MONTREAL – A morale-building exercise for the Montreal Canadiens ended before it started when players were not permitted on most of the rides at a Montreal amusement p
Michel Therrien, the Habs’ head coach, was informed that none of his players met La Ronde’s minimum height requirement as soon as the team bus arrived. “I told them that what we lack in size, we make up for with speed,” Therrien recalled, “but that didn’t really seem to matter much.”
Jeanne Coulomb, the amusement park’s director says that the incident has been blown out of proportion. “We like the Habs but it’s a matter of safety. Players that small cannot ride a roller coaster without getting hurt.”
This was a particular disappointment for Brian Gionta, the Canadiens’ captain who stands at a lofty 5 feet and 7 inches. “I’ve never been allowed on a roller coaster in my life,” he lamented. “I thought this would be the day I was finally let in.”
Local sports network RDS, which had been waiting all summer to show new Habs footage, was forced to televise the Drummondville Mini-Putt Open by this turn of events.
“Well, our team will always be the champions at the NHL hockey stick limbo competitions” Theirrien optimistically added before he lost sight of the entire team in a crowd of young teenagers.
