A Devil for a good cause

Stanley Cup-winning coach speaks at sports auction

For lovers of sport, playing a game is not necessarily about the score, it's about something bigger. It's about being a part of a team and striving to perform at the pinnacle of one's potential.

For Pat Burns, ten-year resident of Gilmanton, he reached that moment in 2003 when he and the New Jersey Devils he was coaching won the Stanley Cup, the trophy awarded to champions of the National Hockey League. "Not too many coaches get to touch that [the Cup] and put it over their head."

Burns has lived in Gilmanton since he was the coach of the Boston Bruins, and he continued living there even when coaching the Devils. He even brought the Stanley Cup to his home for a short period. Burns, who has coached 14 seasons in the NHL, likes the Lakes Region, he said, because people here don't give him the celebrity treatment, even though he has won hockey's equivalent of "Coach of the Year" three times. "I sort of stay low-key," he said. "I really enjoy the people around here."

He might be low-key, but the police officer turned hockey coach has made himself a member of the community. When he won the Cup, he said he took "a bunch of the guys" from the region up to a big celebration in his native Quebec, and during his recent battle with cancer, he's elected to have his chemotherapy treatments at Lakes Region General Hospital in Laconia.

Another way that he's been active in the local community is by attending fundraising events like the Youth Sports Benefit Auction, held last night (Sept. 13). "I think sports is very important for our youth. It keeps them off the streets and gives them something to do. I played every sport as I possibly could [as a youth]. Sports can make you a better person." Burns said he feels "pretty good" right now, and "would love to go back" to coaching when the doctors tell him he's healthy enough to. Until then, he's still employed by the Devils, as an "advanced pro scout."

The auction, held this year at Christmas Island's Steak House, consists of sports memorabilia, most of which was autographed. John Ganong started the auction and has been organizing the event for most of its nine years. He said he started after a conversation with his son Jason, who was then in high school. "He said they were running out of money for sports."

In the years of the event, Ganong said about $30,000 has been raised which has gone to help equip local youth to be able to participate in sports. This year there were more than 100 items in the event, which were all donated, some by Burns himself, who also gave a keynote speech. One item that Burns brought was novelty street sign for "Ray Bourque Road," autographed by Bruins star Bourque. The sign brought the highest bid of the evening, going to $1,500.

Not only did Burns bring a lot of the item, he also left with a good deal, too. "He's a hot ticket," said Ganong. The event Thursday night set a new record for the event, raising just over $10,000. The bidders, Ganong said, were "right off the charts."