Will Paul Alexander Ever Get Real Work in Pittsburgh Sports Again?

All a Fleury

Penguins star goalie Marc-Andre Fleury brought dwelling house the Stanley Cup with his lightning-speed save in the terminal moments of Game vii. In this exclusive interview, FSN'southward Paul Alexander reveals the man backside the mask.

Inorthward what has been a whirlwind of commemoration and jubilation, there is still just ane image that is etched forever in the minds of Pittsburgh Penguins fans: It is the desperate lunging save of Marc-Andre Fleury in the final seconds of Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Last.

That save and its significance volition forever change the long and lean goaltender with the 100,000-watt smile that doesn't have an off switch. The boyfriend branded with the "can't win the large one" label had silenced his critics and had proved correct his coaches and teammates who had unwavering confidence in their man betwixt the pipes.

The validation goes back to 2003 when the Penguins and then-general managing director Craig Patrick traded upwardly to brand Fleury the No. one overall choice in the draft. It connected with the $35 one thousand thousand contract extension offered and accepted two years agone.

Fleury may indeed be happy-go-lucky and really play the game of hockey just considering he loves it, but don't allow that smile and Opie Taylor demeanor fool you. Fleury is a fierce competitor and admits there is a certain satisfaction with shutting up the naysayers. Y'all remember the so-called experts who said Fleury would never win a Cup and that goaltending would be the departure between Pittsburgh and Detroit.

"Most of the people that talk never played hockey before," Fleury says. "I really don't worry besides much almost what people say, but when you tin prove them wrong, that's pretty good I gauge. I don't spend whatever time thinking near it, but after the fact, it feels pretty good." That's near as vengeful every bit Fleury tin can get, but he does acknowledge that the smile may hide a certain intensity that is a prerequisite to compete at the level at which he excels.

"I think Marc is definitely an elite goaltender," coach Dan Bylsma explains. "Starting time and foremost, in that location has to be a certain talent level and he has that. There also has to be a mentality, and that is in that location too."

There are simply certain positions in sports that absolutely crave that sure mentality that Bylsma referred to. Goaltender, place-kicker, closer and cornerback demand short-term memories and the ability to bounce back from being public enemy No. 1 that has killed the dreams of their fans and teammates with a soft goal, a shank or a waist-high fastball.

"Marc's power to terminate the adjacent one is the cardinal," Bylsma says. "You know with him that after one [puck] gets by him, he will definitely cease the next one. He's that way in do. If you lot beat him once, he'll get you on the next one. That is an aristocracy goaltender's mindset. He will always bounce back after a bad goal or a bad game."

Fleury also appears to exist oblivious to the criticism or the lack of respect he may make it the press. He playfully apologized to the thousands of fans at the Penguins Stanley Cup celebration parade for "letting in" a few soft goals. Nonetheless, after his MVP-worthy performance throughout the postseason, his apology certainly wasn't necessary.

"Marc answers questions with actions," Bylsma says. "He but lets his game speak for him. He also continues to get better and has continued to improve every year he'southward played."

Bylsma says the news media and the fans like to reduce players' value and ability to a elementary snapshot. Before the Cup-winning endeavour last season, Fleury was associated with the fluke goal in the World Juniors against Team USA in 2004 that price Canada the aureate medal or with the failure to strength a Game vii against Detroit in the 2008 Stanley Cup Terminal. That prompted the "tin't win the large one" whispers that grew louder equally the playoffs unfolded. "That snapshot right now is Marc making that save confronting [Nicklas] Lidstrom," Bylsma says. "That is what everyone will come across at present. He is an elite goaltender."

There are as well another "snapshots" from the Penguins' run to the Cup that captured Fleury at his absolute best. There was the toe save confronting Jeff Carter in Game two confronting the Philadelphia Flyers. The Penguins went on to win that game in overtime. Then in that location was the glove save on an Alexander Ovechkin breakaway in Game 7 confronting the Washington Capitals. Even earlier the dramatic stop on Lidstrom in the final seconds, he robbed Dan Cleary on a breakaway late in Game half-dozen in Pittsburgh.

"I exercise have flashbacks when I see the highlights," Fleury says. "I see them adequately oft and I get goose bumps. I tin't aid but smile and think about what we did."

Fleury'due south much-predictable plough with the Cup was Aug. half dozen. His first official moment involved spooning some cereal and milk from professional sports' virtually-famous and storied piece of hardware. The lingering aroma of stale champagne did nothing to diminish the special solar day that he had earned. It was time to party with more than 200 family and friends in his hometown of Sorel, Quebec.

"Information technology was a crazy 24-hour interval," Fleury recalls. "It was so hectic, but I wanted everyone to get the take a chance to run across it and share it with equally many people as possible. The day simply flew by and everyone had a blast." That is despite a crude start to the day.

Afterwards the formalism cereal, Fleury took Lord Stanley for a ride on the lake in his boat. Minutes into the voyage, the boat stalled, and Fleury and the Cup were stranded. I of Fleury's neighbors came to his rescue and quickly found the problem: A rope had attached itself to the propeller and close down the engine. Disaster avoided.

"Just as we got the rope untangled, one of my buddies came by on his Ocean-doo," Fleury says. "He was merely trying to help, but the whole affair was pretty funny."

Information technology was like Christmas coming early for Fleury, who loved sharing his day with the Cup with his family and friends. Equally for the actual Christmas holiday, Fleury will near likely celebrate the holidays in Pittsburgh. "I don't have time to become back. I don't know the schedule. If I have a couple of days possibly I'll become dorsum home and have a Christmas party, but otherwise we'll merely stay in Pittsburgh."

Whether or not Fleury does make it home, he volition be with his family and his girlfriend. "I like everything about Christmas," Fleury says. "Information technology'due south so cold, a piffling snow. Everybody's happy, shopping, buying presents and expert food, too."

Information technology's difficult to imagine any Christmas present, by or nowadays, compared with the Stanley Loving cup rings Fleury and his teammates earned last twelvemonth. Despite all of the celebrations and the satisfaction of finally reaching the mountaintop, there are no signs of self-approbation on this team. "I am still hungry," Fleury says. "I would love to practise information technology again, and I am anxious to go back to work and get dorsum with the guys."

Hockey has been a part of Fleury's life since he was 5. His dad played, and that's just what kids in Canada practise. He didn't take much involvement in or ability to score goals, but he sure idea that goalie gear was cool. He likewise loved diving around on the water ice. Fleury besides learned that after he had officially declared himself a goaltender, the best part was that he never came off the water ice. He got to play the entire game.

Patrick Roy and Martin Brodeur quickly became his idols. It should come as no surprise that, aside from Brodeur's obvious skill, Fleury was impressed that he could e'er encounter the pure joy Brodeur had in playing the game. He laughed; he talked with everyone on the ice, and oh yeah, he won big games and made bully saves.

Slowly and surely, Fleury's skills took on larger-than-life dimensions. The catlike quickness with the glove and the Gumby-like flexibility in the legs propelled him to Cape Breton in Quebec's famous Major Juniors. His four years there were so exceptional that his No. 29 jersey was retired recently. At the time, he didn't think it could become any better than that.

That was until the clock finally hit double zeroes at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, and Fleury's life would never exist the same. He certainly plans on adding to the legacy and, at 24 years old, the odds are groovy that he volition. But with his name on the Cup and his stamp all over the deciding game, Fleury has arrived.

There was likewise a celebrated trip to the White Business firm to meet with President Obama, who said the players looked good without their playoff beards and that he thought it must exist pretty good to exist a sports fan in Pittsburgh.

That mean solar day started with Fleury and couple of his teammates skating with some inner-city kids in Washington, D.C. "It was pretty absurd," Fleury says, "to see some kids, teach them tips most hockey. They all wanted to know how do a butterfly."

Potential in sports just ways "hasn't done it yet," and when all is said and done, when pundits and fans debate who is the all-time of the all-time, championships provide the separation. So while Fleury hasn't realized all of that wonderful potential and shouldn't be considered the best of all fourth dimension just nonetheless, his full-blooded has ever been there, and now his dossier has changed dramatically. Some things that probably volition never modify though are the personality and the attitude.

"I just honey to play hockey," Fleury says. "I love to be around the guys. Since the offseason was so short, I didn't go far to the gym as much as I would take liked. I wanted to put on a little weight, but I tin can't await to get back to work and do what we can to do this once again."

One thing is for sure. The Penguins will never follow a script like that once more to a title – fall dangerously close to missing the playoffs, fire the head coach and then proceed an unprecedented run to and through the postseason and knock off the defending Stanley Cup champs in their edifice in a seventh and deciding game. Hollywood doesn't come up with anything that unbelievable, but there is also some other certainty to evolve from what just transpired this past hockey season. Fleury will never be referred to again as the guy who can't win the big one, and it's difficult to imagine the experts' giving someone other than the Penguins a decided edge in the goaltending matchup.

Penguins fans have been lucky enough to watch Fleury grow up right before their eyes. Do you recall – at 18 – he was the youngest goaltender always to first an NHL game?

Many idea when he stood on his head and staved off elimination in Game 5 against the Wings in the 2008 Stanley Cup Final that Fleury had arrived. He was close, and he had taken an extremely crucial step toward becoming the goalie that could aid you win it all. Yes, "The Flower," as many call him (Fleury is similar to the French word for "flower"), blossomed and the result was exactly what anybody including Fleury had dreamed of: Perfection.

Not even the softest of goals or the near embarrassing of falls could wipe that trademark smile from Fleury's confront. Then now that the ultimate goal has been accomplished, and the time to come appears even brighter than those pearly whites, Pittsburgh might desire to look in to defraying some of its energy costs and notice a fashion to tap in to one of the Penguins' greatest resources – Marc-Andre Fleury's mega-watt grinning.

Paul Alexander brings more than 20 years of experience covering Pittsburgh sports. Paul, who joined the FSN network in 2006, serves every bit the primary Steelers reporter. He worked for KDKA TV and Radio equally the morning anchor beginning in 1998 before moving to the sports section in 2001. In 2003, Paul added KDKA'southward nightly radio sports call-in evidence to his Telly duties. He is a graduate of Penn State Academy.

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Source: https://www.pittsburghmagazine.com/all-a-fleury/

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