RIP Brendan Burke

The world of hockey was devastated to hear the news about the tragic death of Brendan Burke, son of Toronto Maple Leafs GM Brian Burke. It was Friday night, and I was just finishing up a crisis call I was dispatched to. I had to tend to a family that just lost a love one to a heart attack, and witnesses their heartache for about two hours. As I sat there, holding back my own tears, I then saw a message sent to my phone breaking the news of Brendan’s death. In an instant, I felt complete sadness. To say I was shocked was an understatement. The article that was written about Brandon was still fresh in my mind, and I was just talking about how proud Brian Burke must be to walk in the opening ceremonies as the proud American he’s always professed to be. I then started wondering, why is it people have huge highs in life, only to then have complete and utter lows.
I could not help it but to think of my father who died over 10 years ago, and like a fresh cut, I could feel my wound open up. I thought back to the days when Burke was in Anaheim and how he made it known he had to leave to be with his family. I thought Burke was a great father for making that his main priority. I thought about how close I was with my father, and how he always worried about my safety. Details of Brendan’s death were still sketchy and there was not much information until the next morning. Apparently Brendan died in an auto accident when the car he was driving slid into oncoming traffic due to snowy conditions. I remembered one time when I crashed in high school. I called my father to the scene to pick me up, and when he got there all I could think of was how mad he was going to be. When he arrived on scene, he walked right up to me, and as I formed the words to say I was sorry, he grabbed me and hugged me and said he was scared something bad had happened to me. I realized then and there, that my father actually got scared for the first time. I cannot begin to imagine Brian Burke’s reaction to the news of his son’s passing. It is a parent’s worse nightmare, and one that Brian Burke and his family are experiencing.
This weekend, the world of hockey stood together in solidarity for a family member. And forgive me for forgetting where I read this, but someone else came up with this and said that today, every team removes their logos from their chests, and puts down the hockey sticks in honor of Brendan Burke. I could not agree more. I would like to dedicate this Sunday’s column to Brendan Burke and his bravery as a human being, and as a loving son. May you rest in peace forever.

Most Memorable Jiggy Moments.

Everyone seems to be doing tributes for J.S. ever since being traded to Toronto. There are many moments that make up who Jiggy is today. I could list the 2007 Cup championship as one, but that's too easy. Instead I'll chime in with mine. I have quite a few but I think I'll just highlight five of them for the sake of time.

5. Jiggy's Father passes away- As having gone through this, I know how hard it is when someone dies, to have the spirit to want to do things right away. A person hits a low when a parent dies, and the human heart almost feels weakened by the loss. This is Jiggy's 5th most memorable moment because even though the Ducks did not achieve success by NHL standards, the mere fact that he could finish the season with respectable numbers is huge.

4.Mighty Ducks Sweep The Wild - 02/03 Playoffs R3 GM4
Once more, Jiggy helps the Mighty Ducks sweep a strong Minnesota team, and as you watch the video, look how exhausted Jiggy was at the end of the game. They always say sometimes you have to fight until you can't fight any more, and sometimes when you fight that hard, something breaks. 2003 may have been the year that broke Jiggy. It may be the year he left it all on the ice for the team. In 2007 he has an incredibly talented team in from of him, making the cup win inevitable, but in '03, it was Jiggy all by himself. I'll never forget being at this game and cheering like it was the Cup final! Nothing compared to the feeling I had on this night. Nothing would make up for it, except for the Cup winning game in 2007. And yes, you heard correctly...the announcer says Jiggy stops 122 out of 123 shots in the series.

3. Mighty Ducks 5-OT Goal vs. Stars - 02/03 Playoffs - R2 GM1
This game went to five over times! think about it. That's 2 and half games!! More amazing is the fact that in order for the team to get to that point, it took quite a performance from its goalie. In this game, you had two greats battling one another. On one side, Marty Turco, and on the other, J.S. Giguere. Watch the video as the stunned crowed quietly makes its way out of the Dallas arena!

2. Jiggy Melt Down- this game took place in 2006, when the Oilers were taking on the Ducks at home. The Ducks were frustrated by the antics of goal tender Dwayne Roloson and then Oiler Chris Pronger. In fact Pronger got under Jiggy's skin so much, that he finally cracked and was assessed a slashing penalty, and then got into a scrum with Pronger. As the whistle blew, Jiggy continued to mouth of at Pronger and then began punching Pronger in the kisser! Jiggy was received a double minor, which allowed the Oilers to score and add insult to injury. The Oilers that year eliminated the Ducks from the Western Conference Final, but it was worth it to see such raw emotion come from Jiggy. I don't have video of this, but I've attached a video having a melt down on the bench recently.

1. Triple Over Time- when the Ducks faced off against the Detroit Red Wings in the opening round of the 2003 playoffs, many felt it was merely a warm up for the defending champion Wings. Since 1952, history was on the side of the defending champions, as there has not been a first round elimination of a returning champion since that year. What transpired what a goalie clinic, in which J.S. stopped 63 shots in one game (or technically 2, depending how you look at things.) The game was loaded with drama and excitement as David took on Goliath, with the Ducks coming out on top in a memorable game.

Finally, here is a video tribute, one of many, that hit the net once Jiggy was traded. Its by Roochfan20 on YouTube, and I thought it summed up Jiggy nicely.

Good luck Jiggy. Toronto is embracing you with open arms. The move is going to be good for you to shake off some old skeletons, so you can give Canada a little taste of what it was like in Anaheim the last 10 years.

"I would give that one up to get the other one. The other one is much nicer and much bigger," he said. "My thought goes to all my teammates. They worked so hard in front of me and I couldn't do anything without them. This is something we'll hopefully share as a team." -J.S. Giguere 2003 after winning the Con Smyth Trophy in a loss to New Jersey Devils.