The Bruins have had better netminders than Rejean Lemelin, but this guy was my favorite. When I really started watching those late-80s Bruins teams on WSBK38 (just before the Movie Loft with Dana Hersey), it seemed like #1 was in goal every night. He came to Boston after a number of years as the lead goalie for a strong Flames team (Lemelin was a Flame in both Atlanta and Calgary), and was between the pipes for the Bruins for their epic 1988 Stanley Cup Finals run that ran into the Oilers buzzsaw. Two years later he'd share duties with Andy Moog, and together they'd put up the best goals-against average in the NHL en route to another disappointing championship defeat to Edmonton. He hung up his skates after the 1992-93 season, saying he knew it was time when his younger teammates started asking his permission to date his daughter.
I don't know if it was the slightly exotic Quebecois name or his old-school stand-up style, but I loved Rejean Lemelin. He's 65 now. The players I rooted for as a kid are senior citizens. I'm not sure how to feel about that. Is Dana Hersey still around?
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