The line of fans stretched unimaginably, as an estimated 5,000 showed up to meet goalie Jaroslav Halak last week at a sporting goods store near Montreal.
"It was great to see that many people," Halak said.
The event was for Halak to say a final good-bye to fans of the Montreal Canadiens, many of whom were stunned when news broke in June that their beloved hockey team had traded him to the Blues.
Halak, who led Montreal to the Eastern Conference finals last season, became a popular figure in that city because of his successful rise, passionate work ethic and likeable personality.
Perhaps too popular, though. Some Blues fans felt that Halak's recent appearance in Montreal meant that his heart might still be there. But if last week's autograph signing, which raised $22,000 for Ste. Justine Hospital in Montreal, didn't put an end to that chapter of Halak's career, perhaps Thursday's press conference welcoming him to St. Louis will help.
Open to the public, about 100 fans came to Scottrade Center and gave the Blues' new goalie a rousing ovation as he pulled the team's jersey with "HALAK" and "41" stitched on the back over his head.
"It's really nice that the fans showed up," Halak said. "It's like being drafted (again), putting a jersey on and taking pictures with the owners and general manager. It was nice to see, and I'm looking forward to a new season."
It's been almost three months since the Blues landed Halak, 25, from Montreal in a trade that caught the hockey world by surprise.
Along with Carey Price, who was the league's fifth overall pick in 2005, the Canadiens had two promising young goalies, and surprisingly, particularly after Halak's playoff performance last season, he was the player the team deemed expendable.
The Blues pounced on a deal, sending forward prospect Lars Eller, the 13th overall pick in 2007, and Ian Schultz to Montreal for Halak. In July, they locked him up to a four-year, $15-million contract.
"We gave up some good players to get Jaro, but we have an established franchise goalie who's young and not even in the prime of his career yet," Blues defenseman Erik Johnson said. "He has a track record of winning where he's been and took an underdog team to the (Eastern) conference finals last year, and I know we're really excited to have him."
Halak's predecessor, Chris Mason, was a popular figure himself in the Blues' locker room the past two seasons. Once the trade with Montreal materialized, however, the Blues ended contract negotiations with Mason, an unrestricted free agent at the time who has since signed with Atlanta.
Blues players said Thursday that while it was difficult to see Mason move on, having Halak helped ease the disappointment.
"At first, you don't think about the guy coming … you think about the guy you're losing and you feel bad for that," Blues forward David Perron said. "We've got memories with what happened with (Mason). He was such a good guy and such a good goalie. (But) after that, you turn the page and you realize how good of a goalie we've got as well."
Halak, who was drafted by Montreal in the ninth round (No. 271 overall) in 2003, has a record of 56-34-7 in 101 NHL games, along with a career goals-against average of 2.62 and a save-percentage of .919.
Before last year, though, Halak had only played in 56 games in three seasons. Then in December, he took the starting job away from Price and was brilliant in the postseason, posting the league's fourth-best save-percentage (.924).
"I watched every single (Montreal) game in the playoffs," Perron said. "He was just unbelievable. He would carry the team and it was unreal … non-stop saves."
But that was with the Canadiens and now Halak is a Blue. His new team said that it had no problem with him returning to Montreal last week to meet with his fans one last time.
"The fans of Montreal realize what a special player he is," Blues general manager Doug Armstrong said Thursday. "They wanted to show their appreciation for what he did. He gave them eight weeks of hockey that they might not have expected.
"It was great for him to go back and really close that chapter out. He can move on now. He said 'Thank you' to the people that meant the most to him, and it showed a lot about his character, not wanting to leave something undone. But now he's officially a St. Louis Blue. I'm really excited to see him get in the net."
