Thank you, Torey Krug

Farewell

Yesterday, Torey Krug posted a farewell Instagram post. In all honesty, I was surprised I initially took his signing in St. Louis poorly – I blame my irrational emotions during the time. I remember the first time Krug joined the Bruins and I thought to myself, “who the hell is this kid from Michigan? He’s going to have a lot to prove.” Nonetheless, he proved to be a phenomenal defenseman for the Bruins during his 8 years on the team.

Big Expectations

Speaking for hockey, it is not easy to play in a town like Boston. Looking back to the Bruins short film series, Behind the B: Season 1, Episode 1, Loui Eriksson met with Bruins President Cam Neely after the infamous Tyler Seguin trade. Neely looked Eriksson right in the eyes and said, “Well it is obviously no disrespect to where you came from [the Dallas Stars], but, you know, the Original Six team fanbase is obviously deep-rooted. They are smart, they know their hockey. Uh, one thing I can tell you is that they expect you to work hard every game. That is the expectation that we have, and that our fan base has.”

Never Easy to Say Goodbye

Cam Neely’s statement is true regarding the Bruins fanbase. Collectively, as a fanbase, we have gone through so much over the last decade. However, when we fall in love with a player, we fall hard. That is why it is so difficult for Krug to leave us. Despite any emotional, irrational feelings the fanbase has right now, I think it is safe to say that we do love Krug and wish nothing but the best on the St. Louis Blues – wow that’s painful to say. I’m sure the ultimate decision to leave the only NHL team he started on was not a painless choice.

Class Act

Going back to his Instagram post, Krug left a heartfelt post that said:

“I am so grateful that Melanie and I could call Boston home for the last 8 years. I have no words to describe how much the city, my teammates, and the fans mean to us. The truth is, I was never a fan of these types of posts but it felt necessary as my only means to connect with you guys.

Thank you to the Bruins organization for the opportunity to grow as a player and a person. Thank you to my teammates for the amazing memories and what will be lifelong bonds. Thank you to the fans and the community for embracing my family as one of your own.

I truly feel terrible that I couldn’t help bring another Stanley Cup to Boston but I leave with some amazing memories and having played with Hall of Famers on some truly special teams. I wanted to share a few pictures of some of these memories but couldn’t manage to keep the pictures to a minimum. So here you go…”

I am not going to lie when I say I started to shed tears reading the part where he apologized for not being able to bring us back another Cup.

Goodbye Krug/Pasta Pregame Rituals

Okay, but most importantly we will miss this!

And of course, the Krug/Marchand Taller Debate

This too! Please don’t let this saga end!

Final Goodbye

Thank you for everything you have done for the Bruins organization. You will truly be missed and I hope you have a successful rest of your career. I wish you nothing but the best!

– Fran Romero (chess_romero)

Featured image courtesy of The Boston Globe.