Well-travelled former Montreal Canadiens forward Claude Lemieux appears to have found the fountain of youth – apparently it's somewhere near Phoenix.
Lemieux has told the RDS sports network that he wants to make an NHL comeback at age 43, and that his inspiration is the impending un-retirement of cycling legend Lance Armstrong.
“It's pretty obvious the majority of people are going to think I'm crazy, but I miss being on the rink . . . you only have one life and if you feel it in your heart and in your head, you have to try,” Lemieux told the network from his home in Arizona.
He also said he's prepared to spend time in the minors if need be, pointing out that former teammate Chris Chelios is still a viable NHLer at 46.
The former Conn Smythe trophy winner, who won Stanley Cups in Montreal, New Jersey and Colorado, hasn't seen the ice in a pro hockey game in nearly five years.
Though a comeback is highly improbable – and he's had no nibbles from any pro teams – Lemieux has reportedly been training hard and skating for the better part of two months.
And while he insists money is no concern, Lemieux carefully choreographed his announcement, earning maximum exposure through his insistence that the RDS interview be conducted by former Habs coach Jacques Demers or former teammate Benoit Brunet (both are analysts for the network.)
Canadiens coach Guy Carbonneau, played with Lemieux on Montreal's 1986 Stanley Cup winning team. “I played until I was 40, so good for him if he still has it in his heart and in his body,” Carbonneau told reporters at Canadiens training camp.
“But I have a hard time believing that a guy who's 43 and hasn't played in five years will be able to come back to today's National Hockey League. It would be a miracle.”
You'll have to forgive Carbonneau's pessimism – today he got word that a fourth thirty-something member of his team, Alexei Kovalev, will be sidelined for a few days because of a minor groin pull.
Georges Laraque, Roman Hamrlik and Patrice Brisebois all have similar injuries.
Lemieux retired in 2002-03 as a member of the Dallas Stars – he also briefly played in Switzerland in 2003-04 – and skated for five NHL teams: Montreal, New Jersey, Colorado, Phoenix and Dallas.
In his heyday, Lemieux was a gritty, intense forward who was famous for coming alive in the playoffs. He was also despised by his peers and widely considered one of the dirtiest players in the game.
Lemieux scored 379 goals and 785 points in 1197 NHL regular season games, and 80 goals in 233 playoff games, hence his reputation as a playoff performer.
