Everybody Would Love Raymond… - career of Colorado Avalanche hockey player Raymond Bourque

Hockey Digest, May, 2001 by Adrian Dater

To finally win a Stanley Cup, but the future Hall-of-Famer says that even without the prize it's been a great ride

IN HIS 22 YEARS IN THE NHL, Raymond Bourque has just about seen it all.

As a player, he has been on the ice during five U.S. presidential administrations. He has seen the rise and fall of disco music. He once played against the city of Denver's first NHL team, the Colorado Rockies, and now plays for its second, the Avalanche. In his rookie year, 1979, the best-selling new car in America was the Ford Fairmont.

They don't even make those anymore.

But Bourque keeps right on motoring along. Not even the best french wines age as well as the 40-year-old defenseman has. At his advanced age, Bourque remains among the best at his position in the NHL.

Not only was he among the leaders in scoring for defenseman entering the final two months of the season, but Bourque was the Avalanche leader in ice time, averaging close to 27 minutes a game.

He has five Norris Trophies on his shelf, along with sweaters from the last 19 All-Star Games, an NHL record.

But the one thing Bourque hasn't captured in all these years, the one thing missing from his trophy case, is the Stanley Cup. Even though it sometimes looks like it, the fact is Bourque can't play forever, and his chances for a championship are rapidly dwindling.

In fact, this could be it for Bourque. The upcoming playoffs might be his last, best shot. The Montreal native isn't sure whether he'll return for a 23rd season next year or not, and the near-term future of the Avalanche rests largely not only on Bourque's decision, but what happens with unrestricted free agents Joe Sakic and Patrick Roy.

That has cast an all-or-nothing mentality on Colorado getting the Cup this year. And the one person everybody on the Avalanche wants to see get his name on it the most is Bourque. Nobody wants Bourque's name to go in the sports history books as another Ernie Banks, Dan Marino, or Charles Barkley--great players who never tasted championship success.

But Bourque is realistic. He knows it won't be easy successfully battling through the tough Western Conference to the Finals, and he knows he plays for an Avalanche team that has lost three straight Game 7 playoff matches.

But he also knows, no matter what happens, it will have been one heck of a fun ride when it's all over.

HOCKEY DIGEST: What are your feelings going into what could be your last playoffs? Do you feel more pressure to win a Cup than you have in previous years, knowing this could be the last chance?

RAY BOURQUE: Well, I'm pretty excited about the opportunity here. Like we did last year, we've got a lot of talent to have a great run in the playoffs. That's a good situation to be in as a player. So, we're just hoping that we have a good run. This team has come close the last couple of years, losing Game 7 of the semifinals twice. So, we're just trying to take it to the next step. It's a lot of work, but I think we know we've got enough here, if we execute and play the way we can.

HD: What about your personal situation? You've got an option year left on your contract, but you still haven't said one way or the other whether you'll play next year. Last year, you decided before the playoffs that you would be back. What's different about this year?

RB: Really, one way or the other, I'm not even thinking about next year. All I'm focused on is trying to play as well as I can this year and accomplish something here very special. The Cup has eluded me so far, and that's what I'm going after. That's all I'm focused on, and I'm not even thinking about next year, so it doesn't really even matter. The summertime will be a time where I decide.

HD: If it all ended and there wasn't a Cup for you, would you still look back on your career as nothing less than a smashing success? Or, would there be an emptiness inside you that would be tough to fill?

RB: Whatever happens, it's been great. I mean, I've done something that I dreamed about doing as a young kid. And, to be able to do it as long and as well, and have as much fun as I have, it's just been great. For me, I certainly hope that it would end with a Cup. But if it doesn't, I'll know that I tried to go out and approach the game as well as I could and played as hard as I could to try to help the team win hockey games and championships. Hopefully, it can end on a great note for me, but it's been an unbelievable ride.

HD: When you think about retirement, what do you envision?

RB: Spending time with my family. Just enjoying them and being around them wore. They're older now, and my daughter [Melissa] is going to be going off to college in another year. Shell be a senior next year, and my older son is 15, and I've got a young guy that I'll be around more and be able to enjoy him more maybe than the other two. Just to be able to be around them and watch what they do on a consistent basis, and to be with my wife, it will be good. It's going to be an adjustment, but one that I'm not thinking about yet, one that I'll have to deal with in the near future, obviously. I'll have fun, though.