Marc-Andre Fleury's career came full circle on Saturday night when the retired goaltender played in preseason game with the Pittsburgh Penguins and didn't miss a beat -- or a puck -- in a 4-1 win over the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets.
Fleury, 40, made eight saves in playing the entire third period as the Blue Jackets went scoreless. Beyond the statistics, the game was an opportunity for the Penguins' franchise and its fans to honor Fleury in Pittsburgh, where he played the first 13 seasons of his 21-year
NHL career and won three Stanley Cup championships (2009, 2016, 2017).
"Some of the best times of my life, it's in big part because of you guys," Fleury said to the crowd before leaving the ice, where he wore a mask with "Thank you Pittsburgh" on it and was serenaded with "Thank you Fleury" in chanting from the stands packed with 18,333 in attendance at PPG Paints Arena.
"A little surreal, a little crazy," Fleury told reporters after the game. "But still also comfortable, it felt like. Every time I played here with other teams, I always felt a little bit weird coming in and playing here. This time, it felt normal, like it used to. A lot of nerves, too. I didn't want to mess up for the guys. I wanted to keep them in in the game. So, it was fun."
He joked that he was "a little worried about giving up six goals that one period. I didn't want to, like, ruin the game or anything like that, right?"
Fleury, who protected a 2-1 Penguins lead after two periods, had signed a professional tryout contract earlier this month so he could practice with the team on Friday and play in the exhibition game the next night.
Pittsburgh wanted to honor him for his accolades as well as what he has meant to the organization, city and fans, Kyle Dubas, the club's president of hockey operations and general manager, said earlier this month in announcing the special arrangement.
The four-time All-Star is 575-339-97 in 1,051 career regular-season games with a 2.60 GAA, .912 save percentage and 76 shutouts from 2003-25. Fleury ranks second in league history in wins, games, starts (1,017) and minutes played (60,669:03).
The Vezina Trophy winner in 2021 with the Vegas Golden Knights during a stint from 20017-21, he also played for the Chicago Blackhawks (2021-22) and Minnesota Wild (2021-25). He announced in April 2024 that he would retire after that season, and he went 14-9-1 with a 2.93 GAA, .899 save percentage and one shutout in 26 games with the Wild as Filip Gustavsson's backup.
It all started in Pittsburgh, which made the then-18-year-old the first overall pick of the 2003 NHL Draft. He went on to break nearly every major franchise record for goaltending.
"It was like old times. It was nice," Fleury said. "You keep trying to make me emotional the last couple of days. The staff, the media, you guys, it was good. It was like we did so many times, right? I'm thankful I got this. This opportunity to come back for one more. Sorry if I keep doing this to you guys and the fans. It was a lot of fun ... I appreciate the support, the love I've gotten over the years in Pittsburgh. It was a special night, for sure."
--Field Level Media
