A fantastic photo of Guy

Just a quick post to share this wonderful photo of Guy that I found on Facebook.  He looks like he's having an absolute blast playing with the Habs alumni, doesn't he?

(Photo source:  Facebook/Anciens Canadiens de Montreal)

Happy Easter!

Carbo does breakfast

Guy has teamed up with Holiday Inn Express to promote the hotel chain's breakfasts.  Going head to head with longtime rival Doug Gilmour and refereed by Mike Johnson, the challenge for Guy was to create the best breakfast using items from Holiday Inn's menu.  And as fate would have it, he won!  

The promo video is a blast and you can watch it here.

In addition, Guy also appeared on Breakfast Television in Montreal this week to talk about the challenge as well as the Habs, who have since been eliminated from playoff contention.

All in all, good fun!

More retro Guy!

I enjoy occasionally perusing the #guycarbonneau tag on Instagram.  While the bulk of the photos posted are selfies taken with fans, there is the occasional gem.  Such as this:

Here is Guy accepting an award as a member of the Chicoutimi Sagueneens, in the late 1970s.  He is second from the left.  The original post I found this photo from is gone, so I cannot provide credit.  If the original poster sees this, let me know!

Unrelatedly, this is my 200th post to this blog.  Congrats to me!

An absolute GEM of a video

Found this while perusing YouTube this evening, a 1981 news report from Radio-Canada (the French-language arm of the CBC) on Guy when he was playing with the Habs' farm team at the time, the Nova Scotia Voyageurs of the AHL.  The video is in French but it is a definite must-see!

Oh, so young!  Enjoy!

The bird

Let me start by saying that I really struggled with whether to post this photo.  It is not one of Guy's greatest moments, for sure, but it is part of his history.

After nearly 25 years, the infamous Carbo "finger photo" has once again seen the light of day.  I found it a few weeks ago in a Google search and then subsequently found it on Twitter.  The photo was taken on May 2, 1994, three days after the Habs were eliminated from the playoffs by the Boston Bruins in seven games.  

It appeared on the front page of Le Journal de Montreal on the following morning, May 3.  It is said that the photo is one of the main reasons why Guy was traded from the Canadiens to St. Louis three months later.  The player to the right of Guy in the photo is Vincent Damphousse.

(image source:  Twitter/@photoshistos)

See also my previous blog post on the subject:  Guy et le doigt d'honneur*.

A nice little article about Carbo; plus, some new items hit the auction block

Last week, the Montreal Gazette published an article by Stu Cowan, about Guy being the last Canadiens captain -- and indeed, the last captain of a Canadian team -- to hoist the Stanley Cup.  Carbo had this to say about the pressure to win in Montreal versus that of later on in his career with Dallas:

Carbonneau doesn’t buy the pressure of playing in Montreal as an excuse for the Canadiens’ lack of success in recent years, saying there was also a lot of pressure to win in Dallas.

“Was it easier at the start? Yeah,” Carbonneau said about playing for the Stars. “But once we got going and (GM Bob Gainey) built a franchise that could win, the pressure to perform was there. Obviously, you could hide a little bit there, but you can do that here, too. I tell people: ‘You think that (Sharks stars) Brent Burns and Joe Thornton grow their beards not to be recognized in San Jose?’ I mean, come on.

“When things are good and you’re scoring lots and you’re getting points and the team is winning, everybody wants to be seen,” Carbonneau added about the players. “Everybody wants to go in the bars and be happy, go to the restaurants and everybody’s laughing. But all of a sudden when it’s not going well, now they want to hide? Or they’re bitching because they can’t hide? It doesn’t work.” 

 You can read the full article here.

* * *

Some interesting memorabilia items have appeared on the auction block recently.  Classic Auctions has Guy's goal puck plaque from his first NHL hat trick, here.  The current bid is $393.00 USD and the auction closes at 9:00 PM EDT on Tuesday, June 19.

Also, the goal puck plaque from Guy's first ever NHL goal has appeared on eBay, here.  At $2500 USD it's a bit too rich for my blood but it's a marvelous item.  Oh, if only I could win the lottery...  

Ten years!

Today I'm celebrating a very significant milestone -- 10 years of being a Carbo fan.  Some of my blog readers may be surprised to learn that I've only really been a fan of Guy since 2008 and not since his playing days.  Believe me, the fact that I missed out on his playing career is one of my biggest regrets.  I think of all the things that have happened in my life since I started following Guy.  Jobs, a relationship, the death of my father.  My admiration for this man has inspired me during the good times and comforted me during the hard times.

I think it speaks to how special Guy is that he's managed to hold my interest for this long.  I've always been a fangirl -- in fact, I jokingly list one of my job titles as "professional fangirl."  Some of the fandoms I've been in haven't lasted ten minutes, let alone ten years.  Carbo's achievements in the sporting world, his kindness to his fans, and his humble personality are a true inspiration.  

So here's to ten years, and many more.  Thank you, Guy, for being you and for continuing to be my hero.  Bless you.