anadiens fans show up in force for Jaroslav Halak farewell

Montreal Canadiens fans turned out in force Saturday to salute Stanley Cup playoffs hero Jaroslav Halak(notes) at a farewell autograph session. Halak, who helped the Habs reach the Eastern Conference finals last spring, was traded in the offseason to the St. nfl jerseys
Louis Blues.
That didn't deter Canadiens followers, as the Canadian Press reports more than 5,000 arrived for the appearance. Because of the crowd, the session was extended by 90 minutes from the scheduled two hours.
"It's really surprising, but it's nice that many people showed up," said Halak, 25. "It feels weird, but I have great memories here and that's why I wanted to say thank you to the fans."
Faced with a choice between Halak and Carey Price(notes), both of whom were restricted free agents at St. Louis Rams jersey
season's end, the Habs chose Price. They received two forward prospects from St. Louis on June 17.
The Blues plan to make Halak their No. 1 goalie. They signed him to a four-year, $15 million deal to replace Chris Mason(notes).
Halak was named the Canadiens' player of the year for 2009-10, when he was 16-13-5 with a 2.40 goals-against average and .924 save percentage in the regular season. He stole the No. 1 job from Price, who was 13-20-5 with a 2.77 average and .914 save percentage.
Price re-signed last week, getting a Seattle Seahawks jersey
two-year, $5.5 million contract.
The Blues and Canadiens meet on March 10 in St. Louis.