First player I met in person and actually talked to was Patrick Roy. It was in the late '80's and I had just gone to a North Stars-Canadiens game at the old Met Center. My friend and I then headed over to a sports bar close by (Joe Senser's) to have a few brewskis. So we're at the bar and in walk Claude Lemieux, Patrick, and a couple other players who I didn't recognize. Remember now, Patrick was still early in his career and wasn't the superstar goalie yet....and hockey players weren't huge celebrities in those days yet either...so a lot of people didn't even know who they were. Some people recognized Lemieux as he was more well-known then the other guys. They ordered beers and they started talking amongst themselves. Patrick, like a typical goalie, distanced himself from the other players and just went over against the wall under a big screen TV with his beer and just stood there alone. Claude and the other guys stayed at the bar. Well, seizing this opportunity, I walked over to Patrick and started talking about the game they just played. He was very personable and we talked for over 10 minutes. No one else in the place knew who he was except me. Weird. Trying doing that now! After we talked, I thanked him and said "good game" and wished him well in the future. Well, my wishes were correct as he turned into arguably the best goalie of all-time!
As he became more and more of a star through the years, I still remember that night just hanging out at the sports bar talking with that Montreal goalie with the French-Canadian accent with the funny head movements and mannerisms (yes, the head jerking you see him do on the ice he did just standing in a bar, too). A fond memory to know I was hanging out with a future great! Hopefully, Patrick is still as nice as he was then and hasn't let the stardom (or the lack of public privacy from the stardom) get to him. Some guys turn into egotistical jerks when they become stars, or become mad at people for always hounding them in public. Hope Patrick is still OK.
I've met a ton of other players since, but that night stands out! 
