Bernie Parent had a special connection with Philly sports fans, right till the end.
Parent, the goalie and essential player on two Flyers’ championship teams, died Sunday at his home in Avalon, N.J. He was 80.
But he had been out in public as recently as last week, doing what he did — attending events, connecting with fans, and sharing a smile and a laugh.
Parent was in Delaware last Wednesday to support the premiere of “Spinners,” a new play by Philly sportswriting legend and playwright Ray Didinger. WHYY’s Peter Crimmins spoke to him before the event about the subject of the play, a hockey player named Brian Spinner. But being Parent, they talked about life as much as sports.
“When you go in life, not just in sports but life in general, be part of a good team. Associate yourself with good things and then usually good things happen,” Parent told Crimmins. “In my case, I played [for] a great team, great organization and the friends were just awesome. When you have this on your side, there’s a good chance you’re going to succeed in life.”
Parent took part in the post-performance talkback after the premiere Wednesday, as he had played hockey with Spinner in Toronto. (“He played his ass off every night, he was a tough kid,” he told the audience.)
The last time Didinger saw Parent on Wednesday, he was signing autographs and showing people his two Stanley Cup rings.
“He had a huge smile on his face,” Didinger said in an email to Crimmins. “I still can’t believe he’s gone.”
The play honored Parent with a moment of silence before Sunday’s matinee.
A teammate from those championship teams, Joe Watson, told the Associated Press that he had seen Parent in Delaware on Friday, but that he was hobbled by back pain.
“Bernie was in such pain, he could hardly walk,” Watson said. “We had a great time, but I felt bad because he was in such terrible pain. To see this happen, it’s very sad.”
It marked the end of a remarkable life.
Life journey
Parent was born April 3, 1945, in Montreal. He was the second pick in the 1967 NHL expansion draft and was in goal for the first game in Flyers history. He was traded to Toronto and then back to Philadelphia.
When he returned, he took on his iconic No. 1 jersey and started one of the great runs by a goalie in NHL history.
It all culminated in 1974 and ‘75, when Parent was the Flyers’ goalie for two championship runs. Parent posted shutouts in both clinching games and he was named best goalie (Vezina Trophy) and playoff MVP (Conn Smythe Trophy) in both seasons.
Teammate and fellow all-time great Bobby Clarke said of Parent:
“The two years that we won the Stanley Cup, he was the only member of that team that we could not have been without if we were going to win the Cup. He was the best goalie in hockey for those two years.”
He also was the team’s jokester and that, combined with his talent, made him impossible to ignore or forget. This was the time of “Only God saves more than Bernie Parent” lore in Philly.
Parent’s career ended after 13 years, at age 34, when he suffered an eye injury in a game against the New York Rangers.
But while his career ended, Parent persisted. His warmth and connection to the region never wavered.
“He was so good with people,” said Watson, his old teammate. “A lot of athletes don’t get it or don’t give fans the time of day. Bernie gave everyone the time of day. He’d always have his rings on. He’d show them to the people and people loved to see them. This past Friday in Delaware, people were coming up, they wanted to see the rings. People were so excited to see him. He had a great sense of humour. Bernie was a funny guy.”
You can hear it during a 2017 appearance on the NPR show “Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me,” which visited Philly for an episode.
“At his unbeatable, unflappable best on the ice when the stakes were highest, Bernie was a warm, gregarious bear of a man off the ice who was venerated in Philadelphia and adored throughout the hockey world,” NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said in a statement. “The entire National Hockey League family mourns the passing of this beloved icon and sends its deepest condolences to his wife, Gini, his family, and his countless fans and friends.”
WHYY’s Peter Crimmins contributed reporting to this article.
The post Flyers’ great Bernie Parent never stopped connecting with Philly fans appeared first on Billy Penn at WHYY.
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