Yvan Cournoyer
Hockey Hall of Fame, 1982
Cournoyer in 2008
Born (1943-11-22) November 22, 1943
Drummondville, Quebec, Canada
Height 5 ft 7 in (170 cm)
Weight 172 lb (78 kg; 12 st 4 lb)
Position Right Wing
Shot Left
Played for Montreal Canadiens
National team  Canada
Playing career 1963–1979

Yvan Serge Cournoyer (born November 22, 1943) is a Canadian former professional hockey right winger who played in the National Hockey League for the Montreal Canadiens for 16 seasons, from 1963–64 to 1978–79, winning 10 Stanley Cups. In 1972, Cournoyer scored the tying goal in the deciding game eight of the Canada-USSR series with seven minutes remaining. Canada went on to win the game and the series on Paul Henderson's dramatic goal with 34 seconds left in the game.

Cournoyer was born in Drummondville, Quebec. He was nicknamed "The Roadrunner" due to his small size and blazing speed, which he credited to longer blades on his skates. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1982. In 2017 Cournoyer was named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in history.[1]

Playing career

In 1961, Cournoyer started his junior ice hockey with the Montreal Junior Canadiens of the Ontario Hockey Association. By the time he was 18 years old, his legs had become so muscular that he required specially tailored pants.[2]

Cournoyer made his NHL debut in 1963 with the Montreal Canadiens and earned a full-time spot with the club in 1964 after just seven games with the American Hockey League's Quebec Aces.[3]

Cournoyer was initially regarded by Canadiens head coach Toe Blake as a defensive liability and undeserving of a regular shift, though he was still frequently used on the power play.[2] That changed after Blake's departure following the Canadiens' 1968 Stanley Cup Championship, when incoming coach Claude Ruel granted Cournoyer a full-time shift. Cournoyer went on to have his first 40-goal season in 1968–69[3] and was named to the NHL's Second All-Star Team.

Cournoyer scored a career-high 47 goals in the 1972–73 season. In the 1973 Stanley Cup playoffs, he had his best playoffs ever, scoring 15 goals and tallying 10 assists in 17 games, earning the Conn Smythe Trophy following the Canadiens' defeat of the Chicago Black Hawks in the Stanley Cup Finals.[3]

Cournoyer was named captain of the Canadiens in 1975 following the retirement of Henri Richard, pushing him to play harder in his new leadership role.[2] Cournoyer would become only one of the Habs' two captains to win Stanley Cups throughout his entire (2+ year) tenure as captain, the other one being Maurice Richard, Henri's older brother. The speedy Cournoyer's ability to stay true to his form in his older age was a favourite topic of discussion of the Montreal fans and hockey media, however, and he did slow down due to a disc in his back that was pressing on a nerve and causing him great pain.[2] Cournoyer eventually had to have surgery on his back and missed the entire 1977 playoffs.

Cournoyer returned for the 1977–78 season and played in 68 games, scoring 24 goals and collecting 29 assists to match his previous season's total of 53 points, though it was evident his back still bothered him. He managed to perform in the playoffs again, however, with seven goals and four assists in 15 games en route to Montreal's third consecutive Cup.[3] However, he was forced to retire following the 1979 season after playing in just fifteen games. When he retired, he only trailed Maurice Richard, and Jean Beliveau on the Canadiens' all-time scoring list.[2] Cournoyer won a total of 10 Stanley Cups as a player (tied with Beliveau), second only to Henri Richard's 11. The Cournoyer legacy includes many Top 10 Canadien records - 7th in total games played (968), 4th in goals scored (428), 7th in assists (435) and 6th in total points scored (863).

Cournoyer played for Canada in the 1972 Summit Series and is part of the famous picture wherein Paul Henderson jumps into his arms after scoring the game (and series) winner. Cournoyer scored three goals during the series. Late in the third period of Game 8, his goal tied the score, making a win by Canada possible.[4]

Cournoyer coached the Montreal Roadrunners during the 1994–95 season and was an assistant coach to the Canadiens during the 1996–97 season.[3] He serves as an official ambassador for the Montreal Canadiens.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GPGAPtsPIM GPGAPtsPIM
1960–61 Lachine Maroons MMJHL 42373168 —————
1961–62 Montreal Junior Canadiens OHA 321516318 64480
1962–63 Montreal Junior Canadiens OHA 3637276424 103476
1963–64 Montreal Junior Canadiens OHA 53634811130 171982715
1963–64 Montreal Canadiens NHL 54040 —————
1964–65 Montreal Canadiens NHL 557101710 123140
1964–65 Quebec Aces AHL 72130 —————
1965–66 Montreal Canadiens NHL 651811298 102352
1966–67 Montreal Canadiens NHL 6925154014 102356
1967–68 Montreal Canadiens NHL 6428326023 1368144
1968–69 Montreal Canadiens NHL 7643448731 1447115
1969–70 Montreal Canadiens NHL 7227366323 —————
1970–71 Montreal Canadiens NHL 6537367321 201012226
1971–72 Montreal Canadiens NHL 7347368315 62132
1972–73 Montreal Canadiens NHL 6740397918 171510252
1973–74 Montreal Canadiens NHL 6740337318 65272
1974–75 Montreal Canadiens NHL 7629457432 1156114
1975–76 Montreal Canadiens NHL 7132366820 133694
1976–77 Montreal Canadiens NHL 602528538 —————
1977–78 Montreal Canadiens NHL 6824295312 15741110
1978–79 Montreal Canadiens NHL 152572 —————
NHL totals 968428435863255 147646312747

International

Year Team Event GPGAPtsPIM
1972 Canada SS 83252
Senior totals 83252

See also

References

  1. ↑ "100 Greatest NHL Players". NHL.com. January 27, 2017. Retrieved January 27, 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Legends of Hockey -- The Legends -- Honoured Player -- Cournoyer, Yvan -- Biography". Retrieved 2008-04-20.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Yvan Cournoyer's profile at hockeydb.com". Retrieved 2008-04-20.
  4. ↑ Zweig, Eric (February 7, 2006). "1972 Canada-Soviet Hockey Series (Summit Series)". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
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