Henri Richard
Encyclopedia
Joseph Henri Richard is a former professional ice hockey
player who played centre
with the Montreal Canadiens
in the National Hockey League
(NHL) from 1955 to 1975. He was the brother of hockey legend Maurice 'The Rocket' Richard and consequently, because he was 15 years younger and three inches shorter, he was given the nickname The Pocket-Rocket.
Henri won 11 Stanley Cup
s, more than any other player in NHL history. Former teammate and predecessor as team captain Jean Béliveau
has 17 Stanley Cup titles, but only 10 as a player (the other 7 as an executive.) Only one other athlete in North American professional sports has achieved winning eleven championships in his respective league - Bill Russell
of the NBA's
Boston Celtics
.
The 11 Cup titles gave Henri the unusual claim of having more championships than he had birthdays at the end of his career. He was born on February 29 during a leap year, so his birthday came around only 9 times before he played his final game.
In 1957–58, he was named to the First All-Star Team
and in 1959 he was named to the Second All-Star Team.
In his career, he scored 358 goals and earned 688 assists in 1256 games. His 1256 regular-season games played in a Canadiens uniform are a franchise record.
He scored the Stanley Cup clinching goal at the 2:20 mark of the first overtime in Game Six to win the 1966 Stanley Cup Finals
for the Canadiens against Detroit.
He was named captain of the Canadiens in 1971 and always wore the number 16 which was retired December 10, 1975 by the Canadiens in his honour. Henri retired in 1975 and was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame
in 1979. In 1998, he was ranked number 29 on The Hockey News
list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players. He currently serves as an ambassador to the Canadiens' organization.
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
player who played centre
Centre (ice hockey)
The centre in ice hockey is a forward position of a player whose primary zone of play is the middle of the ice, away from the side boards. Centres have more flexibility in their positioning and are expected to cover more ice surface than any other player...
with the Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
in the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
(NHL) from 1955 to 1975. He was the brother of hockey legend Maurice 'The Rocket' Richard and consequently, because he was 15 years younger and three inches shorter, he was given the nickname The Pocket-Rocket.
Playing career
Although the Rocket shot left (left hand lower on the stick), Henri shot right. Maurice played off wing and Henri played centre. Throughout, the two brothers' style of play was quite different. Henri led the league in assists in 1957–58 and 1962–63, a feat never matched by his famous brother.Henri won 11 Stanley Cup
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
s, more than any other player in NHL history. Former teammate and predecessor as team captain Jean Béliveau
Jean Béliveau
Jean Arthur "Le Gros Bill" Béliveau, is a former professional ice hockey player who played parts of 20 seasons with the National Hockey League's Montreal Canadiens. As a player, he won the Stanley Cup 10 times, and as an executive he was part of another seven championship teams, the most Stanley...
has 17 Stanley Cup titles, but only 10 as a player (the other 7 as an executive.) Only one other athlete in North American professional sports has achieved winning eleven championships in his respective league - Bill Russell
Bill Russell
William Felton "Bill" Russell is a retired American professional basketball player who played center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association...
of the NBA's
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
Boston Celtics
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics are a National Basketball Association team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1946, the team is currently owned by Boston Basketball Partners LLC. The Celtics play their home games at the TD Garden, which...
.
The 11 Cup titles gave Henri the unusual claim of having more championships than he had birthdays at the end of his career. He was born on February 29 during a leap year, so his birthday came around only 9 times before he played his final game.
In 1957–58, he was named to the First All-Star Team
NHL All-Star Team
The NHL All-Star Teams were first named at the end of the 1930–31 NHL season, to honor the best performers over the season at each position.Representatives of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association vote for the All-Star Team at the end of the regular season.The career leaders in citations are...
and in 1959 he was named to the Second All-Star Team.
In his career, he scored 358 goals and earned 688 assists in 1256 games. His 1256 regular-season games played in a Canadiens uniform are a franchise record.
He scored the Stanley Cup clinching goal at the 2:20 mark of the first overtime in Game Six to win the 1966 Stanley Cup Finals
1966 Stanley Cup Finals
The 1966 Stanley Cup Final was contested by the Detroit Red Wings and the defending champion Montreal Canadiens. The Canadiens would win the best-of-seven series four games to two to win the Stanley Cup for the seventh time in eleven years.-Paths to the final:...
for the Canadiens against Detroit.
He was named captain of the Canadiens in 1971 and always wore the number 16 which was retired December 10, 1975 by the Canadiens in his honour. Henri retired in 1975 and was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame
Hockey Hall of Fame
The Hockey Hall of Fame is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it is both a museum and a hall of fame. It holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League records, memorabilia and NHL trophies, including the Stanley Cup...
in 1979. In 1998, he was ranked number 29 on The Hockey News
The Hockey News
The Hockey News, commonly abbreviated to THN, is a North American ice hockey magazine published by Transcontinental. The Hockey News was founded in 1947 by Ken McKenzie and Bill Côté, and has since been the most recognized hockey publication in North America...
list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players. He currently serves as an ambassador to the Canadiens' organization.
Career statistics
- *Stanley Cup champions
Regular season Playoffs Season Season (sports)In an organized sports league, a season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session. For example, in Major League Baseball, one season lasts approximately from April 1 through October 1; in Association football, it is generally from August until May In an...Team League GP G Goal (ice hockey)In ice hockey, a goal is scored when the puck completely crosses the goal line between the two goal posts and below the goal crossbar. A goal awards one point to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team the player who actually deflected the puck into the goal belongs to...A Assist (ice hockey)In ice hockey, an assist is attributed to up to two players of the scoring team who shot, passed or deflected the puck towards the scoring teammate, or touched it in any other way which enabled the goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the goal. There can be a maximum of two assists per goal...Pts Point (ice hockey)Point in ice hockey has three official meanings:* A point is awarded to a player for each goal scored or assist earned. The total number of goals plus assists equals total points. In some European leagues, a goal counts as two points, and an assist counts as one...PIM Penalty (ice hockey)A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,...GP G A Pts PIM 1952–53 Montreal Royals QSHL 1 0 0 0 0 — — — — — 1952–53 Montreal Junior Royals QPJHL 46 27 36 63 55 — — — — — 1953–54 Montreal Junior Canadiens QPJHL — — — — — — — — — — 1955–56* Montreal Canadiens Montreal CanadiensThe Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...NHL 64 19 21 40 46 10 4 4 8 21 1956–57* Montreal Canadiens NHL 63 18 36 54 71 10 2 6 8 10 1957–58* Montreal Canadiens NHL 67 28 52 80 56 10 1 7 8 11 1958–59* Montreal Canadiens NHL 63 21 30 51 33 11 3 8 11 13 1959–60* Montreal Canadiens NHL 70 30 43 73 66 8 3 9 12 9 1960–61 Montreal Canadiens NHL 70 24 44 68 91 6 2 4 6 22 1961–62 Montreal Canadiens NHL 54 21 29 50 48 — — — — — 1962–63 Montreal Canadiens NHL 67 23 50 73 57 5 1 1 2 2 1963–64 Montreal Canadiens NHL 66 14 39 53 73 7 1 1 2 9 1964–65* Montreal Canadiens NHL 53 23 29 52 43 13 7 4 11 24 1965–66* Montreal Canadiens NHL 62 22 39 61 47 8 1 4 5 2 1966–67 Montreal Canadiens NHL 65 21 34 55 28 10 4 6 10 2 1967–68* Montreal Canadiens NHL 54 9 19 28 16 13 4 4 8 4 1968–69* Montreal Canadiens NHL 64 15 37 52 45 14 2 4 6 8 1969–70 Montreal Canadiens NHL 62 16 36 52 61 — — — — — 1970–71* Montreal Canadiens NHL 75 12 37 49 46 20 5 7 12 20 1971–72 Montreal Canadiens NHL 75 12 32 44 48 6 0 3 3 4 1972–73* Montreal Canadiens NHL 71 8 35 43 21 17 6 4 10 14 1973–74 Montreal Canadiens NHL 75 19 36 55 28 6 2 2 4 2 1974–75 Montreal Canadiens NHL 16 3 10 13 4 6 1 2 3 4 NHL totals 1256 358 688 1046 928 180 49 80 129 181
See also
- List of Stanley Cup champions
- Notable families in the NHL
- Maurice RichardMaurice RichardJoseph Henri Maurice "the Rocket" Richard, Sr., was a French-Canadian professional ice hockey player who played for the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League from 1942 to 1960. The "Rocket" was the most prolific goal-scorer of his era, the first to achieve the feat of 50 goals in 50...
- List of NHL players with 1000 points
- List of NHL players with 1000 games played