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Sunday, December 19, 1999
Fans love Freddie!
Freddie Brathwaite, you are The Man.
The diminutive Calgary Flames goalie walks tall and carries a big stick.
And in our mind, he has to be the undisputed No. 1 goalie in town.
And that's not to slight Grant Fuhr, who has shown nothing but class since joining the Calgary organization.
In fact, the two now appear to be ideal partners with a common goal -- to win hockey games.
But it's Freddie who breathes life into the cadavers propped up like fans at the Saddledome and it's Freddie who's led the team on its recent hot streak.
It's a joyous 'FREDDIE', `FREDDIE', `FREDDIE!' the fans chant over the sound of pennies falling from their eyes. And it sounds sweeter than a Baptist church on Sunday morning.
When have you heard any other player's name reverberating around the rafters? No, REICHEL SUCKS doesn't count!
Only two come to mind in recent memory: one was the Great One on his last appearance in Calgary, the other was a little guy this town used to love. We haven't forgotten about Lanny, but that was oh so many moons ago.
Sure, Freddie's had a few poor efforts. But name one goalie in the NHL who doesn't come up with a stinker every now and again.
And don't forget that many of those guys play on really good teams, too.
Remember, Flames fans, last season it was the out-of-nowhere Freddie, rescued from the glue factory, who paced the Flames to within a hair of a playoff spot before giving way to veteran Ken Wregget, who just didn't get the job done.
At that point, people said Freddie had shot his bolt and turned into the minor-league pumpkin he'd been all along.
When you're seen as a journeyman, you don't have slumps, you just lose your job.
And so it was with Freddie, who was no longer considered a No. 1 guy in the bigs.
With Wregget winging his way to Detroit as a free agent last summer, the Flames turned to the legendary Fuhr, both as a bonafide starting netminder and marquee player to lure back the faithful departed.
A shrewd move by GM Al Coates, even if it has yet to work.
And with many starting to question Fuhr's immediate future in Calgary as Freddie started game after game, we learn that the Flames aren't even paying all of that $3-million US salary.
Thank you, St. Louis.
Suddenly, it does make sense having the cagey and cool veteran Fuhr on the bench and between the pipes to give the little man a rest.
Fuhr is far from done, as he's still showing flashes of the brilliance that will earn him a spot in the Hall of Fame. And he keep on smilin'.
Yet those flashes of brilliance have not been enough to carry a young team that is only now playing the kind of hockey that will challenge for a playoff spot and bring back more of the walking dead to the 'Dome.
Ask Freddie if he's the No. 1 guy and he'll say no, showing a tremendous and admirable respect for the elder statesman and new friend he once worshipped from afar.
Ask Calgary Flames fans if Freddie is numero uno, and you already know the answer.
When one ungrateful little giant blew town, Flames fans didn't have to wait long to find a new little big man to replace him in their hearts.
And Freddie Brathwaite, you are The Man.
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