Pavel Bure says goodbye to his best friend Gino Odjick

Yesterday the hockey world mourned the passing of legendary NHL enforcer Gino Odjick who passed away at just 52 years of age.

Odjick had been dealing with the affects of a rare terminal disease called AL amyloidosis for nearly ten years and his health had deteriorated significantly in recent years. In 2015, doctors informed him that his heart was operating at only about 60% capacity and that he had just months left to live. Well, he made it nearly 8 years passed that diagnosis, but on Sunday he eventually succumbed to the disease, passing away of a heart attack.

Odjick leaves a lasting legacy not just in Vancouver where he broke into the league with the Vancouver Canucks, but with the New York Islanders, Philadelphia Flyers and Montreal Canadiens, as well. Teammates from those four teams shared their stories of Odjjick online yesterday, remembering a man who will be just as much remembered for his gentle spirit, as he will be for his pounding, relentless style of play.

Odjick's best friend and long time teammate Pavel Bure's words though may have summed up Gino the best.

From Bure (translated from Russia) via Russian publisher Sport Express:

Gino's departure is a huge loss! Bure said. - For me personally, for Vancouver, for the entire hockey world. It was a unique player that everyone loved. But first and foremost, he was a true friend. My real friend...

52 years old is a very young man.

Gino is selfless, always ready to help on the ice. He did not spare himself for the sake of his partners, helped them, protected the guys from his team. He was a tough guy - it's a very hard hockey job.

But he was exactly the same in real life. Always helped friends. Gino was very friendly, funny, loved life. Huge loss...

- Pavel Bure

Truer words were never spoken.

Odjick was a true warrior both on and off the ice and after a lifetime of fighting for everything he got, he can now finally, mercifully rest. Lay down those fists, big man. You don't have to fight anymore. RIP Gino Odjick. Gone, but never forgotten.