French national anthem, moment of silence before Rangers' game in Ottawa

A fire department color guard walked somberly onto the ice at Canadian Tire Center shortly after 1 p.m. on Saturday, prepared to stand a bit longer than usual.

But the fans at the matinee game between the Ottawa Senators and the Rangers, who likely saw footage of the deadly terrorist attacks in Paris on the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. and the French-language stations in this province, were not fully aware of the special tribute that the team had prepared.

In the arena, the public address announcer asked for a moment of silence for the victims of the attack, "which shook the core of the city," he said. And while the starters for both teams stood with heads bowed at the blue lines and the officials lined up quietly on the red line, the arena was quiet.

A moment of silence isn't an unusual tribute at sporting events. What happened next was special.

The red, white and blue panels of the French flag appeared on the center-ice scoreboard and the first notes of an instrumental recording of "La Marseillaise," the French national anthem, broke the silence among the 19,310 fans in attendance.

Cheers and respectful applause followed, and the emotional level rose when Krista Jane sang the U.S. anthem and then the Canadian anthem. Many in the crowd sang along when Jane switched from English to French in parts of the Canadian anthem.

Amid reports that the NHL has tightened security for its teams, Rangers coach Alain Vigneault, who was born in Quebec City, was asked if it was difficult to prepare for a game in the wake of the attacks.

"Everyone is aware of the circumstances," Vigneault said. "It is touching and difficult . . . but life moves on, and you do what you've got to do, and you hope people take care of them."