PHILADELPHIA – Prior to Saturday’s Flyers-Bruins game, they held a moment of silence for Bernie Parent, the franchise goaltender who passed away last Sunday.
It was a moment of reflection to think about his greatness both as a great player and as a wonderful person off the ice.
One individual on hand who had a somewhat unique perspective on Parent’s character was former Flyer netminder Brian Boucher.
Boucher was drafted by Flyers, spent much of his NHL career here and is now a TV analyst for both Philadelphia games and national network games.
Reached between periods at the Xfinity Mobile Arena, Boucher said Parent did what he could to help him in his formative years.
“He recognized when a goalie needed a pat on the back,” said Boucher, who helped the Flyers the last time they made it to the Stanley Cup Final back in 2009-10. “He knew when a goaltender needed encouragement.
“And he was that for me. He was a great Flyer Alumni and truthfully a great ambassador for the Flyers. More importantly, as a goaltender, he was a guy who if you needed a conversation with, he was there to listen.”
Boucher said he didn’t have a lot of interaction with Parent but when the two did talk, the conversations were meaningful.
“They were important to me,” Boucher said. “He was a guy who, for me, you looked up to. Because he did so much for the team, the city and the way he carried himself. . .with great class and great energy. Certainly a guy we’re going to miss seeing around.”
Parent’s positive approach to the game had impact on the way Boucher saw the game.
“Every time I talked to him it was always positive,” Boucher said. “Even if you were struggling and he knew you were down, he was there to lend you a friendly reminder why you were here and what got you here. Sometimes that’s all you need.”
When Bernie talked, goalies listened because they knew few have ever done it better than he did in the two championship seasons when he recorded an amazing 24 shutouts.
“I know he had a lot of success here,” Boucher pointed out. “But if you look at his career, it was bumpy at the start. He went through all the cycles that young goalies go through. Very few start off great. He understood that and that’s why when he came and talked to you, you listened.”
Boucher didn’t arrive in Philadelphia until the late ‘90s, long after Parent retired. But he did understand and appreciate what Parent meant to the city’s hockey community.
“When you think of the Flyers, you think of Ed Snider first, then Bob Clarke, then Bernie Parent,” Boucher said. “They might be neck-and-neck. Bernie was that important.
“What he did, getting them to win two championships, people appreciate it. When I was drafted, I remember people saying, ‘Can you be the next Bernie?’ Those are big shoes to fill. The longer you’re hear, you understand how big of an impact he had on this city and this organization.”
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