Fleury gets his final goodbye with the Penguins on Saturday night.
It was a final goodbye for Marc-Andre Fleury in Pittsburgh on Saturday night and I am happy to report that the fans in Pittsburgh came out in full force to give the man known as Flower a proper send off.
Following the conclusion of Saturday night's preseason game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Columbus Blue Jackets, Fleury was named the first star of the game after putting up 8 saves for a shutout in the third period. The decision to make Fleury the first star gave him a chance to come out on the ice and salute the fans, which he did to a huge reception, before conducting what may be the final on-ice interview of his career as a player in the National Hockey League.
Fleury was gracious with his time, fielding a number of questions, and quite frankly just seemed to be grateful to be there while soaking in every second of the moment.
"I'm glad we won the game... it was a lot of fun," said Fleury on Saturday night.
The Penguins had a sellout crowd for tonight's preseason game and Fleury had one final message for the fans who have shown him so much love.
"Thank you," said Fleury. "I feel very lucky that I played hockey for so long and have been in Pittsburgh for so long, I feel very fortunate and thankful for that. Some of the best years of my life, thank you."
You can check out what might be Fleury's final on-ice interview just below:
Get the latest news and updates directly in your inbox.