It was Roenick being Roenick. This is a guy who used to hang a disco ball in the locker room.
“He’d do that same routine in the locker room just to get everyone jammin’,” said his wife, Tracy. “That’s just part of him. That’s who he is.”
Tony Amonte started playing against Roenick when they were 10, and he has played with him multiple times, including twice in the NHL — for the Chicago Blackhawks from 1993-96 and the Philadelphia Flyers from 2002-04.
When he reunited with Roenick on Team Lindros on Sunday, he wasn’t surprised by what happened.
“You knew it was coming, and he’s just got the personality,” Amonte said. “He’s got the game, and he had the talent, and he had the drive. All those forces came together. That’s what made him the player he is, and the inner confidence too. You know what I mean?
“I mean, at his party last night, he had the mic more than the band did. Oh, yeah. That’s just his personality, and guys that know him best know just know that’s who JR is and that’s how he thrives. He does his own thing.”
Roenick, the No. 8 pick of the 1988 NHL Draft, had 1,216 points (513 goals, 703 assists) in 1,363 NHL games for the Blackhawks, Phoenix Coyotes, Flyers, Kings and San Jose Sharks from 1988-2009. He ranks fourth in goals and fifth in points among players born in the United States.
“He’s got the stats,” Amonte said. “He’s been a character in this game. People love him, people hate him, but they know his name.”
