CANADIENS
SUFFER THREE LOSSES IN A ROW AS CAPITALS BEAT THEM 4-1.
The last time Blake Geoffrion was in Montreal it was bittersweet.
The date was March 11, 2006, and the Canadiens were set to honour his grandfather, Bernie (Boom Boom) Geoffrion, by raising his No. 5 to the rafters of the Bell Centre that night.
But early that morning, Boom Boom passed away, making the night even more emotional for the Geoffrion family and the fans who paid tribute to the Hall of Famer with the booming slapshot.
Those memories came flooding back to Blake Geoffrion on Friday morning as he stepped onto the Bell Centre ice for the first time in nearly six years – this time as a member of the Canadiens family after being acquired last week in a trade that sent Hal Gill to the Nashville Predators.
Geoffrion admits he wasted no time looking up to the rafters, finding the No. 5 of his grandfather and the No. 7 of his great-grandfather, Howie Morenz.
“It’s great to be here and skating on the ice for the first time, looking up at the banner of my grandfather and great-grandfather, it’s pretty special,” said Geoffrion, 24, who was in town with the American Hockey League’s Hamilton Bulldogs for a game against the St. John’s Icecaps Friday night.
Geoffrion said thoughts of that day six years ago were swirling through his head during the morning skate.
“It was very emotional for me as an individual and my entire family since he passed away that morning,” Geoffrion recalled, before adding: “I still can’t believe I am here.”
He expected to feel a little extra emotion during the pregame warm-up, but once the puck drops he said it would be just another game.
He would become the fourth generation of his family to suit up for the bleu-blancrouge if he is called up by the Canadiens. His father, Dan, played 32 games with Montreal during the 1979-80 season.
But until he can pull on a CH jersey, the 6-foot-2 forward – drafted 56th overall by his hometown Predators in 2006 – is just trying to adjust to a new organization and a new system.
“I enjoy the process,” said Geoffrion, who won the hobey Baker Award as the top player in U.S. college hockey in 200910 after posting 28-22-50 totals in 40 games with Wisconsin. “It’s been quite a ride and pretty incredible so far. I am happy to be here in Hamilton, we have a lot of great guys here. It’s been a really smooth transition.”
So smooth, in fact, that going into Friday night’s game Geoffrion had collected seven points (two goals, five assists) in three games with the Bulldogs, crediting a fresh start to his success. In 20 games with the Milwaukee Admirals, he had two goals and seven assists.
“I was playing on the fourth line and not a lot of minutes with (Milwaukee), so I wasn’t able to produce and I kind of lost that confidence with the puck,” said Geoffrion, who was held off the scoresheet in 20 NHL games with the Pred- ators this season.
Geoffrion was held off the scoresheet in regulation time Friday as the Bulldogs rallied from a 2-0 third-period deficit to win 3-2 in a shootout in front of 11,300 fans at the Bell Centre. Geoffrion did score on his shootout attempt.
Bulldogs head coach Clément Jodoin has been pleased with the performances of his new forward.
“In his three first games, he has been excellent. But you can’t judge an athlete on three games. You start to have a better opinion of an athlete after about 10 games,” Jodoin said, adding that those 10 games give you a chance to assess his competion level through good and bad times.
“Consistency is the biggest challenge for any athlete,” the coach added.
And that is something Geoffrion is striving for as he tries to make it back to the NHL.
“Obviously, I want to make it back to the NHL, and it’s going to be a little bit of a process now to get used to the different system and get my confidence back,” he said. “I feel pretty confident right now with the puck, so once I get that back, it will give me my best chance to get called up.”
Geoffrion said the Canadiens made it clear from Day 1 that they did not trade for him because of his family name, instead believing they were acquiring a good player with NHL potential.
“That was good to hear,” Geoffrion said. “Because, for obvious reasons, when you get traded here I am sure that crossed a lot of people’s minds.”
Geoffrion knows there will be expectations placed on him given his family’s history with the Habs, and he couldn’t escape it at the airport upon his arrival in Montreal.
“Someone recognized me and said: ‘Hey, no pressure. But you better score tomorrow night,’ ” Geoffrion recounted of his arrival on Thursday.
While he may not score every night, Geoffrion says a key for him is to play an allaround game and win battles.
“Work hard every single night and start winning the battles, things will fall into place after that,” he said, before adding with a smile: “I’m not like papi (Boom Boom) with the big shot. I am still working on that one.”