Boston Bruins head coach Claude Julien has pretty much seen it all on the ice during his seven seasons as the B’s bench boss. He’s seen plenty happen off the ice as well.
Julien and the entire Bruins organization said and did the right things last year following the Boston Marathon tragedy, and they’ll be called on to help (even in the slightest) with the latest tragedy to hit the city. The Bruins will take the ice Thursday night a day after a fire ripped through a Beacon Street apartment in Boston’s Back Bay. The blaze killed two firefighters in the line of duty.
“Those kinds of things, it’s just, it’s sad to see those kinds of things happen, especially when people are trying to save other people’s lives,” Julien told reporters after Thursday’s morning skate ahead of Boston’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks. “And we all know that when they take those jobs on, there’s that risk, but it really touches the city. This city is pretty sensitive when it comes to that stuff and very supportive of all those situations. We’re no different in here, you know. We come in this morning, and guys are talking to other guys, and some of the players didn’t live too far from that area as well.
“But certainly a sad tragedy to have happen. I was watching TV last night, and my heart goes out to the families. You know, you try to put yourself in their shoes and see how they have to react to that kind of news, and if it happened to you how would you react, etc. So not a fun thing to be part of, but certainly, like I said, we’re a group here that really rallies around this city, and we’re going to try and make this city feel as good as we can with our play and let them know that our thoughts and prayers are with the families.”
The Bruins also are auctioning two tickets to Thursday night’s Bruins-Blackhawks game, with the proceeds going to benefit the families of Lt. Ed Walsh and firefighter Michael Kennedy, who died in the fire.
