Editor’s note: NESN.com is asking Bruins fans to share their favorite Bruins memory. Frank C. from New York City shared the following moment.
I remember back in the 80s, Cam Neely was out with leg problems, and I was trucking around the upper sections at the old Garden when I saw him moving about. I got a quick handshake. That was all a kid needed, you know? A second with an idol.
Now, I may have my chronology all screwed up, but I think I remember the icing on the cake that day was seeing Lyndon Byers walking around (possibly suspended for enforcing Boston hockey rules) on my way back to my seat.
He was signing a few autographs, and I got in line. When I reached him, a drunk fan knocked me aside and tried to get his John Hancock before me. LB collared the guy and said, “You’ll wait. The kid was first.” I had a triumphant grin on my face as I stared at LB signing my brother’s high school jersey. I experienced the Bruins legend with my own hands. I was on cloud nine. I’ll never forget it.
Now, my two cents.
There is something special about these Boston teams, my friends — something intangible that only Boston fans are nodding at right now, something common between us. We all feel it.
Forget the deficit.
Forget the Canucks.
Our players out there that love us Boston fans, they know what’s important here: the game of hockey. It’s the thing that keeps us all coming back. This Boston legacy is the real focus. So with Cam at the helm and these talented players on the ice, whose love for the game is only surpassed by a desire to win, I feel something special in the air.
Let’s get a Cup, Boston, for the love of the game, for a Boston legacy that demands respect — and for the legend Cam Neely, who made me dream of the Cup and my place, alongside my team, in the history books.
Do you have a Bruins story to share? Send your story, along with a photo, to fanvoice@nesn.com. Please include the subject line “Share Your Memory” with your name and where you live in the body of the email.
