"Toronto Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan stood in front of Johnny Bower's statue in Legends Row on Wednesday morning to address the media about the legendary goaltender's passing. Shanahan called Bower's death not only a sad time in the city of Toronto, but beyond the hockey world because of all the lives he touched during his incredible life. Even though he grew up in Toronto, Shanahan did not meet Bower personally until he took his current job with the Maple Leafs. He never got to see him play as a kid, but he shared how Bower's legacy lived on after his playing days were over. «Not too many people in sports have a name where it almost becomes a verb,» Shanahan explained. «So if you were playing street hockey and you poke-checked somebody, you yelled «Johnny Bower. I just Johnny Bowered you!» So I'd never seen Johnny play as a young kid, but I knew this was the man who invented the poke check growing up here in Toronto. It wasn't until the last few year where I got to know him on a more personal level and I really saw up close what everybody talked about.» You can view the entire press conference below. "
