By Steve Farnham, Associate Editor, All Habs Hockey Magazine
MONTREAL, QC. — Mike Vernon, retired NHL goaltender who self describes himself as more popular for having fought Patrick Roy than having won two Stanley Cups, gave a great interview to Elliotte Friedman of CBC yesterday and you can find the full audio in the player below.
It’s a very pleasant and candid interview where he talks about his time in Calgary, being traded to Detroit and how it was great for him and his family, and then all of a sudden he delivers this bombshell a little past the eight minute mark.
“I recall even having a conversation with Patrick Roy, in Montreal, at a little breakfast space there, spot we always used to go to. I just walked in by myself; I was early to the rink or something like that and he was there.
He [Roy] said, ‘Mike, come here, I want to talk to you.’
He goes, ‘the pressure, and the media, and the fans,’ he was really; I knew he was thoroughly upset by all of this, and it was really bothering him.
And I said, ‘Patrick, you just have to get traded’. And I said, ‘I got traded, I’m enjoying it in Detroit and everything else.’
Low and behold, that game was the game where he went up to the president. He was in for all nine goals, and he walked up to the president and I’m like going, ‘Oh no’!”
Wait what?
“So the game is over and I’m bee-lining for the dressing room. All the boys are like, ‘What’s wrong? What’s wrong?’ I’ll talk to you later, I gotta go!
No one could figure out why I was running in the dressing room, undressing, shower and I was gone out the door.
After, they came to the establishment where I was having a beer or dinner or something like that. They were like, ‘Verny, what’s going on?’
I said that I didn’t want to feel the wrath of the media.
They were like, ‘What are you talking about?’
I have an idea what Patrick was doing over there. And I didn’t know if he would say anything or do anything.
You know, ‘I talked to Vernon about this earlier in the day’. I’m like, “Holy shit, I better get out of here, I’d get hung!”
*Throws glass of water over head.*
After Friedman informs Vernon this is the first time he had heard about this, Vernon replies, “Yeah. Ask Patrick.”
I’m sure somebody will.
Well this is awkward, are we now supposed to apologize to Mario Tremblay or something?
Stick tap, @FriedgeHNIC, great interview.