Georges Laraque back home, in self-isolation after coronavirus scare

After he was hospitalized and struggled to breathe due to the novel coronavirus disease, Georges Laraque is now resting at home in self-isolation.

“It’s just awesome to be back after those first hard days that I had,” he said in a video posted to his Facebook page on Tuesday.

The former NHL enforcer was admitted to a hospital on Montreal’s south shore last week after he experienced COVID-19 symptoms while delivering groceries to vulnerable people in his community.

READ MORE: Former Montreal Canadiens player Georges Laraque describes COVID-19 battle

Laraque, who has asthma, was having difficulty breathing. The former Montreal Canadiens player said he was given oxygen.

While he said he was initially supposed to spend two weeks at Charles-Le Moyne Hospital in Longueuil, he was discharged after a five-day stay.

The 43-year-old said he is on the mend but that he will spend two weeks at home in self-isolation.

“I still have pneumonia,” he said. “I’m not 100 per cent.”

Laraque added that he is happy to be home because that frees up hospital beds in the health-care system for other, more vulnerable patients who are suffering from COVID-19. He described the disease as a “really bad” and “really tough.”

“They need all the beds they can take,” he said.

The former hockey player spent 12 seasons in the NHL, including eight with the Edmonton Oilers. He retired in 2010 after spending his last two years with the Habs.

— With files from the Canadian Press