The induction speech in tribute to Pierre Lacroix will have a special touch on Monday evening in Toronto. His grandson Max asked his family if he could give the speech. He had done the same at the funeral of his grandfather, with whom he had a deep friendship.
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Max is a goaltender for the Colorado Grit of the North American Hockey League. Next year, he will return to Boston, a city he knows well, where he will play for the Boston University Terriers. He will celebrate his 20th birthday on December 13, which will coincide with the third anniversary of his grandfather’s death.
Members of his family describe him as a young man who has great interpersonal skills and is easy to talk with.
“He’s quick-witted, he doesn’t fear reflectors,” says his father, Eric, with legitimate pride.
“We went to the Quebec International Pee-Wee Tournament twice. My father was the general manager of the team, and I was the coach. My father was Max’s best friend.”
Max has good potential as a goalkeeper, according to Eric, but time will tell if he can play in the professional ranks.
For the moment, studies come first. His father, grandmother and uncle Martin are proud to say that he is a brilliant student.
Eric and his partner, Jill, are also parents of a daughter named Mia, who is 17 years old. The youngest, Ty, is 14 years old.
Big fan of Lane Hutson
Next year, Max will perhaps have the opportunity to have as a teammate defender Lane Hutson, this defender drafted by the Canadian in the second round of the draft last year.
“I love him! exclaims Éric Lacroix.
“I’ve seen him play, he controls the game. He’s gotten a little bigger this year, but for his sake, he should play a third year at university next year.”
According to data provided by the Canadiens, Hutson was five feet 10 inches and 160 pounds at his development camp which was held last July. Last year he was listed as five-foot-nine and 148 pounds.
His older brother, Quinn, also in his second year with Boston University, is five-foot-11 and weighs 176 pounds. Aged 20, he was undrafted.
“But they say that the third boy in the family [Cole] is even better,” adds Éric Lacroix.
And there’s the youngest, 14-year-old Lars, who plays with the Illinois State under-15 team.
Not bad, the Hutson siblings!