You might not be able to win championship titles with one player, there is no “I” in team after all, but there is one in Pierre, and there are two in Pierre Lacroix, which is fitting since he was the mastermind who built the two-time Stanley Cup Champion Colorado Avalanche team in 1996, and 2001. It is with great sorrow that the Avalanche community mourns the loss of their beloved former General Manager, who passed on Sunday, December 12, 2020 at the age of 72 due to complications related to COVID-19.
Pierre Lacroix entered the NHL in an unconventional manner. The Montreal native was not a former hockey player; in fact, he worked at a sporting goods store and then as a beer salesman for Carling O’Keefe brewing company prior to becoming a scout for the Laval National in Quebec in the 70s. There he met player, Bob Sauvé, who would be drafted in 1975. Sauve’ asked Lacroix to join him for a meeting with a potential new agent, but after the meeting Sauvé instead asked Lacroix to would be his agent. This sparked his player agent career and would go on to found his own company JANDEC. Among his many clients was a young junior hockey player Patrick Roy. “He was an extraordinary salesman who had charisma and who made you feel as if you were part of the family,” Roy said.
In 1994 Lacroix was hired as the general manager for the Quebec Nordiques. In his first year with the club the team won the Northeast Division title, a streak that would continue for the next eight years when the team was moved to Colorado. In addition to the nine division titles under his leadership, the franchise won two Western Conference titles, two President’s Trophies, and two Stanley Cups. The club appeared in the Western Conference Finals 6 out of 7 years, and had a streak of 487 home sellout games from 1995-2006. He retired as GM in 2006, but remained as President until 2013, when he officially retired, after helping to groom Joe Sakic to replace him.
In addition to his winning mindset, Lacroix was known for his blockbuster deals. First among them was the accusation of the 1994-95 Conn Smyth and playoff MVP winner, Claude Lemieux from the New Jersey Devils, who joined the new Avalanche club prior to the start of their inaugural season. However, it was the deal made on December 6, 1995 that is still talked about 25 years later.
On December 2, 1995, Patrick Roy was in net for the Montreal Canadians, and allowed 9 goals on 26 shots. Rather than being pulled, which is the usual practice when a star goalie is having an off-night, his long time foe and head coach, Mario Tremblay, kept him in net until the middle of the second period. Roy stormed off the ice vowing that it was his last game in Montreal. Lacroix was quick to jump in to get a deal done to bring his former client to the Colorado Avalanche and acquired Patrick Roy along with Montreal captain, Mike Keane. At the time, the trade was seen as one sided in favor of the Canadians, as many had thought Roy to be on the decline of his career. But Lacroix new better. Roy went on to become the winningest goaltender in NHL history with 551 wins. “Pierre was a visionary and true leader from the moment he took over as GM, he established a winning culture that spread throughout the organization,” Sakic said of his processor. Lacroix didn’t stop with Roy, and continued to amass an Avalanche roster with All-Star players like Ray Bourque in 2000 and Rob Blake in 2001.
Lacroix was a shrewd businessman, and made the decisions that needed to be done for the betterment of team, which even included trading his own son, Eric Lacroix from the Avalanche to the Los Angeles Kings. However, as former GM Brian Burke said, “You can have a great career and not be a good person, but he was a really good person. Great sense of humor, loved his family. And you could trust him. If he said he’d do something, he would do it.” Lacroix was a champion among champions. “He ran our team like a family, always making sure everyone was taken care of,” said former Avalanche coach, Marc Crawford, who led the team to their first Stanley Cup in 1996.
I never met Pierre Lacroix, never even came close, and talking about a life that I have only read about seems somewhat disrespectful to such a colossal figure. However, without his foresight and determination he created the team that I fell in love with at the age of 12. Nearly 20 years later, I still count watching the Avs hoist the Stanley Cup live in Pepsi Center as one of the best memories of my life. He brought the first championship title to the Mile High City (1996), and remains the only Denver team to win at home (2001). My formative years revolved around the players he acquired Lemieux, Ozolinch, Roy, Bourque and Blake. I’d like to say that it was only a matter of time until I fell in love with hockey; it is the best sport after all. However, I didn’t grow up in Canada or Minnesota, where hockey is king. I grew up in a world were everyone is obsessed with the Denver Broncos, would my 12 year old self been enthralled with the Colorado Avalanche during the Joe Sacco era? Those were hard games to watch for the biggest of fans, and I can be pretty confident that if that had been my induction to the sport, I’d probably have changed the channel. Let’s be honest, most of us changed the channels during those dark times.
I count myself as blessed to have been a fan of a team who has had so much success, unlike some teams (cough, Minnesota), but a majority of that success stems from one man. The Avalanche may never again soar to the heights of their first years in Colorado, but Lacroix showed us what is possible to achieve with determination and heart. We will forever be grateful to the man who bestowed Colorado with the gift of incredible hockey. As Lacroix knew, it is all about commitment, and may we all stay committed to honoring his memory by continuing to be better, both on and off the ice. Our next Stanley Cup will certainly be for Pierre Lacroix, may he rest peacefully among the hockey gods.
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