Along with Maurice Richard, Guy Lafleur and Jean Beliveau make up the holy Montreal Canadiens trinity.
And while the late legends were beloved by fans in both their glory days and the decades that followed retirement, not everyone was fond of having them freely roam the Bell Centre’s halls.
According to BPM Sports radio host and former Canadiens defenceman Gilbert Delorme, Marc Bergevin (GM of the Canadiens from 2012 to 2021) took measures to prevent Beliveau and Lafleur from gaining access to certain parts of the arena.
Delorme revealed that Bergevin once requested that security stop Beliveau, Montreal’s longest-serving captain and a longtime team ambassador, from using the same corridor as players.
“Bergevin, it bothered him. It bothered him that Mr. Beliveau would pass through there,” Delorme explained in French. “So he told the security guard that he didn’t want Mr. Beliveau to pass through there anymore since it bothered the players.”
Gilbert a révélé quelques informations concernant les anciens Canadiens sous l'ère de Marc Bergevin dans Le Club du matin plus tôt aujourd'hui.
C'est le jour et la nuit maintenant avec le tandem Hughes-Gorton😳 pic.twitter.com/TUyn9jvdOQ
— BPM Sports (@BPMSportsRadio) February 16, 2024
On top of that, Bergevin allegedly prohibited Lafleur, the club’s all-time points leader, from using the players’ parking area.
“Lafleur parked in the players’ parking lot… because he was Guy Lafleur,” Delorme added. “It bothered Bergevin. I don’t know if it’s because he took up too much space…”
When asked if Lafleur was taking up a parking spot of a current player, Delorme confirmed that there was “plenty of space.”
Delorme is not the first to accuse Bergevin of not wanting former players around.
Back in March of 2023, former Habs enforcer Chris Nilan gave the Montreal Gazette his theory regarding why Bergevin was not fond of mixing alumni with the team’s current roster.
“When Bergy was here it seemed like he didn’t want any alumni around,” Nilan said. “I don’t know if it’s because he thought it put too much pressure on the kids or he thought people were going to try and coach them.”
Fortunately, that hostility seems to have faded under a new management team with the likes of Jeff Gorton, the executive vice-president of hockey operations, and GM Kent Hughes behind the wheel.
Along with Nilan, Guy Carbonneau, Vincent Damphousse, and Patrice Brisebois have recently come on as team ambassadors, joining Yvan Cournoyer and Réjean Houle to represent the Canadiens at functions.
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