Alone against Bossy | The Press

Richard Sévigny remembers very well the first time he saw Mike Bossy arrive in front of him.

Richard Labbe
The Press

“It wasn’t even in the National League or in the junior…it was in the pee-wee AA! answers the former goalkeeper of the Canadian. We were both very young, and already in the pee-wee, you could see Mike’s talent. Even at that age, he was able to find fault with a goalkeeper…”

Finding the flaw is something that Mike Bossy knew how to do very well during this career that was too short, but how significant in the history of hockey. From 1977 to 1987, the famous forward scored a total of 573 NHL goals, and often in the same way: by firing a shot that left the poor goaltender in front of him no chance.

What was it like, exactly, to see a young Bossy rushing down the wing, picking up momentum and taking a shot? We asked four ex-NHL goaltenders who played him to describe the Bossy magic from their perspective.

Denis Herron (Pittsburgh Penguins, Kansas City Scouts, Montreal Canadiens)

“When Mike came to the NHL [en 1977-1978], I had been in the league for a few years already and I had no idea who he was…well, I found out pretty quickly! I remember he used to play with a whole trio, completed by Bryan Trottier and Clark Gillies. These guys were great players, but as a goaltender, I couldn’t lose sight of Mike for a moment on the ice. I absolutely had to know where he was at all times, even though the other two were very good too. The challenge when I played against him was that I had to make sure I was ready at all times, because he could shoot the moment he saw the smallest opening. If I left a few centimeters of space in the corner of the net, he was going to place the puck exactly there! He had a lively and precise throw, and in those years, you didn’t see that often. I remember maybe three or four players who could throw that fast, with that accuracy…and he was one of the group. »

Richard Sévigny (Montreal Canadian, Quebec Nordiques)

“To do what he did, that is to say 9 consecutive seasons with at least 50 goals, he had to be a natural scorer. In junior, I remember, we often tried to intimidate him; I was playing in Sherbrooke and coach Ghislain Delage told the guys that Mike had to be shaken up. He clearly had a target on his back…Mike was getting shuffled just about every night in junior but hats off to him he got through that…Then I saw him back in the National League and I was with the Canadian when he managed his season of 50 goals in 50 games [en 1980-1981]. I don’t remember a particular game, but he must have scored a couple against me! When we played against him, the goalkeepers, we knew he was going to find our weakness, it was inevitable. A goalkeeper must be wary when he faces a marker like him, but the problem, when we are wary, is that we start to play on the heels and to play in a less natural way. And Mike was taking advantage of that because he could put the puck anywhere. »

Steve Penney (Montreal Canadiens, Winnipeg Jets)

“I mainly remember him because of the conference final I played with the Canadiens against the New York Islanders in the spring of 1984… Facing Mike Bossy, as a goaltender, was another matter. Usually you could look at a player and predict where he was going to try to throw, but with Mike you couldn’t do that! It was impossible, because you saw the puck on his stick and by the time you saw it, the puck had already gone your way, because Mike was drawing so quickly. But what I remember most of all when I think back to him is that he had a heavy throw, a heavy throw. In the past, goalkeepers’ equipment was not like today, so his shots hurt, even if we didn’t really realize it at the time in a match situation, because of the energy and adrenaline. But just by receiving his shots, you could understand that he must have spent hours and hours practicing this shot when he was younger. »

Glenn “Chico” Resch (New York Islanders, Colorado Rockies, New Jersey Devils, Philadelphia Flyers)

“Before the advent of masks, goalkeepers stood up, covered their faces and slid to the side with both pads on. When Mike arrived in the late 1970s, goalies had masks and were beginning to practice the butterfly style. But coaches still advised players to throw low, in the corners. I noticed that Mike often scored with a shot between the pads. He said to me: “I know the goalkeeper has his pads stuck in the basic position, but as soon as I start my shot, he starts to open his legs.” He scored tons of goals like that… Some players cheat the goaltender with the way they shoot, because the puck doesn’t go the way you expect. Mike, his motion was like a pendulum. He could cast without warning. Also, Mike was seeing a 4 by 6 target. When you do that, even now, it’s amazing how many pucks go through the goalies. He wasn’t aiming for corners. Lafleur was more predictable, but he could fire pellets. Mike was a sniper, and he could score from the backhand side as well. His unpredictability made him difficult to face. »

With the collaboration of Guillaume Lefrançois, The Press