Hurricanes goaltender Frederik Andersen is heading to the Stanley Cup Final — but he couldn’t hide his emotions on Friday following the death of his longtime agent, Claude Lemieux.
Lemieux, an NHL great himself, died by suicide on Thursday, authorities confirmed. He was 60 years old.
And while Andersen and the Hurricanes beat the Canadiens on Friday to win the Eastern Conference, the Danish shot-stopper could be seen fighting back tears in a postgame interview with TNT.
“It’s been a difficult couple of days, but the way we showed up today, last couple days for the team and for each other has been incredible,” he said, with his voice shaking.
“Can’t talk enough good things about this team and the way they supported me.”
Andersen continued: “We’re a family, can’t really say much more. It’s so special to be able to show up for him and make him proud, go out and battle.”
Asked what Lemieux would have said to him following the victory, Andersen said, “Just go get it. He’s the ultimate competitor, but he’s got the biggest heart. So he wants it so much for me and for this team.”
Authorities told The Post on Friday that Lemieux, a four-time Stanley Cup champion, had hanged himself.
Colombe Lacroix, a close family friend who was at the scene with the family on Thursday, told The Post that the hockey icon had been battling depression.
He was seen smiling on Monday as the Canadiens, one of his former teams, brought him out at Bell Centre to carry the torch ahead of the game. However, the seemingly positive moment may have had an adverse effect on Lemieux, according to a close friend.
“It’s possible that surge of love, that wave of love on Monday evening, triggered an emotion that was too intense,” said Rejean Tremblay, a longtime Montreal hockey columnist and friend to Lemieux.
“It might have reawakened old pains, old suffering.”
Lemieux was also snubbed by hockey’s Hall of Fame following his retirement in 2009, which Tremblay called a “heavy burden to bear.”
“The sense of rejection ran deeper than one might have imagined. He took it very hard,” Tremblay said.
Lemieux was found in the warehouse of his family’s furniture business in Palm Beach County, Fla.
If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts or are experiencing a mental health crisis, you can call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org for free and confidential crisis counseling.
