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Last season in the NHL: Marc-André Fleury wants no special treatment

 Michael Johnson
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Last season in the NHL: Marc-André Fleury wants no special treatment
Credit: Capture d'écran / Screenshot

22 years in the NHL, three Stanley Cups and multiple All-Star Game and playoff appearances later, Marc-André Fleury will finally hang up his skates after next season.

The Québécois goaltender has signed a one-year, $2.5 million contract with the Wild to end his glorious career.

This contract is to win one last Cup, not to bid farewell to the 31 other NHL teams… Fleury is clear: he doesn’t want any special treatment. That’s what Michael Rossi of The Athletic has to say .

Sure, he’ll get it from the Penguins, the Habs and the Golden Knights, and that’s fair enough.

But what about the other teams? He and the organization won’t need such distractions. His former teammate and now general manager Bill Guerin agrees.

This is not a farewell tour. It’s not what he wants. It’s not what we want. We don’t want any distractions like that. We’re just going to do our job. – Bill Guerin

The goaltender with the record for most regular-season wins will get some nice treatment in Montreal and Pittsburgh, especially, but his focus is on winning games.

In fact, for the rare time since he left Pittsburgh, he’ll have a few days free to meet old friends and visit the city he already knows quite well.

I feel like every time we go there, we’re in and out pretty quickly. So it will be good to ride a bit, see friends and enjoy the weather. – Marc-André Fleury

As Rossi pointed out, Minnesota have three days off in Pittsburgh before their game against Sidney Crosby’s team.

As for Montreal, he won’t have the chance to stay there much longer, as he and his club will be in Toronto the day before. And two days after the game against the Habs (January 30, 2025), he’ll have to hit the ice against the Ottawa Senators.

I’d like to think that in his last game at the Bell Centre, in a second game in two nights, he’ll be the one to face his childhood team…

I understand that the Wild want to win first and foremost, but we’re still talking about one of the best Québécois goalies in history. By the way… Can’t wait to see him in action? He’s playing tonight against the Winnipeg Jets in a warm-up game.

In short, the 2024-2025 season won’t be a farewell tour for Fleury, but I’d like him to have a good last season in the Bettman circuit. He deserves it.


Overtime

– I can imagine.

– Nick Suzuki: the quarterback of the five-man attack.

– Impressive.

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