Hockey Hall of Fame forward Guy Lafleur was an icon in Quebec, Canada, having played junior-A and major-junior in the province before spending 14 years with the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens and his final two with the Quebec Nordiques, who, of course, moved to Colorado in 1995.
Among his admirers was Montreal-born referee Dave Jackson, who now calls Colorado home.
Jackson worked his first NHL game in Quebec during what would become Lafleur’s final season in 1990-91, and as you can imagine, the 28-year-old guy with the whistle was a tad nervous. After all, it was a one-referee system back then.