Ring of Honor: Roberto Luongo Celebrated by Vancouver Canucks

Roberto Luongo was celebrated by the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday night before their game against the Florida Panthers as the Hall of Fame goalie was inducted into the team’s Ring of Honor.

Luongo was unofficially named captain of the Canucks following his trade from the Panthers in 2006 but as a goalie, it was unofficial.

He had the ‘C’ painted on his mask for a few years but never had it stitched onto his sweater.

Until Thursday night, that is.

Former Vancouver teammates Daniel and Henrik Sedin presented Luongo with a special jersey as part of a long pregame ceremony which celebrated his eight seasons with the franchise.

Luongo led off by expressing his excitement that the Canucks have turned a corner and are now one of the top teams in the NHL.

“Hockey is fun again in Vancouver,” Luongo said in his remarks. “This is the way it is supposed to be; the city is buzzing, the team is playing well. There is so much excitement. I am very happy for you guys. You’ve waited a long time for this.”

The Canucks celebrated Luongo’s night with a bobblehead giveaway with all Vancouver players warming up wearing No. 1 with Luongo’s name on the back.

Prior to the start of the game, Luongo dropped the ceremonial first puck — but instead of the captains coming to center ice, it was the two starting goalies: Florida’s Sergei Bobrovsky and Vancouver’s Thatcher Demko.

The Panthers, coincidentally, signed Bobrovsky not long after Luongo officially announced his retirement in 2019.

The two hugged as they work closely together now in Florida as Luongo heads up the team’s goalie department.