Montreal Canadiens legend Jean Beliveau has passed away at the age of 83.
Captain of the Canadiens from 1961 to 1971, Beliveau was regarded as one of the greatest players to ever play the game.
He was elected into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1972, just one year after finishing his playing career. He spent his entire NHL career with the Canadiens, scoring 507 goals and 712 assists in 1,125 games over parts of 20 seasons.
Beliveau was the first player to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as Stanley Cup Playoffs MVP, winning the award in the Canadiens’ 1965 triumph over the Chicago Blackhawks. Beliveau would win 10 Stanley Cups with the Canadiens, second only to long-time teammate Henri Richard for most in NHL history by one player.
The Canadiens would retire his #4 in October of 1971, the beginning of the first season after his decision to walk away from playing the game. He retired as the Canadiens’ all-time leading point-scorer and second on the NHL’s all-time list behind only Gordie Howe. He currently ranks 39th in all-time NHL points. He also retired as the NHL’s all-time leader in playoff points, scoring 79 goals and 97 assists in 162 career post-season games.
His 10 years as Habs captain are also a club record, one he now shares with Saku Koivu.
According to his Hockey Hall of Fame biography, Beliveau had the following comments upon his retirement: "It's hard, but I will play no more. I only hope that I have made a contribution to a great game. Hockey has been my life since the day my father gave me a pair of skates when I was five years old."
“Le Gros Bill” has also been lauded on a number of occasions by his country, being named to the Order of Canada in 1998 as well as being selected as part of the Order of Hockey in Canada’s inaugural class. That honour was bestowed upon him in 2012 as he stood beside the likes of all-time greats Howe and Wayne Gretzky as well as women’s hockey great Cassie Campbell-Pascall and longtime Canadian hockey exec Gordie Renwick.
He was also offered the post of Governor General of Canada in 1994 but refused in order to spend more time with his family.
Gretzky was a vocal admirer of Beliveau’s going on record as saying that the Conn Smythe Trophy should be renamed in honour of the first man to win it.
"What I'd like to see is the Conn Smythe Trophy be renamed the Jean Beliveau Trophy, and have (Beliveau) come onto the ice with the commissioner to present the award to the MVP and then stay by the commissioner's side for the presentation of the Stanley Cup," Gretzky told the New York Post in 2012.
"When I was growing up and would see Jean Beliveau get the Cup from Clarence Campbell, or watch Denis Potvin be presented the Cup by Mr. (John) Ziegler, to me, that was what hockey and winning the Cup was about," Gretzky added.
Beliveau’s resume speaks to more than just winning championships, though. The big centre was twice awarded the Hart Memorial Trophy as league MVP (in 1955-56 and 1963-64), winning the Art Ross Trophy as NHL scoring champion to go along with it the first time around.
He led the NHL in goals twice, scoring 47 in 1955-56 and 45 in 1958-59. In 1968 he became just the second player in NHL history after Howe to reach the 1,000-point plateau and in 1971 became the fourth player in NHL history to score 500 goals.
Setting a high-standard for both on-ice prowess and off-ice citizenship, many viewed Beliveau as an ideal Canadian hero.
"Any parent could use Jean Beliveau as a pattern or role model. He provides hockey with a magnificent image,” former NHL President Clarence Campbell once said. “I couldn't speak more highly of anyone who has ever been associated with our game than I do of Jean."
The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to JonDuke For This Useful Post:
I met Jean Beliveau at a hockey card show in Calgary when I was a boy. He signed a photo for me. My dad was a Habs fan growing up and I didn't really know anything about him at the time.
Another Legend. RIP
Location: Wondering when # became hashtag and not a number sign.
Exp:
Unreal. Tough go for the golden era guys of late.
Hated the Habs growing up and still do, but he was as good as any that played the game and I have always wondered why his name is never mentioned that way.
A real gentleman and a true Canadian and totally had my respect. RIP
Some amazing stories just on his wikipedia page. 17 cups - 10 as a player, 7 as an exec.
And then this:
Quote:
Béliveau became a star in Quebec's amateur leagues, and was called up twice for brief appearances by the Canadiens in 1950–51 and 1952–53. He led the Quebec Senior Hockey League in scoring in 1953. However, he did not appear to show much interest in playing professionally. Finally, Selke got an idea—if the QSHL were somehow turned into a professional league, Béliveau would be a professional as well, and under the terms of the B-form he would have to sign with the Habs. At Selke's suggestion, the Canadiens bought the QSHL and converted it from an amateur league to a minor pro league. This forced Béliveau to join the Canadiens for the 1953–54 NHL season (though the Habs owned the NHL rights to all of the league's players in any case).
The Following User Says Thank You to PeteMoss For This Useful Post:
That league's best leadership trophy, should have been called the Jean Beliveau Leadership Trophy from the start, and not after that potato chip loving, cheat.
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Jean Beliveau passes away
