Carbo goes on in dad's memory

5/12/99

By Dave Caldwell
The Dallas Morning News

Guy Carbonneau was back in the dressing room by 1:25 p.m. Tuesday and was back on the ice, finally, with his teammates, by 1:47 p.m. He started slowly, skating big, lazy circles, and ended with a harsh series of windsprints that kicked up rooster tails of ice shavings and left him grimacing.

He said he would not know until Wednesday morning if he will be able to play in Game 4 of the Stars’ Stanley Cup playoff series against St. Louis at Kiel Center. He said his knee, which he hurt late in Dallas’ victory April 23 over Edmonton, will let him know if he can play.

He wants to play. In the 2 1/2 weeks since he last played, Carbonneau also lost his father, Charles-Aime, to a heart attack that, in Guy’s words, "took everyone by surprise."

Guy Carbonneau was at his father’s funeral on Monday in Quebec. Washed-out and travel-weary, Carbonneau said Tuesday afternoon that he would be thinking of his father, with whom he said he had a great relationship and who was close to the team. But he also said it would be good - cathartic - to get back to hockey.

"I’ll keep the pain inside," he promised, his voice soft, "and keep playing."

His teammates are grateful simply to have Carbonneau around again. Brett Hull, a long-time admirer and a teammate of Carbonneau’s in St. Louis in the 1994-95 season, called Carbonneau no less than the "heart and soul" of the Stars.

"Just by his presence," Hull said. "He institutes that work ethic." A half-hour later, Carbonneau was told what Hull had said about him. He did not appear to be surprised.

"I want that pressure," Carbonneau said. "I want to be the heart and soul of this team. That’s what keeps me going over the years."

As soon as Carbonneau returns - if not Wednesday, then for Game 5 on Saturday, he said - the Stars’ lineup would include him, Derian Hatcher, Jere Lehtinen and defenseman Shawn Chambers for the first time in the playoffs.

"Carbo’s itching to get back, and we really need him in this room," Mike Keane said. "We need him on the ice, too. Any time Carbo comes back is a good thing for us. I think he’s going to try to leave [his father’s death] behind him and move on. His family’s been taken care of, and now he’s got a job to do."

To hear the Stars, Carbonneau’s return could not have been timed more perfectly. They adore him, what he means to "the room." He is 39, a masterful penalty-killer who scored two goals on only three shots in his only two playoff games this year.

"Before he got hurt, he was playing his best hockey in a long time," Keane said.

Mike Modano said later, "It’s great to have him around in this type of situation, where things are tense and everybody’s a little tight."

Carbonneau said Tuesday’s practice was his first time on the ice since last Thursday, the day his father had his heart attack. Rushing to Sept-Iles, Quebec, for his father’s funeral delayed his recovery from his injury. The toughest day was Monday - only two days ago.

Carbonneau figures it will help him to play hockey, a sport his mother first encouraged him to play and something his father encouraged him to keep doing. Carbonneau would like to play as soon as he can.

"When you go through a situation like that," he said, "to keep occupied at the things you like to do makes things easier."

He was asked if he would remember his father in a specific way, if he would play a little harder in memoriam.

"I don’t think I’m going to change my style and be Superman because of my dad," Carbonneau said, his face coated with sweat and a black Stars’ baseball cap on his head.

But the memory of his father will be an inspiration, just as Carbonneau’s return already has been an inspiration to those now around him.

"I am definitely going to miss him," Carbonneau said.

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