Nicest and rudest NHLers you've met

[Inferno]

Regehr is the only one I can think of who wasn't very friendly but wasn't that he was rude to me. He just wasn't outgoing like other guys I've met like Denis Gauthier and Marty Murray. This was when he first came in the league so I don't know if he's changed since then.

My sister had a really bad experience with Fleury when the Flames were in Winnipeg to play the Jets. I believe it was the same game that the Jets won in overtime on a gloved goal. She said he was very rude and complained about having to sign autographs and just wanted to leave. She said had it not been for getting me his autograph she would have just left.

[Atlantica]

Many years ago, met Guy Lapointe in the Chinook Centre at a kiosk. Remember that his hand shake was like a vice grip. Not as tall as I had expected, but solid boxy frame. Very friendly.

Met Brian Skrudland when I was living in Coach Hill (1992-93) and discovered he had a condo a few doors down from me. Super nice guy, very open and friendly.

Met both Randy Carlyle and Dave Farrish the summer they had the cup. Was vacationing on Manatoulin island and they both have properties on the same street a few houses down from each other. Farrish is a real jerk - he yelled at my friend's kids because they wandered down to his property and were on his lawn. He never say hello and always scowled at us if we passed his house and he was outside. Carlyle is the complete opposite - super friendly, unassuming, and always said hi and engaged in small talk when we would see him. He also brought the cup to the town hall in Rockville and we got a picture with it.

[howard_the_duck]

We were family friends with a goal judge that got us down to the Flames dressing room for autographs when I was a kid. I got all the Flames players to sign my Flames banner and it was great; highlights were Fleury, Iggy, and Val Bure (met Candice Cameron too). Funny story...Steve Smith walked past my brother and I and a group of other Flames fans and snuck out the back door to avoid the crowd. When passing us, he said he was not a player...he was the team doctor! Huge jerk.

As we were getting ready to leave, Peter Forsberg and Val Kamensky walked past us. I quickly flipped my banner over so Forsberg wouldn't notice I was a Flames fan. Forsberg turned the banner over, game me a little smirk, and signed on the Flames side. Pretty nice guy. Before the game at the pre-game skate I met Joe Sakic too and he was an absolute class act...such a nice guy.

I told this story a couple years back, but I met Robyn Regehr at Oil City Roadhouse after the Flames had won in Minnesota earlier that night. Me to RR: 'Hey, big win tonight, congrats!'. RR to me: 'hey thanks man. But did you hear? The Oilers lost!!' As he said it he took a big swig of beer and raised his arms like a champion. So priceless

[Jodester]

My grade 2 teacher was Brian Engblom mom. She also lived on our street. After Montreal won their cup in 78, my friend and i waited 2 days and went down there to get an autograph. He wasnt there but she told us to come back the next week.
We show up and he had team pictures and single pictures all signed for us with a bunch of other players autographs. We were 7 years old so the conversation couldn't have been very stimulating but he stood on the steps and talked forever with us. Best hockey memory of my life. Still remember it every time i see him on T.V.

[Champion]

Originally Posted by howard_the_duck

We were family friends with a goal judge that got us down to the Flames dressing room for autographs when I was a kid. I got all the Flames players to sign my Flames banner and it was great; highlights were Fleury, Iggy, and Val Bure (met Candice Cameron too). Funny story...Steve Smith walked past my brother and I and a group of other Flames fans and snuck out the back door to avoid the crowd. When passing us, he said he was not a player...he was the team doctor! Huge jerk.

As we were getting ready to leave, Peter Forsberg and Val Kamensky walked past us. I quickly flipped my banner over so Forsberg wouldn't notice I was a Flames fan. Forsberg turned the banner over, game me a little smirk, and signed on the Flames side. Pretty nice guy. Before the game at the pre-game skate I met Joe Sakic too and he was an absolute class act...such a nice guy.

I told this story a couple years back, but I met Robyn Regehr at Oil City Roadhouse after the Flames had won in Minnesota earlier that night. Me to RR: 'Hey, big win tonight, congrats!'. RR to me: 'hey thanks man. But did you hear? The Oilers lost!!' As he said it he took a big swig of beer and raised his arms like a champion. So priceless

I have a similar story, but it's not a hockey player. We've had season tickets for a while for the Oilers and before Katz purchased the team the many owners regularly hung around the club bar downstairs by the Oilers dressing room. They would mingle with anybody and talk to fans all the time.

A lot of them were sitting around the bar and watching the end of a CGY SO game. I believe this was in '06. The Flames lost and a whole bunch of the owners all cheered, toasted each other, and took a swig lol.

[Champion]

I've met Iginla a few times and he is a class act. Very nice guy. My cousin was drunk another time at a bar and yelled in Iginlas ear, "Why don't you get out of Calgary and come play for your home town."

Iginla just laughed. Didn't get annoyed.

[C-Life]

Originally Posted by Deelow

McCarty was a Wing then? Seems odd he and Regehr would be hanging out after a playoff game.

LOL no McCarty was a Flame then.

[Beerfest]

Originally Posted by dissentowner

Hmmm, so I have pointed out in the past that others have said Regehr has an attitude problem and I get severly dogpiled on for it yet this thread seems to indicate that may be the case. Of course the fact that I say he is a great defensive d man all the time apparently still makes me the "Regehr hater". Can we put that crap to bed now?
Anyhow I grew up with the Thornton's in St. Thomas, am very good friends with Alex Thornton but hung out with Joe a lot too, really funny and a great guy! I really hope he can bring the cup back to St.T one day. I went fishing with Aaron Gavey once down in Port Stanley, one of my co-workers at the times wife was his cousin. Nice guy, couldn't play hockey worth a crap though.

Uh no?

Im not going to base my opinion of a guy on people who have only met him once.

[dissentowner]

Originally Posted by Beerfest

Uh no?

Im not going to base my opinion of a guy on people who have only met him once.

Neither did I. I said it is what has been said about the guy. A few of the guys who said he had an attitude problem worked at the dome and interacted with him more than once. The fact you refuse to let it go is pretty lame but to each their own. Anyhow, lets not get off topic.

[Housley4Prez]

I've met quite a few players along the way. Let's see:

Mike Vernon - Visited our grade two class room after the 86 Cup Finals, and was really great. Answered a lot of great questions and didn't look at his watch the whole time.

Tim Hunter - Ran two of the sessions of the Calgary Flames Hockey School for us and was seriously one of the meanest, most cruel adults I'd come across at the time. We were so afraid of him. He even called us "f*ggots" for wanting to play pom-pom-pull-away (a skating version of tag). We were 8.

Steve Bozek - Took over the Calgary Flames Hockey School in the second half, and was a huge relief. He made drills fun, and was incredibly encouraging. Practically wiped away the nightmare that was Tim Hunter.

Theo Fleury - Met him multiple times, and each time was completely different. Sometimes he was nice and friendly, others he was an egotistical jerk. He was great when I met him at the doctor's office that my mom worked at when he and his partner were expecting a child. He was a total ass when I met him at Cowboys in 96 during the lead-up to the World Cup of Hockey. Lindros, Roberts and Nieuwy were all at the bar at the same time. Lindros was surprisingly generous and fun, giving off a vibe of "Hey everyone, I'm Eric Lindros... DRINKS ARE ON ME!!!", whereas at another bar, Fleury was giving off the vibe of "Hey everyone, I'm Theoren Fleury... WHO'S GOT MY NEXT DRINK?!"

Gary Roberts and Joe Nieuwendyk - See above. They were awesome. Spoke to me for about 10 minutes as the bar was closing down. We talked lacrosse, all the while, Roberts was looking to make sure that Fleury was doing alright. Great guys.

Steve Smith - Worst. Captain. Ever. It was Christmas 1999, and I'd all-but-sold a few items to an attractive lady who said she'd come back with her husband to make the final purchases. When she came back, I was stunned. Not only because most "I'll be back"ers never do come back, but because her husband was none-other than the captain of the Calgary Flames, Steve Smith. Now I know that he was a busy man who wanted to get out of the store as quickly as possible, but he didn't need to be so rude about it. His kids were quite rambunctious, complete with rollerblades and sticky hands. I wished him luck for the upcoming game, and he snarked back "whatever". I later got a chance to sit in for a closed practice and while most of the players were happy to sign autographs, Steve Smith blew past us without so much as a glance. Worst. Captain. Ever.

Phil Housley - We had just reclaimed him off waivers for a second stint with the Flames. For some reason I'd been talked into going to the Back Alley that night, and at the bar, kinda keeping a low profile were Phil Housley and Derek Morris. With a few drinks in me, I introduce myself. He immediately was friendly, as I told him it was nice to get his influence on our powerplay again. He wasn't self-centred, as he asked me a lot of questions about myself as well, and proceeded to kick Morris off of the stool next to him and invited me to sit and drink with him. The guy gave me a solid hour and a half of just chatting hockey, talking about the different cities he'd played in and about how happy he was to be back in Calgary. Great guy, and forever won my support... hence the name.

Marty St Louis and Fred Brathwaite - At the closed practice I mentioned earlier, I was there with my girlfriend at the time who was a huge fan of Clarke Wilm (for some reason). While most players were okay with stopping to sign an autograph, St Louis and Brathwaite made it a priority to meet and greet us. First was Marty, who we didn't see at first, because we had stopped a line-up of players to sign as they left the ice, and most players were taller than him. Patiently waiting behind a very tall Andrei Nazarov, was Marty St Louis who actually said to us, "Can I sign it too?". He was a mere fourth-liner or pressboxer most nights at the time, and we were thrilled to have his autograph based on his attitude. Later, Brathwaite was coming off the ice and was getting some pointers from Grant Fuhr who was kind of a goalie consultant at the time. When Grant said he'd go cue up some tape for him, Freddie said he'd meet him there in a bit, as he wanted to meet these "patient fans". He was great, friendly and very deserving of the adoration the fans gave him those days.

Clarke Wilm - I was never much of a fan of his, but my gf at the time was a huge fan. When Peter H arranged for us to meet the team, he made a point to tell Wilm that his biggest fan would be there. Wilm came off the ice, met us and signed his autograph. He then got changed and came back out to talk to us some more. He probed my gf with questions about herself and was very kind to both of us. He then came back again with a game-used stick that he'd signed to her with some references to their previous conversation.

Iggy - Awesome guy. I'm sure everyone that's met him has felt the same way. But the two times I met him, he was beyond nice. When my gf met Clarke Wilm she wanted to thank him with a card. So she got one later that day, and at the game that night she brought it to give to him when he came off the ice. We missed him after the open skate, but she got Iggy's attention and asked that he give the card to Wilm. A couple years later, after a skills competition in the meet the team portion of the festivities, I met Wilm again and asked if he got the card, and Iggy was good on his delivery. The other time was when Iggy was on the cover of the EA Sports NHL game, and was trying to do some shopping at our Futureshop. When he was spotted by adoring fans, he stayed to sign every copy of the game that the shoppers immediately bought up right then. Great guy.

Reggie - Met him last year before Olli and Dion were traded at the hotel they stay at in Vancouver. My wife and I were there for a wedding fair, as we were planning our wedding at the time. Reggie teased me a bit for being there, but I think karma paid me back for going along with the wife, because I got to meet a lot of players that day. Reggie was the one who sticks out because he stopped and chatted.

--
Not a Flame, but...

Kelly Hrudey - Awesome guy. He used to be a regular at the Starbucks I worked at in Calgary. When I ran into him last month in Vancouver, I brought that up to him, and he remembered my name. I was so impressed. I told him that gesture almost made up for the heartbreak he caused in 1990.

TL;DR
Mike Vernon - Nice to 8 year olds
Tim Hunter - Mean to 8 year olds
Steve Bozek - Nice
Fleury - Depends on the Day
Gary Roberts - Nice guy
Joe Nieuwendyk - See Roberts
Steve Smith - Jerk
Phil Housley - Awesome
Marty St Louis - Awesome
Fred Brathwaite - Also Awesome
Iggy - Awesome, as expected
Clarke Wilm - Over-the-top Nice
Robyn Regehr - Funny, and nice guy

[NBC]

Jamie Macoun got his Private Pilot Licence at my old flying club. He was a nice, friendly guy.

[Heavy Jack]

Freddy Brathwaite, Jeff Shantz, Oleg Saprykin, Jarome Iginla and Clark Wilm all took the time to sign my jersey and talk to me right before warm-up on my 11th birthday. Flames won 7-2 against the Canes All were great guys but Saprykin wasn't that great with english yet, they all shook my hand though. It was fun.

[Phanuthier]

Originally Posted by dissentowner

Hmmm, so I have pointed out in the past that others have said Regehr has an attitude problem and I get severly dogpiled on for it yet this thread seems to indicate that may be the case. Of course the fact that I say he is a great defensive d man all the time apparently still makes me the "Regehr hater". Can we put that crap to bed now?
Anyhow I grew up with the Thornton's in St. Thomas, am very good friends with Alex Thornton but hung out with Joe a lot too, really funny and a great guy! I really hope he can bring the cup back to St.T one day. I went fishing with Aaron Gavey once down in Port Stanley, one of my co-workers at the times wife was his cousin. Nice guy, couldn't play hockey worth a crap though.

Uh... no. I fully believe the guy who said that Regehr was grouchy last year when he was struggling, but all the over-sensitive fans say Regehr is "rude" because he's not as talkative as Iginla or Lanny MacDonald. Look above at what people are defining rude, its not rude. Absence of smiles and hugs is not rude, being a non-tipper or insulting someone is rude.

I met Martin Gelinas once, said hi to him and he didn't say hi back. I don't consider that rude, if he had to smile and hug every single fan that says hi to him, he would never get anywhere. Now Theo Fleury smoking in a restaurant and when being told to stop, saying "Do you know who I am?" - now that is rude.

[Hockey]

I have met Palffy, Frolov, Cammelleri, Smithson, Krog, Pyatt, Ryan Johnson, Kesler, Burrows, Pettinger, Corvo, Bekar, Boguienecki(sp?) Mowers, Jeff Hamilton, Conklin

[Deelow]

I watched Albert Roloson throw a tantrum outside of a bar in Grande Prairie. Oilers were doing their 06 training camp up there. Some how Roloson got separated from the pack and was forced to mingle with fans longer than anyone else. When he finally found the Oilers PR guy he had to be restrained from punching him. That was good for a laugh, but I felt bad for the media guy.

[Yorkshire Flame]

Originally Posted by something

You guys should be posting up stories to go along with your convictions! And not the experience of the friend of the father of your younger sister's fiance... Something that you can attest to!

Adam Pardy is the only hockey player I "met". He came into a bar I was bouncing at a couple of years ago and seemed pretty dicrete mostly. Kept to himself and the handful of people he was with (none were players). Just much had some drinks and sat at the VLT's, ignoring everything else.

In no way would I describe him as rude. Shy or tired perhaps?

He's goes to the restaurant that my girlfriend works at pretty regularly. Arrogant prick is the term I think they used.

[Mightyfire89]

Originally Posted by C-Life

LOL no McCarty was a Flame then.

Nope. Dude was right, McCarty was still a Red wing in 04.

[OzSome]

Originally Posted by indes

My mom used to babysit Gary Roberts' daughter granted I was young but I remember him being a nice guy, also my mom says hes a nice guy lol. Also girl from high school asked Phaneuf to dance at the bar (maybe the alley? dont remember) he just looked at her and said "i dont dance" and turned away. Pretty hot chick too

I will have to defend Phaneuf on this one. It is true the guy can't dance... LOL Just look at the guy. Does he look like a dancer? He acts like a robot at times.

[OzSome]

Before the Flames upset the Oilers in 86, a bunch of Flames players came in to the restaurant I used to work at. They were Mike vernon, Jamie Macoun, Patterson and I can't remember the other guy. Those guys ate so much and they were so nice. Mikey was super nice always smiling and joking around with us and so are the others. We wished them good luck when they left and they did left some good tips. The next night, that was the night Steve Smith scored for the Flames while he was playing for the Oilers. Awesome!!

[Misterpants]

Iron Mike Keenan was pretty nice when I met him. Chatted with him at the Kensington Pub for a while. It probably helped that I got my pretty friend (now my wife!) to yard him over to us. Good guy though.