November 14th
I woke up on Tuesday morning in a bit of a lull. I was riding as high as ever the past few days and it hit me, all at once, that the dream weekend is over. I opened the blinds and stepped out onto the balcony where I was immediately met with that crisp, Canadian morning air. I genuinely felt hungover from happiness.
Little did I know, yet another special moment was on the way.
I’ve heard horror stories about Toronto Pearson airport and gave myself ample time to get through security and find my gate. While searching for the right place to go, I almost physically bumped into Benoit Allaire headed the other way. “Benny!!” I could tell from the expression on his face that he also recognized me from our quick chat the night prior.
Later on, I found myself near him again by the food court. I walked over to him and his wife and we chatted for a while. What a world! We discovered how our timelines with the Rangers align. Him, as the goalie coach in 2004 and myself, as a mere fan in 2005. The both of them were so kind and courteous with their time. I mentioned the nice shoutout he got in Lundqvist’s acceptance speech, but wondered where my shoutout was. The both of them thought that was pretty funny. As always, I wrapped up the conversation at a certain point and headed to my gate.
While seated at the gate texting some of my friends, a man tapped me on the shoulder. I looked up to see Benny! He had these Maple cookies in his hand and presented it to me as a gift.
He insisted that I can’t come to Canada without bringing a box home, along with some more kind words that I totally forgot because I was so stunned and speechless. It was such a wholesome gesture and the perfect end to the perfect trip. If you told me before the weekend that Benoit Allaire would be giving me a gift, I’d tell you that has a below 0% chance of happening and you’re out of your mind.
Thank You, Henrik
The story of Henrik Lundqvist is a case study of defying the odds. Born and raised in Åre, a small sea resort in Sweden, he admitted to the fear of never making it out of that little bubble. As fate would have it, he ended up in the biggest city in the world, but not before being disrespected in the draft. 21 goalies were drafted ahead of The King, before the Rangers took a chance on him in the 7th round of the 2000 NHL Entry Draft.
Lundqvist honed his craft through militaristic discipline and other worldly mental toughness. Once we was given the reigns in net, he owned the moment and ran with the opportunity. Throughout his 15 years as the face of the franchise, he carried himself with the utmost class and dignity. There’s so many lessons to glean from his historical career.
As I mentioned before, Lundqvist in net was all I ever knew growing up. His goaltending stardom, but also the person he was off the ice made you proud to be a fan of the Rangers.
How blessed New Yorkers were to be along for the ride of a true legend. How blessed I was to be in attendance and meet so many fascinating people at his induction weekend. How blessed we all are, to enjoy the beautiful sport of hockey and the wholesome community alongside it.
geryblogs 
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