A single emotion swirled through Golden Knights center Pierre-Edouard Bellemare’s head as he saw the Notre Dame Cathedral engulfed in flames Monday: sadness.
The 34-year-old was born in the Parisian suburb of Le Blanc-Mesnil, located about eight miles from the French capital’s center. So he joined the city’s residents in sorrow while remaining optimistic about its future.
“It’s one of the biggest monuments we have,” Bellemare said. “It’s sad. To be honest, there is not much more to say. The good thing is that we’ve had a lot of adversity in Paris in the last few years, and we’ve always rallied behind each other and made sure we understand what’s important.