When I first met Manny Malhotra, I was a grade niner in high school. He was a really nice guy, and though he was just a junior prospect at the time, everyone around predicted very big things for him. The kind and gracious star I met off the ice didn't really pan out on the ice, and he became a journeyman hockey player. His name would come up in highlight films every now and then, but I still remember meeting him, when he was still in the juniors, and I hopes his time would come.
Earlier this NHL season, while playing for the Vancouver Canucks in a game against Colorado, Manny suffered a catastrophic, career-threatening eye injury on a freak play. When I saw that replay, it crushed my spirit because I believed he was a person from my younger days that really stood out as a class person, and for his career to end that way was unfair.
Tonight, in Game 2 of this year's Stanley Cup Final, against the Boston Bruins, Manny Malhotra suited up for the Canucks and played seven minutes of inspiring hockey. Wearing a full face shield, Malhotra's faceoff prowess and heads-up play helped lift the Canucks to an overtime victory. More than this, however, the sight of Malhotra on the ice inspired teammates, fans of the Canucks, and fans of hockey. If the team was down, cameras would show his image on the arena jumbotron, and Canucks fans would laud his return to the ice. News of his return to the ice were equally welcoming, if not more so, for the former ninth-grader who met the former junior named Manny.
The Canucks are two victories away from hoisting the Stanley Cup, and nothing would be sweeter than for Manny Malhotra to defy the odds once again to gaze upon the Cup with both eyes and lift it over his head in celebration.
For more on Malhotra, check this link out!
