Esiason remembers Gillies on WFAN Sports Radio show

Boomer Esiason honored his friend Clark Gillies with heartfelt words on WFAN Sports Radio on Monday. Esiason spoke on he and Gregg Giannotti's show "Boomer and Gio," saying he "absolutely loved" the New York Islanders great.

Gillies died on Jan. 21 at age 67.
"We lost a giant of a human being," Esiason said. "A great hockey player, for sure. Hall of Famer, without question. But an even better person."
Gillies scored 319 goals and 378 assists in his 14 NHL seasons and the forward was an integral part of the Islanders dynasty and four-consecutive Stanley Cup victories from 1980-83. The "reluctant warrior," as Gillies was called, didn't want to fight, but always stuck up for himself and his teammates on the ice.
According to Esiason, Gillies had cancer and his death caught those not in his inner circle off guard.
"Pam, his wife, wanted everybody to know that he did pass away quietly and peacefully with his entire family around him," Esiason said.

Esiason and Gillies were friends for 25 years, long after Esiason's NFL career and Gillies' NHL career ended. Esiason said he didn't know Gillies as a hockey player but knows the impact No. 9 had on the sport.
"I think about some of the numbers Gillies] put up, and maybe [the Islanders] are the forgotten, all-time great franchise," Esiason said. "When you think about what they did, and the Stanley Cup run they had. The fact they were in the finals both after that run and I think they were in the Eastern Conference Finals before that run even started. [Gillies] made the playoffs from 1975-88 and won six division titles. They hit the 100-point mark in seven of those seasons, I mean, Clark Gillies had 304 goals in 12 years with the Islanders."
Esiason said Gillies' memorial will be private and anyone wishing to pay tribute to him can donate to the Clark Gillies foundation at
[ClarkGillies.org
.