Red Baron 0 Report post Posted April 18, 2004 credit: tsn.ca Devils' Burns battling cancer Canadian Press 4/18/2004 EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (CP-AP) - New Jersey Devils coach Pat Burns is battling colon cancer. Burns said Sunday he will begin treatment this week and that his status with the team will be determined in five weeks, the earliest the treatment could end. The announcement came a day after the defending Stanley Cup champions were eliminated from the NHL playoffs by the Philadelphia Flyers. ``The last month or so I have not been feeling well,'' Burns said. ``There were signs that something was not right but I was reluctant to do anything because the playoffs were coming up.'' Burns said he insisted on coaching the Devils in the first round even though the treatments would not have allowed him to coach had the Devils advanced. ``For those who know me well, I've never backed down from any fight. And I'm not going to back down from this one,'' he said. Burns appeared at the news conference at Continental Airlines Arena with his wife and with Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello. He read from a prepared statement and did not answer questions. New Jersey lost 3-1 on Saturday, with the Flyers taking the best-of-seven series in five games. Burns said the he would undergo treatments five days a week for the next six to eight weeks. He did not go into further detail. Burns, 52, missed a morning skate and an off-day team meeting last week. The team said in both instances he had to take care of ``personal matters.'' Defenceman Scott Niedermayer said he didn't notice anything different about Burns in the weeks leading up to the playoffs. ``He was trying to get the team ready 100 per cent just like he always does,'' Niedermayer said. ``We didn't notice anything until he didn't come to a couple of morning skates. Then we knew he wasn't feeling well.'' A three-time winner of the Jack Adams Award as the NHL's top coach, Burns replaced Kevin Constantine behind the Devils bench on June 13, 2002, and won his first Stanley Cup ring last spring when the Devils defeated the Anaheim Mighty Ducks in the final. On Sunday, he praised his team's efforts in the regular season and the playoffs, and lamented the timing of the illness. ``I wasn't the coach I should have been the last couple of weeks, but I had a lot of things on my mind so it was understandable,'' he said. Defenceman Scott Stevens described the reaction of his fellow players to Burns' illness as ``shock and depression.'' ``This definitely puts everything in perspective,'' Stevens said. ``Hopefully he'll fight through this. He's a tough guy.'' Before arriving in New Jersey, Burns had coached three Original Six teams - Montreal, Toronto and Boston - and had only been to one Stanley Cup final in 13 seasons, during his first season with Montreal. He hadn't coached since being let go by the Bruins only eight games into the 2000-01 season. There was talk it would be tough for him to find a job as teams sought younger coaches with new ideas, new systems and no reluctance to try new things. But Burns, a former policeman from Hull, Que., with a sullen personality and a self-proclaimed inability to smile, meshed well with the Devils. He reached two milestones this season. A victory over the Rangers on March 30 was the 500th of his NHL career and on Feb. 27 he coached his 1,000th game when the Devils faced the Atlanta Thrashers at Continental Airlines Arena. Burns has a career regular-season record of 501-367-151 along with a playoff record of 78-71. I hope Burns gets better, and battles cancer. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Czech Republic 0 Report post Posted April 18, 2004 My feelings for the New Jersey Devils organization are well documented. But I still hope that Burns can get past colon cancer, because nobody deserves that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
the max 0 Report post Posted April 18, 2004 My thoughts are with him. I may not like the Devils, but I respect Pat Burns for what he has accomplished, and I wish him the best. I'll be rooting for him. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
starvenger 0 Report post Posted April 18, 2004 Cancer sucks. I hope Burns pulls through this - after all he's still got 3 other Original Six teams left to coach. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
