Laraque Rips Rangers for Treatment of Boogaard
The Ottawa Sun reports that Former NHL tough guy Georges Laraque ripped the New York Rangers for the way they treated Derek Boogaard this season..."He was cleared to play at the end of the season and the team just told him to take the rest of the year off," Laraque told NHL HOME ICE on SiriusXM Radio. "You know how much pressure that puts on a guy? He was ready to play with the contract he had and the team says, 'It's OK, just take the rest of the year off.' On top of that, he told me his coach was not a big fan of him.
"I don't want to insinuate anything that happened and the cause (of his death) or whatever but I would have been frustrated if I was in that situation. The fact he was inactive so long and those two incidents happened, it clearly didn't help him."
Laraque adds that Boogaard had mentioned John Tortorella didn't like him...
"He told me John didn't really like him as a player," Laraque said. "I don't know what John thought or what he said.
"All I know is that Derek told me he was cleared to play, to come back, that he wanted to play and the team told him to take the rest of the year off, to get ready for next year. He didn't tell me who told him that, he just told me the team said that."
...not really sure what Laraque is trying to prove with these statements. He's pretty much setting up the Rangers to be blamed if the tests prove Boogaard's death was a suicide.
...i tell you what, if the tests comeback that it was concussion related I better hear the biggest I'm sorry from Laraque.
...i'm going to bite my lip here so I don't end up saying something offensive, but we all watched Boogaard this season and know what kind of shape he was in and I'll leave it at that as far as why the Rangers may not have re-inserted him into the line-up at the end of the season.
...h/t to reader Matt P.
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Even if it was a suicide how are the Rangers in anyway shape or form blamable? Laraque you are an idiot and i'd be shocked if you aren't brain dead.
And I doubt that Laraque played a considerable amount down the stretch either when he was a punching bag. He's been whining ever since the Habs released him.
Not only is Laraque out of line, but he's wrong as well. The guy was out of shape, recovering from a concussion, wasn't going to play much down the stretch anyway and about to enter rehab. Why would you NOT send him home for the season???
Its good to hearr some insight on these kind of things.
Boogards death def had something to do with concussion. Its called tons of stress he had, maybe a lil overdose on pain medication, and years of physical abuse on his body.
Stress def includes the stress from his coach, from his lack of playing.
Years of fighting and hitting. It got to him, and i woudl not be surprised if his death could have been prevented if not for lack of medical attention which was def at fault of the Rangers
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@MarkFox Disagree that the Rangers are to blame at all. He only played 22 games for them, and was removed from the lineup immediately after he received his concussion. He was never in the lineup again. Most of the wear and tear on his body and brain came long before he played for the NYR. I believe the NYR medical staff is second to none, there was no lack of medical attention on the NYR's part.
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What would motivate Georges Laraque to raise this issue now and at this time...perhaps he needs the publicity....perhaps; and who is he by the way ?????
@scimoon1 it's a sad cry for attention from a washed up player, in the most inappropriate way. go back to obscurity laraque.
@scimoon1 well done. this sums it all up. besides, laraque isnt very informed either. why would someone go to LA, sign up with a publicist, get on twitter for the first time then harm himself?
Even if it was a suicide, how many players get benched every year that DON'T commit suicide? Georges Laraque is a tool and always causes controversy.
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Derek showed up at camp at least 20 lbs overweight, and he was ineffective when he played. It made more sense for the organization to give him additional time to recover from his concussion and to conquer any other demons he was dealing with. Why would the coach insert him into the lineup during the race to get into the playoffs? For Laraque to suggest that the coach put unfair pressure on Derek by not playing him doesn't add up. The coach needs to put the team first, and deal with individual concerns second.
I appreciated Laraque talking about what a sad loss this is, and showing his appreciation for a great competitor in Boogaard, but this is a poor showing. What is there to gain by making these statements? As someone who lost a younger sibling as a young man, I know the Boogaard family doesn't appreciate too much talk and speculation. No need to respond to Laraque's ill-conceived chatter.
That is absurd. Plenty of guys in the NHL go through this type of thing with their teams; its part of playing the game. If the coach or the team doesn't think you're up to snuff, they're not going to play you. I am sure that Boogaard understood that. And even if he didn't, and he really was depressed enough over all this that he took his own life (which I think we're all desperately hoping was not the case) there is absolutely NO WAY that the Rangers organization should be "blamed". It'd be a tragedy, but its not Torts' fault or Sather's fault or anyone's fault. They can't be held accountable for Boogaard possibly being troubled or possibly making that decision. To even suggest it is, I think absolutely monstrous and irresponsible on the part of Laraque. He ought to issue an apology regardless of how this whole situation plays out.
