Tag Archives: goal

As first reported via Yahoo!’s Puck Daddy blog, there are pictures of Marty Turco making bets with a Montreal Canadiens fan during the Blackhawks’ 2-1 overtime loss on April 5th. The photo above clearly shows Turco either giving or taking money from a fan, so there’s no doubt that the story is factual. Here’s how it went down:

According to a Canadiens’ season ticket holder named Robert (audio below), he bet Turco $5 after Michael Cammalleri’s first goal of the game that the Hawks would not tie up the game. Turco accepted, and eventually won the $5 when Patrick Kane scored to tie it up at 1-1. Robert handed Turco a bill with the words “Habs Rule” on it.

However, the betting did not cease.

Turco and the fan bet double-or-nothing on the second period, triple-or-nothing on the third period, and then in overtime Robert gave Turco five-to-one odds that the Hawks would not win. Turco accepted the bet, and eventually had to pay the fan $25 after P.K. Subban’s rocket to win the game for the Canadiens. One of the five $5 bills given to the fan was the same one exchanged in the earlier bet, but with this written on it:

Funny stuff. Not sure how much truth there is to what Turco wrote on the bill, considering he hasn’t started a game since Feb. 11. Turco does gain a ton of credit as a cool guy in my book, though. How many opposing players would actually do this with a fan, let alone respond to one?

Another question is whether Turco will be disciplined by the NHL for his actions. Exhibit 14.2 of the NHL CBA states that “Gambling on NHL game is prohibited.” Granted, commissioner Gary Bettman is not nearly as tyrannical as other commissioners like the NBA’s David Stern or the NFL’s Roger Goodell, so I would be shocked if there was harsh discipline or even a large fine.

Here is the audio of the fan who bet Turco, via the radio show “Game Points with Matthew Ross” on Team 990: