Before legends are etched in silver, they’re born in brimstone. You’ll tell your grandchildren about Nazem Kadri. Who will tell their grandchildren. And their grandchildren after that.
“There are always going to be critics. But you don’t let them bring you down,” Hifa Fayad texted Wednesday morning from the Middle East. “Rather, you rise above them and get the job done. And that is what Naz and the Avs did.”
Ten times, the Avalanche trailed in a Stanley Cup Playoff game. Ten times, they rallied back to win.
On a team that was too talented to stop and too stubborn to roll over, none among on the 2021-22 NHL champs embodied both ideals more than Kadri, who played with a child’s joy and a prophet’s purpose.