What would you do to meet your hero? For 10-year-old Massimo, the answer unfolded over the summer, as his family found a way to bring him closer to the Montreal Canadiens and, eventually, to Jakub Dobeš, the goaltender he had come to love watching on television.
When asked who his favourite hockey player is, Massimo doesn’t hesitate.
“Dobeš.”
For Massimo, hockey is a relatively new passion, but one that has quickly become part of his life. He watches games with his family, follows Dobeš on television and has developed his own way of cheering for the Canadiens.
Montrealer Massimo poses in front of the television while watching a Canadiens game. (Submitted by: Nadia Bucci)
A new passion for hockey
His mother, Nadia Bucci, says the family wanted to nurture that interest and find ways for Massimo, who is neurodivergent, to experience the game at his own pace.
“When you have a child with autism, and they start enjoying something that’s new to him, you try to take that and go all the way with it,” Bucci said.
His family quickly found a way to bring the game closer to him through a family connection to Dobeš’s coach.
“I told him that I always wanted to bring him to the Bell Centre to watch a game, but because of his autism, I wasn’t sure how he’s going to react,” she said. “So he had told me to bring him to a practice, see how he reacts and take it from there.”
In late July, the family took Massimo to watch a Canadiens practice in Brossard. He got to see Dobeš doing what he does best — stopping pucks — while the family had arranged for a shirt to be signed.
Massimo watches a Montreal Canadiens practice in Brossard with goaltender Jakub Dobeš in the background. (Submitted by: Nadia Bucci)
But there was another surprise waiting for him.
Dobeš also made sure Massimo received a hockey stick, signed by him.
When asked how receiving it made him feel, Massimo had a one-word answer.
“Happy.”
The family later learned that the stick had come directly from Dobeš, who had been told about Massimo and his growing interest in the Canadiens goaltender.
Massimo holds a hockey stick signed by Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jakub Dobeš. (Submitted by: Nadia Bucci)
From a signed stick to a face-to-face meeting
But the experience didn’t stop there. The family returned in early September, this time to meet Dobeš face to face.
The meeting happened to fall on what would have been Massimo’s first day of school.
His father, Vincenzo Crispo, said the anticipation was at an all-time high.
“We were all excited. Me, my wife, the family, especially Massimo, [he] didn’t sleep all night,” Crispo said. “Woke up the next morning very excited and was super happy to meet him.”
From left, Massimo’s father, Vincenzo Crispo, Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jakub Dobeš, 10-year-old Massimo and his mother, Nadia Bucci. (Submitted by: Nadia Bucci)
For Bucci, the meeting meant more than simply giving a young fan a chance to meet a professional hockey player. She said Dobeš took the time to make the encounter comfortable for Massimo.
“He’s such a cool, collective guy. Yeah, very sweet, very down to earth, super simple,” she said. “So that was really nice of him that he took the time out of his really busy schedule to do that for us.”
Bucci said the experience was particularly meaningful because Massimo can find unfamiliar situations overwhelming.
“I was very thankful that he took a very intimate moment knowing that Massimo’s on the spectrum, so it could be very overwhelming to meet him any other way,” she said.
Dobeš remembers being a young fan
For Dobeš, the meeting was also a reminder of what it was like to be a young hockey fan himself.
“I mean, I’m really blessed, you know, with what I have in life, and I feel like helping out kids and giving people, preferably kids, smiles,” Dobeš said. “It’s something that when I was growing up, I always loved hockey players, loved all the players, had so much respect for them.”
Now, he finds himself on the other side of that relationship, with young fans watching him and cheering him on.
“So it’s just good when you grow up to kind of look back and you know how you felt, so you know how they feel,” Dobeš said. “So it’s just a good moment.”
Dobeš said he also appreciates the support he receives from Canadiens fans.
“I love the fans. I love the fan base. Always try my best to wear this logo really proud and make people happy,” he said. “When I go on the ice, I try to do my best and hopefully they enjoy. And we’ve been pretty successful in the last couple of years, so I’m really happy for them to live to have such a passion and live for the hockey. So it just fuels us to have the best results possible on the ice.”
Another first is waiting
For Massimo, that connection to the team has become something the whole family can share. Crispo said they watch hockey together, with Massimo particularly excited to follow the goalies.
“He loves watching hockey with us. He does the famous ‘Go Habs Go’ cheer. And he loves watching the goalie,” Crispo said.
There is now another milestone ahead: Massimo’s first Canadiens game at the Bell Centre.
His parents plan to take him to a game this season, giving him the chance to experience the team he has been watching at home from inside the arena.
“For sure, we’re going to be bringing him to his first game,” Crispo said.
For Massimo’s parents, the joy is in seeing their son find something that brings him excitement and gives the family another way to connect.
“Anything that makes your child happy makes you happy, especially to see the excitement from him,” Crispo said. “So it makes us really happy.”
And Massimo has already made clear what he will be doing when his favourite goalie takes the ice: chanting, “Go Habs Go.”
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