U.S. President Donald Trump reacted late Thursday to the death of four-time Stanley Cup champion Claude Lemieux.
“A true Legend of the Game and one of the fiercest competitors Hockey has ever seen, has passed away,” Trump wrote on social media.
“Claude was a friend to the family, and a tremendous ‘TRUMP’ supporter,” Trump claimed. Lemieux was not publicly active in politics.
Trump highlighted Lemieux’s four Stanley Cup championships with the Montreal Canadiens, New Jersey Devils and Colorado Avalanche. (Two with the New Jersey Devils and one each with the Colorado Avalanche and Montreal Canadiens.)
“Brendan, my thoughts are with you, Deborah, and the whole Lemieux family — You and your Dad were Warriors on the Ice. Claude will be missed by all who love Winning and Toughness,” he wrote.
Brendan Lemieux, one of Claude Lemieux’s four children, also played in the NHL and spent last season with HC Davos in Switzerland. Lemieux’s younger brother, Jocelyn, also played several seasons in the NHL.
Trump was one of many who paid tribute Thursday following the tragic news.
According to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, Lemieux died by suicide. He was 60.
Nicknamed “Pepe,” Lemieux played 21 NHL seasons. And along with winning four Stanley Cups, he also captured the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP in 1995.
Therese Barbera, a media-relations officer with the sheriff’s office, told The Gazette that Lemieux was found by his son shortly after 3 a.m. in the warehouse of a furniture showroom he owned with his wife in Lake Park, Fla.
Help is available if you or someone you know is struggling. Call Info-Social at 811, Option 2. If you are having thoughts of suicide, call 911 or Suicide Action Montreal at 1-866-277-3553.