Recollections of the “Three Denis”

Jean-François Parenteau: Well, the “three Denis”, they are in fact more like memories that I heard about in the community, what people told me about them. Obviously, Denis Savard. Well, Denis Tremblay, in fact, I had my winter tires changed later on at his garage, because he became…he’s an entrepreneur in Verdun.
But, Denis Savard, for me,  it’s so special, because his father, at that time, Arthur, owned a convenience store at the corner of Verdun and Rielle streets: Dépanneur Savard. And Denis Savard, his parents lived on the upper floor. So when I went to the convenience store, I would bump into Denis Savard. And when we went there…listen, Denis Savard, for us, he was God. He was a example to follow, all that. And what was impressive, is that he played on our street with the Langlois, and the Rodrigues families, and my sisters, who were older than me.

So, Denis Savard was very much involved, he was in his community a lot. Even when he played in Chicago, once he was drafted, he would come back to Willibrord Park in the summer and we played baseball. I remember that he would arrive in his red Porsche, and he would hit fly balls for us in the park, and he was, look, he was God. Believe me! It was really impressive to see Denis Savard. So the other two Denis, I didn’t know them as much. I got to know them more afterwards, by their names and all that. But me, Denis Savard, he was someone outstanding for me as a child, because he was like a hero that we didn’t have, who came out of nowhere, and then who went on to have a beautiful career.