HHOF Inductee ROBERTO LUONGO
Luongo thanked the Hockey Hall of Fame and congratulated his fellow inductees, especially Vancouver Canucks teammates Daniel and Henrik Sedin.
“When I got the call, the first thing I asked was if you guys were in too, because I wanted it so bad to go in with you guys,” Luongo said. “Just being your teammate for eight years was such an honor. I’m proud to say that I played with you guys.”
Luongo spoke about his grandmother, who played goalie against him with an oven mitt and frying pan; his grandfather, who bought him one of his first sets of goalie pads; his parents, who taught him work ethic; and his brothers, who used to play hockey with him in the basement.
“We destroyed it,” Luongo said. “The walls were done.”
He spoke of friends, coaches and agents, like the late Gilles Lupien, who told Luongo’s parents they needed to be ready for him to leave home.
“I don’t know if you guys understand what Italian families are like, but you don’t move away when you’re 15 years old,” Luongo said. “You move away when you get married. Some of my friends are still living at home.”
Luongo mentioned billets, trainers and the three NHL teams for which he played. After starting with the New York Islanders (1999-2000), he spent most of his career with the Canucks (2006-14) and Florida Panthers (2000-06, 2013-19).
“Both franchises mean so much to me, and they’re both equally important,” Luongo said.
After acknowledging his goalie partners and his kids — daughter Gabriella, 14, and son Gianni, 11 — Luongo closed by thanking his wife, Gina.
“It’s been a long journey,” Luongo said. “It’s been tough. Like Hank and Danny said, a lot of times you were left on your own, because we were on the road playing cards — winning at cards, mostly for me.
“You were holding down the fort at home, and as athletes, sometimes we take that a little bit for granted. But I just want to say that I admire you, and I love you so much.”
