Even at the very end, when he had only a net left of his voice and could barely move his lips, Derek Aucoin wanted to make sure the well-being of his loved ones came to visit him at the hospital.
“I will always remember the last time I had contact with him, the last few days,” says Joël Bouchard with emotion, present alongside his great friend until the last moment. I put myself in his field of vision, he smiled.
“And just to explain what kind of man he was, he asked me if I was okay. I told him not to worry about me. I turned to Isabelle [la femme de Derek] and I said to him: ‟He asks me if I am correct…” ”
Bouchard hesitated before granting this interview. First, because he didn’t want to put himself forward in this poignant story.
Except that Joël and Derek had been inseparable for fifteen years. As close as close-knit brothers could be. “I do it first for Dawson, his boy,” said the head coach of the Laval Rocket, the Canadiens’ school club.
Derek has had a lot of tributes, but the lyrics fly and the writings stay. I want Dawson to remember what type of man his father was.
Joel bouchard
The former Expos pitcher who became a host of a sports platform on 98.5 FM died of brain cancer at just 50 years old on December 26.
He met Joël for the first time in New York, in 2002. Bouchard played for the Rangers, Aucoin had his baseball academy in New York.
PHOTO ANDRÉ PICHETTE, ARCHIVES THE PRESS
Derek Aucoin on air at 98.5 FM, in September 2017
“He often came to Rangers games,” says Bouchard. [Mon coéquipier] Sylvain Lefebvre introduced us. We became friends instantly. Like love at first sight. We saw each other often, the two Quebecers in New York.
“I played two years for the Rangers, then two more seasons with the Islanders, so four years in New York. When I returned to Quebec, he started coming to Montreal more often. Big guy [Derek Aucoin mesurait 6 pi 7 po] quickly joined our gang of friends. ”
Aucoin was not only his great friend, but also an ally and a confidant.
“He has always supported me in everything I have done, the Academy [Joël Bouchard], the television show, the Center of Excellence. He was there for me when I broke my shoulder blade, when I coached my first Armada game. When I started the Academy, he jumped on the plane without telling me to surprise me. He had the key to the house. He called me from the airport to tell me that he wouldn’t let me do this alone… ”
They have traveled a lot together: Saint Lucia, Miami, Los Angeles, Las Vegas.
It was fun with Derek all the time. We never quarreled. There was never even a disagreement. I loved him because he was a healthy person who wanted everyone’s good. Even when it wasn’t working as well, he was still there. He was a very, very, very loyal person to his friends, his family.
Joel bouchard
Bouchard learned the news of his great friend’s cancer the same evening, in July 2019. Ten minutes later, he was with Derek, Isabelle and their son Dawson. “My shoulders fell instantly, but I quickly got into positive mode. Maybe it wasn’t meant to be that aggressive at first. ”
Aucoin knew a month later that it was not going to be cured. “He once told me,‟ Joel, I try to do my best, but there is no class on how to deal with cancer. I go there with all I can. ” I told him: ‘Buddy, you do such a good job, not only to manage the disease, but for the world around you… ””
“Magical moments”
Despite the tragedy, they have lived a special relationship in recent months.
“I had to spend 30, 40 days sleeping with him in the hospital – we took turns with Isabelle and her relatives – it was magical moments. Funny, I was fine, I wouldn’t have wanted to be anywhere else. I was sitting on a chair, we called it bobsleigh, it was unfolding. We found a way to have fun. We had giggles. He was extremely funny and quick-witted. It never got dark despite the drama of it all. He was so strong morally. ”
Bouchard says it with emotion, Aucoin loved and was loved until the end. “Isabelle was extraordinary in there, with the two grandmothers. It was made in love. The flattest part is COVID-19, which, like many people, has kept us from doing all the things we wanted to do. ”
Aucoin received numerous tributes upon his death. Bouchard retained that of Ron Fournier, among others.
“Ron pointed out that Derek played for the Expos, that it was remarkable, but that baseball was just a pretext to get to know him. He touched the world, he was a field guy. When it happened, even my boyfriends who had seen him only once were texting me to tell me about the Big Guy. ”
PHOTO BERNARD BRAULT, PRESS ARCHIVES
Derek Aucoin
at the Olympic Stadium on 1is avril 2017
Bouchard often thinks of Dawson, Derek’s 8-year-old son.
“You should have seen his gaze at Dawson. When they came to see me at the Armada, they would take sticks and they could play together for an hour on the small synthetic ice. They were close, they were buddies.
« He’s always been super involved. He was the first in the schoolyard and he knew the names of all the little kids, he gave them nicknames. It’s cruel to lose a great relationship like that. He invested in his son as far as his abilities allowed him [l’automne dernier]. »
Last summer, Dawson Aucoin played a baseball game on the field named in honor of his father, in Boisbriand. Bouchard was there. “Dawson Aucoin played a game on his father’s ball field, and the damn kid, he hit a home run! ”
The boy hit the ball over the fence, where his father hit his first home run in 1977.
A scenario worthy of a film. A beautiful film, about a good and worthy man.
