Jean Beliveau

Jean "Le Gros Bill" Beliveau was born on August 31, 1931 in Trois Rivieres, Quebec, Canada. Beliveau played his entire hockey career within the Quebec system. In 1946 he began playing organized with the Victoriaville Pathers, moving up to the Tigers and the Quebec Aces and Citadelle of the Quebec Junior Hockey League. Being part of the Montreal Canadiens system. he got his first taste of NHL play in 1951 chalking up two points in two games with the big club. After another short stint of three games the following season, Jean Beliveau would make his NHL stay permanent in the 1953-54 season, sppearing in 44 games and scoring 34 points. At 6 feet, 3 inches and 205 pounds, with exquisite skill and toughness, Jean Beliveau was nicknames "Le Gros Bill" and considered a blueprint for NHL superstars in the years to come.

Beliveau's career got on track in Montreal during the 1954-55 season as he finished third in league scoring and earned his first All-Star team nomination. The following year Beliveau would lead the NHL in scoring and won a Hart Trophy as most valuable player to go along with his Art Ross scoring title. To finish it off, Belivea and the Canadiens would go on to win the Stanley Cup championship, his first of ten with Montreal. Beliveau continued his upward march through the NHL, breaking his personal best mark of points in 1958-59 and winning another league scoring championship. He was named captain of the Canadiens in 1961-62 and would continue to rack up personal accolades and Stanley Cup championships.

In 1971 he became only the fourth player in NHL history to score 500 goals and had earlier surpassed the 1,000 point mark. Beliveau retired in 1971 as a winner, winning his tenth Stanley Cup with the Canadiens. The usual waiting period for induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame was waived for Jean Beliveau and he was honored by the institution in 1972. He moved from the ice to the front office, as an executive with the Montreal Canadiens organization. Upon his retirement in 1994 he was offered the position of Governor General of Canada, which he rejected. He continues to serve as an ambassador for the Montreal Canadiens.

Here is a summary of Jean Beliveau's NHL accomplishments;

Year    Team                 GP   G   A   Pts   Pim
1950-51 Montreal Canadiens    2   1   1    2      0 
1952-53 Montreal Canadiens    3   5   0    5      0 
1953-54 Montreal Canadiens   44  13  21   34     22 
1954-55 Montreal Canadiens   70  37  36   73     58 
1955-56 Montreal Canadiens   70  47  41   88    143
1956-57 Montreal Canadiens   69  33  51   84    105
1957-58 Montreal Canadiens   55  27  32   59     93 
1958-59 Montreal Canadiens   64  45  46   91     67 
1959-60 Montreal Canadiens   60  34  40   74     57 
1960-61 Montreal Canadiens   69  32  58   90     57 
1961-62 Montreal Canadiens   43  18  23   41     36 
1962-63 Montreal Canadiens   69  18  49   67     68 
1963-64 Montreal Canadiens   68  28  50   78     42 
1964-65 Montreal Canadiens   58  20  23   43     76 
1965-66 Montreal Canadiens   67  29  48   77     50 
1966-67 Montreal Canadiens   53  12  26   38     22 
1967-68 Montreal Canadiens   59  31  37   68     28 
1968-69 Montreal Canadiens   69  33  49   82     55 
1969-70 Montreal Canadiens   63  19  30   49     10 
1970-71 Montreal Canadiens   70  25  51   76     40 
NHL Totals                 1125 507 712  1219  1029



Trophies
Art Ross Trophy - 1 (1956)
Hart Memorial - 2 (1956, 1964)
Conn Smythe Trophy - 1 (1965)


Championships
Stanley Cup - 10 (1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1971)

Team Pages:
Montreal Canadiens

Other Jean Beliveau Resources