Pavel Bure to have his number retired

[EDI-Flyer]

The Canucks are going to retire Pavel Bures number this season, per The Vancouver Sun. Whilst I ain't a lover of players going on strike to get their own way I think this honour is deserved, Bure was an incredible player for the Canucks, just a pity his career was cut short by injury.

The Vancouver Canucks announced Tuesday night what had been hinted at last spring: they will retire Pavel Bure’s No. 10 jersey and hang it next season from the rafters at Rogers Arena.

Bure joins former captains Stan Smyl, Trevor Linden and Markus Naslund in the elite group that have had their jersey numbers retired. No actual date was given for the ceremony. The groundwork for the jersey retirement was laid last April 4 when Bure made a surprise visit to Vancouver, did some promotional work and then received a standing ovation later that night when he attended the Canucks’-Edmonton Oilers’ game at Rogers Arena.

“It’s a huge honour,” Bure told reporters Tuesday night after appearing at a Canuck season-ticket holder’s event.

“I’m just really proud and happy to be next to Stan Smyl, who I just saw today. We were talking about how we started together (in 1991), me as a player and he was starting as assistant coach. It just brings lots of good memories to be next to those great guys.”

Bure played seven seasons for the Canucks, was NHL rookie of the year in 1991-92, scored 60 goals twice and then 51 in his final season with the team. However, his relationship with management had soured and he withheld services to start the 1998-99 campaign to back a trade demand. He still had one year left on his contract. He was eventually dealt to the Florida Panthers on Jan. 17, 1999, in a blockbuster trade that involved seven players and two draft picks.

Asked if he was surprised it took this long for the Canucks to retire his jersey, Bure deftly stickhandled around the question, just as he did to his many opponents on the ice. “I’m just happy with what I have now,” he replied. “I’m happy and really proud. I’m thrilled.”

Bure, now 42, said his memories in Vancouver were too numerous to list when asked to name just three.

“I have great memories but it’s really hard to choose only three,” he responded. “There were so many of them. My first game, my first goal, and obviously in 1994 when we went to the final. I can keep going and going so it would take a long time.”

Canuck GM Mike Gillis was Bure’s agent for the latter portion of his career and, not surprisingly, heartily endorsed the jersey retirement.

“I don’t think there is anybody as deserving to be honoured in Vancouver for what he did for this organization and for what he did to make this team relevant,” Gillis said.

On a social note, Bure became a father three months ago and named his son — are you ready for this?— Pavel Bure Jr. Obviously his old Canuck pal Gino Odjick, who named one of his sons after Pavel, will have to wait another day.

Read more: http://www.vancouver...l#ixzz2a0HFblG1

[goalnut3133]

@EDI-Flyer Thanks for posting this today, I was about to but you beat me to it! But I think you wrote it better than I could. I wholeheartedly agree, the Russian Rocket should definitely have his #10 in the rafters. He still holds records for the franchise to this day. And I'm glad he has also already been inducted into the HOF. When Gillis was asked at the Summer Summit what date next season he'd have the ceremony for Bure, he said they haven't decided yet, as the schedule had just come out & there were some other items to consider. So we'll have to see when it'll happen, it should be a great nite.

[yave1964]

One of the all time greats, if Gil Stein had not been such a moron the Wings would have had him playing on the wing with Federov for a decade or more....

[EDI-Flyer]

@EDI-Flyer When Gillis was asked at the Summer Summit what date next season he'd have the ceremony for Bure, he said they haven't decided yet, as the schedule had just come out & there were some other items to consider. So we'll have to see when it'll happen, it should be a great nite.

Yeah, will be interesting to find out when it will be, would love it to coincide with one of my visits but I doubt it. I am sure it will be a special night.

[JR Ewing]

Bure received crap treatment from Vancouver management (well, Pat Quinn really) and the media from day number one, and their relationship never really got any better. Thankfully, they were able to work their way past that (doesn't hurt that Gillis was Bure's agent back in the day) and I think it's good that the best player in the franchise's history will have his number retired.

Looking over the team's history with Bure never fails to amaze me.

-Bure had to pay his own way to North America, and was left hanging for two weeks in Los Angeles, with no word from the team of what was going to do with him or if he was even going to be flown to Vancouver. The club later said it was because they didn't know if they wanted to sign him. Then why make the kid shell out money for a flight in the first place?

-The Canucks forced Bure to pay his transfer fee of $50,000 from his own money. Try to picture that one happening today.

-Even after this, the Canucks squeezed Bure on his initial contract. Ok, teams had all of the leverage back then, but their argument was that he hadn't proved he was worth more money, even after back-to-back 60 goal seasons. Really quick way to alienate a player. At this point, Bure and the Canucks had been at contract negotiations for 17 months, and he'd had enough: asked for a trade, which Pat Quinn refused to do.

-It's very likely that the rumour which stated that Bure was going to hold out in the '94 Finals was spread through the media by the Canucks themselves. Once something like that is out in the public, there's very little that can be done to stop it.

-Bure and Quinn were finally able to come to a verbal agreement on a contract, but when it came to sign the deal, Bure's agent found that Quinn had quietly made it in Canadian and not US funds, as all players signed (and continue to sign) for. This would have resulted in Bure getting only 70 cents on the dollar compared to what he agreed to. They were able to work their way past this, though not without hard feelings. Quinn refused to shake Bure's hand.

-Bure's contract stated that he would receive a signing bonus three months after signing and, in the event of a lockout (which, of course happened in the 1994-95 season), he would still receive his salary. Once signed, the Canucks then refused to make good on any of these promises, and it took Bure almost 4 years to get the money which was agreed upon. In the end, the Canucks only paid $1M of the $1.7M signing bonus.

-This caused extreme tension between Bure and the Canucks, which, handily enough for the Canucks, happened right at the same time as a wave of anti-Bure news pieces hit the papers, written by guys like Tony Gallagher (who'd been repeatedly writing false stories since the fictional "Bure will hold out during the Finals!" days of 1994. He was talked about as being a cold fish, friendless on the team other than Gino Odjick, and (for some strange reason) not being very enamored the Canucks organization.

JR

[jammer2]

Looks like Pavel got jacked around for most of his Nucks career. Really unfortunate, that team, and Quinn never knew where their bread was buttered. Quinn is a loser.

[hf101]

@JR Ewing

I've always disliked Quinn, especially enjoyed hating him when he coached the Leafs.

Hadn't read that story on Bure before, thanks.

[JR Ewing]

@JR Ewing

I've always disliked Quinn, especially enjoyed hating him when he coached the Leafs.

Hadn't read that story on Bure before, thanks.

By the time Quinn came to be Oilers Head Coach, the game had left him behind very badly. Even for a rebuilding team, the season was a train wreck.

JR

[JR Ewing]

Looks like Pavel got jacked around for most of his Nucks career. Really unfortunate, that team, and Quinn never knew where their bread was buttered. Quinn is a loser.

Yeah, I don't really know what Quinn's problem was with Bure, but it started before the kid was even in North America. You'd think a smart guy, even if he didn't like the player, could get over himself for the betterment of the team, because Bure was so amazing. But, noooooo.

He just couldn't or wouldn't.

JR

[OccamsRazor]

@EDI-Flyer Thanks for posting this today, I was about to but you beat me to it! But I think you wrote it better than I could. I wholeheartedly agree, the Russian Rocket should definitely have his #10 in the rafters. He still holds records for the franchise to this day. And I'm glad he has also already been inducted into the HOF. When Gillis was asked at the Summer Summit what date next season he'd have the ceremony for Bure, he said they haven't decided yet, as the schedule had just come out & there were some other items to consider. So we'll have to see when it'll happen, it should be a great nite.

Guy could straight fly and his hands where so soft just a pure sniper if there ever was one....always traded for this guy on the NHL franchise mode in my game playing days (ok so they never really stopped, still play now just not as much with a 2 year old running around) yeah he was a cherry picker for sure yet it was about the only knock on him.

my favorite was #3 also didn't know he wore #96 first before switching to #10....

Edited July 28, 2013 by OccamsRazor