By MARK DIVVER of the Providence Journal
On the ice, he was one of the roughest and toughest players of the NHL’s Original Six era. Off the ice, he was a gentle, easygoing husband and father.
That’s how family, friends, former players and teammates remember Hall of Fame defenseman Ferny Flaman, 85, who died Friday after a long fight with pancreatic cancer.
Decades before modern-day hard guys such as Shawn Thornton dropped the gloves for the Boston Bruins, the team’s reputation for toughness was forged by players such as Flaman. Along with legendary ruffians such as Eddie Shore, Teddy Green and Terry O’Reilly, Flaman ranks as one of the most fearsome Bruins.
“Ferny didn’t fight a lot,” Don McKenney, his longtime friend and teammate, said over the phone this week. “Everyone stayed away from him. He was not an instigator. But he was a tough hombre.”
McKenney recalled a game at the Boston Garden in the 1950s in which Flaman slapped around both Henri and Maurice “Rocket” Richard of the hated Canadiens.
You can read the rest of the article here: Friends remember ex-Bruin Flaman as original tough guy
