On second thought, it's not the team that would have bothered her. It's their description.
Grinders.
That's the same way her son has been described throughout his seven-year career, and it still makes her cringe
"My mother hates that term," Talbot, who turned 28 on Saturday, said the other night. "In French, it's like a plumber."
Back when Talbot played for the Penguins, a Montreal reporter wrote a story about him and called him a grinder. A short while later, Lucie Talbot got a chance to meet the poor scribe.
"Don't call my son a grinder!" she scolded. "He's more than that."
Turns out she was right.
Though Talbot isn't scoring like he did in juniors (46 goals one season), he is providing some surprising offense. In his first 55 games, he had equaled a career-high with 13 goals. He is on pace for 20 goals - which would be 12 more than last season with the Penguins.
Despite his increased production, Talbot is a throwback, a grinder (sorry, Lucie) who would have fit in perfectly with the Broad Street Bullies. He is the current-day version of Orest Kindrachuk or Terry Crisp, a guy who does the dirty work in the corners, wins board battles, and kills penalties with his relentless style.
Signed to a five-year, $9 million free-agent contract on July 1, Talbot was brought here to be a checking-line center, kill penalties, block shots, and be a locker-room leader.
In a sense, the Flyers wanted him to assume the role provided by Ian Laperriere, whose career ended because of post-concussion syndrome.
Talbot, a Quebec native who, like Laperriere, has a perpetually upbeat attitude, has exceeded expectations. In baseball parlance, it would be like signing a utility player and finding out he can bat fifth or sixth in the lineup.
Lately, Talbot has been centering a line with Jakub Voracek and rookie Matt Read. Voracek has been on Talbot's line for most of the season.
