The one about…how they almost died

The best story of our breakfast with Maxim Lapierre and Jean-Francois is one that dates back to the 2004-05 QMJHL season with the pair playing for the Prince Edward Island Rocket and Alain Vigneault their head coach.

“We show up for practice one morning,” began Jean-Francois. “It’s February in PEI, it’s very volatile weather down there and this one morning the sun was out, no snow on the ground, it was nice. We put on our team jackets and sweat pants and sneakers, light gloves, and go to practice for a few hours.

“We leave the rink and it’s hell out there. Cars are covered in snow; literally you couldn’t see the roofs. Max was driving a 1994 beat up Hyundai two-door, one of the best pieces of crap I’ve ever seen, and we can’t even see it. Alain pulled up in his shiny SUV ready to do donuts around everyone, and said he would give us a ride to our billets.

“We jumped in. Max’s billets had just moved to a new place on a farm and so Alain asked if the snowplow would have gone through the street there. Max said he didn’t know. When we got close, Alain said he didn’t want to take a chance at getting stuck, so he dropped us off nearby, but we still had a little walk. We start walking and it turns out we really misjudged how far of a walk it was, we were like a mile and a half away.

“Picture this: 30-mile an hour winds coming at you, ice falling off everywhere, snow coming up to your knees, you’re dressed lightly and tired from practice. I’m pretty sure I saw the light at the end of the tunnel at one point. It was crazy.”

Lapierre, laughing hysterically, added: “He just kept saying: ‘I’m cold, I’m cold, I’m cold.’ It’s like a line from the movies.”

Jean-Francois continued: “We finally got to the billets and I removed my gloves and they took 12 hours to thaw.

“Then the next day Alain fined us for not being dressed in proper winter gear. I’ll never forget that. I don’t think he knows that story.

“Alain, if you’re reading this, we almost died. We didn’t, so we were more than happy to pay that fine.”

The one about…the stinky tongue

Jean-Francois was ready when the question as asked.

“You want stories, oh I’ve got stories,” he laughed, moments after sitting down to join us for breakfast Sunday morning.

“We were playing junior together in PEI,” said JF. “We got creamed the night before by Rimouski and we weren’t supposed to practice the next morning, we were supposed to travel to Bathurst, but Alain Vigneault, he was our coach back then, wasn’t too pleased with our performance so he made us skate the next morning.

“He didn’t think we were tough enough the night before, so he made us do all contact drills in practice. We were doing this one drill and I was going up against one of our big goons and next thing you know I’ve got a puddle of blood in my mouth. I didn’t know what was going on so I went back to the line and Max told me I didn’t look too good. I opened my mouth to talk but I had bit through my tongue and I had no tongue left. They had to stitch it back together.”

The table fell silent.

Yuck.

Then Maxim Lapierre chimed in with the icky details.

“I used to pick him up for practice from his billets house and when we were driving in the morning, we had to put the windows down and put our heads out of the car because it was so stinky,” roared Lapierre.

“He couldn’t open his mouth because of the stitches and it was infected and he couldn’t brush his teeth. It was terrible. It was that stinky.”

Added Jean-Francois: “That’s a story for all you ladies at home.”

Excellent Adventure: Lapierre

Hey, Maxim Lapierre here. Here’s the photos from our interviews on Sunday with the best captions you will ever read ever anywhere ever. http://bit.ly/MBAiup

The one about…playing in Montreal

When Maxim Lapierre was drafted by the Montreal Canadiens 61st overall in 2003, his mom jumped up and down and screamed as if the Lapierre family had won the lottery.

In a way, it did.

“They were saying I was going to get drafted in the early 20s, so when I fell so far down it was tough, but then the Canadiens took me and things couldn’t have worked out better,” said Lapierre, outside the Bell Centre Sunday morning.

“It was perfect for me to start my career here, I had my family to support me and sometimes you don’t think about it, but being 20 in the NHL is pretty young and it’s good to have your family and friends around you. My name is in the books now and my dad is proud to have his family name as part of the history. It was a good beginning and now I’m happy in Vancouver.”

The one about…Celine Dion

The first time Maxim Lapierre was in the storied Bell Centre was for a rough and tumble manly sporting event a Celine Dion concert.

“I’m not ashamed of that, I like her,” said Lapierre, matter-of-factly, and ready to pummel me with his iron fists if even the slightest smirk emerged on my face.

“I was with my whole family, in fact my parents and sister are in Las Vegas right now to see Celine.”

This Celine conversation went down at about 9:14 a.m. and with a full day of interviewing Lapierre on the horizon, I did not prod into his love for Celine any further.

Journalism lesson of the day: Don’t tick off the subject first thing in the morning, especially not about their guilty pleasure.

The one about…getting the call

“I remember when I first got called up to Montreal I was in Hamilton and I had a bad fever, I was feeling really bad, but I knew I could not say no to a call up,” laughed Lapierre. “That first moment I put on the jersey was a great moment for the family and I remember a couple of the guys were clapping in the dressing room as soon as I put it on.

“I played two minutes that night, but it was the best two minutes of my life.”

The one about…his first NHL goal

On December 12, 2006, Lapierre made his NHL debut and had an instant impact picking up his first career NHL point assisting on Guillaume Latendresse’s game-winning goal in a 4-3 win over the Boston Bruins.

The very next game Lapierre picked up his first NHL goal in a 4-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The puck is on the mantle in his TV room, the memory is always on his mind.

“I remember seeing the puck coming right at me and it just hit my stick. When I heard the crowd I knew it was me that scored. It’s an unreal feeling, you can’t explain that. You talk about that goal for years after.”

Wanna go for a swim?

I can confirm that we did swim in Maxim Lapierre’s pool. I can confirm I did a cannonball. I can confirm Joey Kenward wore a male swimsuit. I can confirm it was pink.

To the Max

It’s 4:21 p.m. in Montreal as I type this. Joey, Rory and myself just got back to the hotel after spending the day with Maxim Lapierre; as those of you who were following our day via @VanCanucks know, it was a fantastic experience.

I have quotes to transcribe, stories to write, photos to cut and food to eat, so give me an hour or two and some of the best content Canucks.com has ever seen will be up.

Here’s a teaser of what you can expect: Celine Dion, Montreal police, Ben & Florentine, Jean-Francois, Montreal riots, Batman Bob, karting championships, batting cages, the Canucks duck, and last but never ever ever least, Jessica Alba.

Intrigued?

Joey, Jory & Rory’s Excellent Adventure

What do you do all summer?

That’s the question I’ve been asked quite a bit over the past few months. My answer: what the Vancouver Canucks do. Get away from hockey, travel, relax, refocus and recharge.

But is that actually what the players do in the off-season?

We’re all about to find out.

What is being called Joey, Jory & Rory’s Excellent Adventure begins today as CanucksTV’s Joey Kenward, Canucks cameraman Rory McGarry and myself, Canucks.com’s Derek Jory, hit the road for four hometown player visits, beginning Sunday in Montreal with Maxim Lapierre.

What you can expect from our week on the road is access to the Canucks like never before – and I’m not just saying that because it sounds good. We’ll be in their homes, meeting their family and friends and touring the hometown areas that made them who they are today. Everything will be turned around for your viewing and reading pleasure on Canucks.com, CanucksTV, Fort Nucks, @VanCanucks on Twitter and on the Vancouver Canucks Facebook page.

And you thought we were in the middle of the dog days of summer. Think again.

Have a question, comment, concern or restaurant recommendation for Joey, Jory and Rory? Have your say here.