In the midst of an entertaining hot stove format in which four storied NHLers swapped stories, theories and pot shots, Paul Coffey suddenly raised his fist in triumph.
“Kunitz scored the winner,” declared Coffey, eliciting a mixed reaction from a sold-out crowd of 800 at the 55th Annual Italian Sportsmen’s Dinner at Notre Dame high school Thursday.
“The game is safe.”
His reaction was borne not out of being a former Pittsburgh Penguin, with whom he won his fourth Stanley Cup, but based on his love for hockey.
“As much as I’m Canadian, an Ottawa win would be bad for the game,” explained Coffey, 55, who flew in from Ontario to help raise money for scholarships alongside Bryan Trottier, Clark Gillies and Marty McSorley.