Marc-Andre Fleury sounds off after winning 500th career NHL game

He's arguably the most beloved teammate wherever he goes, a future Hall of Famer, and now is forever a part of NHL history.

Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury became only the third player at the position in NHL history to record 500 career wins, doing so last night in his native Quebec against the Montreal Canadiens as the Chicago Blackhawks shut out the host Habs by a 2-0 score. 

Fleury made 30 saves in the win, and was serenaded by the crowd with appreciative chants of his last name as the clock wound down. 

“It meant a lot to have so many people from Quebec, being proud of me being from here and achieving this goal,” the happy Fleury said afterwards. 

“Since the beginning of my career, it’s always special when I come to Montreal and play here, just because I’ve grown up idolizing them, right? It’s always special playing in front of the Quebecers, my friends and family. Everybody’s watching, and a lot of them were at the game tonight.”

I just wanted to win,” he continued. “Bottom line, every night, that’s all I want: I want to win. Whether it’s 5-4 [or] 2-0, it’s just trying to find a way to win games. I’m happy it worked out tonight.”

Fleury, of course, is now a member of the Blackhawks after being unceremoniously dumped by the Vegas Golden Knights less than a month after being named the recipient of the Vezina Trophy as the NHL's top goaltender for the 2020-21 season. He's also seen his name come up once again in trade rumors of potentially being dealt to a contender at the Deadline. 

“What a classy thing with the Habs fans,” interim coach Derek King said of the crowd chanting Fleury's name. “We thought we’d stay on the ice, just as coaches, just to give him some knuckles. But the fans, it was unbelievable. I’ve never seen anything like that before.”