Bourque back wearing enemy colours
Joining Canadiens hasn’t bolstered his production
Rene Bourque’s parents were not around Tuesday to watch their son in action. See, the residents of Lac La Biche, Alta., had booked a non-refundable trip to Hawaii months ago — while Bourque was still a member of the Calgary Flames.
That’s not to say Sonny has not already given them their fair share of thrills.
Dec. 27, 2008, against the Ottawa Senators, Bourque scored three times — his first-ever hat trick in the National Hockey League — with his folks, Wayne and Barbara, in the Saddledome stands. On his mother’s birthday yet.
In fact, there had been plenty of shining moments for Bourque in three-plus seasons as a member of the Flames. Enough of them, though? That had always been the question here.
Popular with teammates and brimming with potential, Bourque, nevertheless, got shipped to the Montreal Canadiens, in exchange for Michael Cammalleri on Jan. 12. And Tuesday, he was back at the Saddledome, engulfed by reporters in the visitors’ quarters after the morning skate.
Bourque, in a pleasant five-minute exchange with the press, didn’t sound homesick for the 403.
Yes, he’s learning French, slowly. Yes, he’s learning to find his way around Montreal, slowly.
Yes, he’ll be selling his Calgary home this summer.
But there are few complaints. The new home town is fantastic.
“It’s Montreal — it’s the mecca of hockey,” said Bourque, 30. “Fans are crazy.”
“Playing in the Bell Centre every night is a treat for us,” Bourque continued. “It’s worked out well so far. I haven’t been playing as good as I’d like, but as far as fitting in with the team and getting used to the city . . . I love living there. “It’s been a good change so far.” But not one that has done wonders for his slipping production.
In 22 appearances with his new employers — not including Tuesday’s — Bourque has compiled six points, to go with a minus-12 rating. With the Flames, he’d registered 16 points in 38 games.
“I know that he’s not having the year that he’s wanted,” said Flames winger Curtis Glencross, who’d watched his close friend bat out three consecutive 20-plus-goal seasons for the Flames.
“He’ll bounce back. He’ll get on a roll. He’s one of those players that, when he gets on a roll, he’s good. I have no doubt in my mind that he’ll catch that again.”
But consider the page fully turned for Bourque.
For instance, he doesn’t bother obsessing over the production of Cammalleri (who has 11 points in 21 appearances for Calgary) or the current plight of the Flames.
“I’m not worried about that,” he said. “I see the highlights, I see the standings. But I wish them the best. I’ve got a lot of good friends on the other side. I hope they do well.” The feeling is mutual. “I talked to him on the phone a week and a half, two weeks, ago,” said Glencross. “He’s one of the guys you sure miss around here. He was my roommate on the road. He’ll always be a friend of ours. He’s an Alberta boy. It’s tough to lose a good friend like that. But at the same time, we all know it’s part of the business, right? Everyone gets traded sometime in their career, usually.”
Added Tim Jackman: “Rene is laid back, a good guy. He enjoys being at the rink. Just a good guy to have on your team. It was sad to see him go, but you wish him the best. He’s a hell of a player.”
And, for players, seeing former chums draped in enemy smocks is not startlingly new territory.
“It happens,” said Jackman. “The first couple years, you’re not used to it. But the longer you play, the more you see it — and the more friends you see go to different teams.
“It’s always nice to see them. Just part of the business, I guess.”