Bickell gets shootout goal before retiring due to MS
PHILADELPHIA — After Bryan Bickell put such a memorable end to his hockey career, it was hard to find a dry eye in the Carolina Hurricanes’ locker room.
Bickell, an Orono native who summers in Peterborough County, scored in the shootout of his final game before retiring because of multiple sclerosis, and the Hurricanes beat the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 Sunday night in the season finale for both teams.
“I think I sweated all the tears out, so I don’t have much left,” Bickell said after receiving countless handshakes and hugs from teammates. “It’s been an emotional week leading into this day. Seeing my family here, all the people that supported me through it all, I’m just happy.”
During a stoppage in the first period, fans and players from both teams gave Bickell a standing ovation and stick tap. The 31-year-old three-time Stanley Cup champion was diagnosed with MS in November but returned to hockey in February. He decided earlier this week to retire while he fights the disease.
His shootout goal was the first of his career in his second attempt and set up Brock McGinn’s winner on the final shot of Carolina’s season. McGinn also scored twice in regulation.
After the game, Carolina coach Bill Peters said he regretted not selecting Bickell for the shootout against the St. Louis Blues on Saturday night and made up for it by having Bickell take the first shot of the shootout against the Flyers.
“Thank God it worked out,” Peters said. “I was a little disappointed in myself for not being on top of that. Usually, I’m a little keener in that situation. We were lucky to get a second chance at it. I’ll never forget his goal, the reaction from his teammates and the emotion he had.”
It was quite the night for Bickell, who had his wife and daughter watching from the stands.
“Seeing the Philly fans show that kindofrespectbygivingmeapplause, that was nice,” Bickell said.
Bickell’s farewell came in an otherwise meaningless game between two teams who fell short of preseason expectations to reach the playoffs.
With his wife and daughter in the stands, Bickell was recognized during a stoppage in play in the first period.
Bickell played nine of his 10 seasonsintheNHLwiththeBlackhawks and won three Stanley Cups with Chicago. He brought the Stanley Cup to the former Trasheteria bar in Peterborough in 2010 and also brought it onto his fishing boat on the Otonabee River.
He has received monthly treatments since his multiple sclerosis diagnosis and returned to the Hurricanes for their final four games of the season after playing 10 games with Carolina’s American Hockey League affiliate.
“As the weeks go on in the month, it’s like running low on gas,” Bickell told NHL.com Saturday. “You just kind of fade off. Some symptoms come, but when you get treatment, you feel energized and full of life.”