Rangers try to lighten firefighters' load
John Vigiano, 10, center, of Medford, shakes hands with the New York Rangers Derek Stepan while visiting FDNY's Ladder 3 Battalion 6 firehouse in Manhattan Tuesday as the team, along with family members who lost loved ones on 9/11 were treated to firehouse tours. The group went to three firehouses and had a reception later in the evening. John's father, NYPD Detective Joseph Vigiano, died on 9/11. Left in the black Rangers jersey is his brother Jimmy, 16. (Sept. 6, 2011) Credit: Craig Ruttle
Rangers players, wearing their Broadway Blue jerseys as they toured three New York City firehouses, checked out the outfits that firefighters wear when they go out on a call. They were amazed at how heavy the equipment is, which made them that much prouder to be encouraging people who have been carrying a huge load for 10 years.
Heading toward a new season and on the verge of training camp, 19 players, the general manager and coach all rode double-decker sightseeing buses with families who were touched by 9/11. They stopped at the firehouses to see the people who still always are touched by it. As Captain Patrick McNally said at Engine 24, Ladder 5 near Houston Street, pointing to the photos of the 11 from that house who were lost on 9/11, "We walk by these guys every day, we see their faces. This week is rough."
So the Rangers came by to lighten the load a little. And the Rangers were touched.
"All these people want to move on, but at the same time, what happened is a big part of their lives. It's going to be there. We have to show respect," said Henrik Lundqvist, a Rangers draftee in 2001 who was preparing for a game in Sweden when someone told him "Manhattan is on fire."
Lundqvist is a fixture on the ice and in the heart of Manhattan now. He said, "This is just like New York. We want to move forward and see positive things."
General manager Glen Sather recalled how the Rangers were ready to begin their first training camp at the Garden that morning, how they called it off, and how Mark Messier, Brian Leetch and other players brought uniforms down to Ground Zero later that week and gave them to the workers.
Sather knew that none of the current Rangers was with the team then and that many of them were teenagers and he found the interaction Tuesday "pretty amazing." He added, referring to the firefighters and the families, "You don't want to be intrusive, but you want to show respect."
The respect was appreciated. Margarite Bonomo of Port Jefferson, whose husband Frank of Engine Co. 230 died on 9/11, took her children Joseph, 14, and Juliana, 11, out early on the first day of school to be part of it. Joseph, a Rangers fan, had to miss soccer practice at Ward Melville, but it's not every day you get to pose with Marian Gaborik. "Everyone is remembering, saying 'Stay strong,' " Bonomo said. "It's really cool that the Rangers take time out of their busy schedules to hang out with us."
At Engine 4, Ladder 5 on South Street, Marie Anaya of Rockland County got to show her children the fire truck named in honor of her late husband. Brandon turned 16 Tuesday. "This is a birthday gift from his father, that's the way I look at it," she said.
Rangers players saw it as a gift to see life differently. "First and foremost, it's our duty as New York Rangers, to help," Sean Avery said.
Brandon Dubinsky, an Alaska teen on 9/11, said, "We were messing around with the gear over there. We wear hockey equipment, but it weighs like nothing compared to these outfits."
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