TAMPA, Fla. – It was just before Antoine Vermette was traded to the Blackhawks when Arizona Coyotes coach Dave Tippett called his good friend Joel Quenneville.
“I told him, ‘[Vermette] is an emotional guy, he has strong ties to our team, it was hard for him to leave teammates,’” Tippett recalled. “’But you’ll see, as the season goes on, you’ll find he’ll be an important player in key times.’”
Tippett’s words proved to be accurate, because Vermette has been very important at a very key time for the Blackhawks.
Vermette scored the game-winning goal with less than five minutes remaining when the Blackhawks beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final.