"MONTREAL - When Michel Lacroix speaks, Habs fans listen.
Cued by the guitar riffs of Coldplay's Fix You, one voice turns into 21,000; "Mesdames et Messieurs, Ladies and Gentlemen. Accueillons nos Canadiens!"
It's the phrase used to introduce the Canadiens to the ice, but a line whose author needs no introduction, himself.
"Slowly it became somewhat of a trademark," said the long-time Canadiens public address announcer of his famed introduction. "It clicked, everybody liked it a little phrase, just a few words to get the attention [of the crowd]."
For 30 years, Lacroix has been at the helm of the Canadiens in-house announcing.
It shows that he's a true professional at what he does. People that stay in the same organization for so long, there's a reason for it," said former Canadiens forward Alex Belzile.
Three days after being recalled on February 9, the 31-year-old journeyman scored his first career NHL goal. Fittingly, it was Lacroix who announced it.
"He came to congratulate me personally after I scored my first goal. Little things like that are sometimes trivial, but when it happens to you, it's heartwarming and it makes a difference," said Belzile. "It's something I'll remember for a long time.
