The Great Tretiak: Montreal Hero

Jim Craig and Vladislav Tretiak shake hands following the American's shocking upset at the 1980 Winter Olympics.

Don't feel too bad for Tretiak though. He's got a few other gold medals to celebrate:

 

Dave Stubbs of the Montreal Gazette has a special piece on Tretiak and his special connection with the city of Montreal. Here's a quick sample:

"A happy if flight-delayed Tretiak landed back in Montreal from Moscow via Paris on Sunday evening, 41 years after he first arrived as a 17-year-old. He is delighted to be back for the auction that will benefit his foundation and that of Kovalev, the popular former Canadien who will arrive in town Tuesday following his Ottawa Senators game Monday in Ottawa.

“The first time I came to Montreal, I remember it the same as yesterday,” he said in his hotel suite Sunday night, his body telling him it was nearing 4 a.m. after an endless travel day. “Canada, for us, was a special country. It was very close to Russia on the mental side — we both loved hockey. I remember big cars. Good cars. Oldsmobiles, Chryslers, big Fords. Russian cars were not so big, the design didn’t look so good. Here, big streets, big downtown, big buildings.

“The first time I went to the Forum — unbelievable, fantastic.”

You can read the full Montreal Gazette article here. You can also view some excellent video courtesy of Stubbs at Habs Inside Out.