The Montreal Canadiens have often been called a first-class organization throughout the NHL, and for one lifelong fan, they truly are and have always been in their interactions with him.
We often heard around the league that the Montreal Canadiens are a first-class organization, well, not so much when they traded Mike Cammalleri to the Calgary Flames mid-game, but generally throughout their 117 years. It’s evident in more ways than one: the state-of-the-art training facility in Brossard, the way they treat their players, and the ceremonies they put together when it’s time to retire a jersey or pay tribute to a player. It all oozes class.
The epitome of that class was Jean Beliveau, not only on the ice during his 20-season career, but also off it, as the captain who first established the Christmas visits to children's hospitals and as a fantastic ambassador for the team after he retired. There are countless examples of how devoted the longest tenured captain in the Canadiens’ history was to his role of ambassador once he hung up his skates, but they’ve not all been told, far from it. The one that follows was cut from the Crave series, The Rebuild: Inside the Montreal Canadiens.
Back in 1975, Paul Antionadis was in high school in Hamilton, Ontario, deep in Toronto Maple Leafs territory, but was cheering for the Montreal Canadiens as he had been since he was 10 years old. One September morning, young Paul decided to write a letter to Jean Beliveau asking him to have the postcards he enclosed, of Steve Shutt and Yvan Cournoyer, signed. It took some time because Canada Post went on strike (how little things have changed), but eventually, in December, a letter arrived from Montreal, which the youngster opened on his lunch break.
Not only did Beliveau get the postcards signed by Shutt and Cournoyer, but he also enclosed a letter and his business card. The youngster called the number on the card and was put through to the former star. The first thing he did was ask his interlocutor whether he truly was Beliveau, before thanking him for the postcards and the note. That afternoon in school, he bragged about talking with the 10-time Stanley Cup champion (as a player), but none of his friends believed him.
Paul AntoniadisEager to prove he wasn’t lying, Paul wrote back to Beliveau asking him for a handwritten note he could show his friends. Sure enough, the former star wrote back and sent a signed postcard of himself with a handwritten note, as requested.
When Paul turned 16 and got his driver’s license, he wrote to his new pen pal again, requesting tickets, which he received in exchange for a $15 money order per ticket. That went on for four years, with Beliveau always replying to Paul. Over the years, not a single email, letter, or fax he has sent to the organization has gone unanswered.
Unsurprisingly, Paul became a fan for life and has had season tickets for over 20 years; three of his seats are right behind the goal where the Canadiens score twice and provide a tremendous view of the action. No, he’s not the guy who always wears a fluorescent vest. Over the years, he has taken numerous guests to a game, including former scout Grant McCagg and Sick Podcast host Tony Marinaro, who were spotted by a fan who joked they were sitting with Breaking Bad’s Walter White. One must admit that there is a bit of a likeness there.
Back in 2013, Paul was one of the five lucky winners of a post-lockout team trip, and he got to travel with the Habs to a game against the New Jersey Devils. There, RDS’s broadcaster Pierre Houde invited him and his friend to visit the play-by-play booth during the intermission, and they also met Mario Tremblay, who allowed them to wear his Stanley Cup ring and take a few pictures as well. A dream experience for a lifelong fan,
Paul now has 10 season tickets in various spots in the Bell Centre, and last season, before a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, the organization presented Paul with jersey number 65 (his age) and bearing the name "The Ambassador," which is what Vincent Lucier, Canadiens SVP of Sales and Development, has taken to calling him over the years. Over the years, the fan has built a strong relationship with his childhood team and now enjoys introducing friends to the game and discussing the Canadiens.
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