J. C. Tremblay

J. C. Tremblay
Born	(1939-01-22)January 22, 1939 Bagotville, Quebec, Canada
Died	December 7, 1994(1994-12-07) (aged 55) Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Height	5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight	170 lb (77 kg; 12 st 2 lb)
Position	Defence
Shot	Left
Played for	Montreal Canadiens (NHL) Quebec Nordiques (WHA)
National team	Canada
Playing career	1958–1979

Joseph Henri Jean-Claude Tremblay (January 22, 1939 – December 7, 1994) was an ice hockey defenceman for the NHL Montreal Canadiens and the WHA Quebec Nordiques, notable for play-making and defensive skills.

Playing career

After an amateur and minor professional career that saw him move from left wing to defence and win the league Most Valuable Player title in 1960, Tremblay began play for the Canadiens in that season and stuck with the big league squad for good in the 1961–1962 season, playing for five Stanley Cup winning teams. He became one of the NHL's preeminent stars on defence for both his offense and defensive work, playing in seven NHL All-Star Games and setting the franchise record for points by a defenceman, and was recognized as a First Team All-Star in 1971 and a Second Team All-Star in 1968.

In 1972, Tremblay jumped to the upstart WHA with the Nordiques, which had negotiated with the Los Angeles Sharks for his rights. He was the franchise's first great star, as well as the league's first great defenceman, winning the league honors for best defenceman in 1973 and 1975 and being named to the WHA's Team Canada in 1974, leading that club in defensive scoring. Tremblay also led his team to the 1977 AVCO World Trophy championship. He was the only player to play for the Nordiques all seven seasons of the WHA, and retired after the 1979 season. His number #3 jersey was retired by the Nordiques after that season just before the franchise's move into the NHL, thus gaining Tremblay the distinction of being one of only three players to have a number retired by a NHL team without ever actually playing for it (the other two being Johnny McKenzie by the Hartford Whalers and Frank Finnigan by the modern-day Ottawa Senators). He later scouted in Europe for the Montreal Canadiens.

In 1979, he donated a kidney to his daughter. Tremblay died of kidney cancer himself on December 7, 1994, at the age of 55.^[1]

Honors and achievements

Won Stanley Cups in 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969 and 1971
At the time of leaving the Canadiens, was in the top fifty all-time NHL assist leaders
Played in the NHL All-Star Game in 1959, 1965, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1971 and 1972
Named to the 1972 Summit Series Canadian team but dropped after he signed with the WHA
Named to the WHA First All-Star Team in 1973, 1975 and 1976
Named to the WHA Second All-Star Team in 1974
Led the WHA in assists in 1973 and 1976
Played seven seasons with the Nordiques, playing in 454 games and scoring 66 goals and 358 assists for 424 points
Second in WHA history in assists, fourteenth in points, and sixteen in games played
Named to NHL First All-Star Team in 1971
Named to NHL Second All-Star Team in 1968
A street in Vaudreuil-Dorion, Quebec was named after him (along with other Greats)
Elected as an inaugural member to the World Hockey Association Hall of Fame in 2010^[2]
An arena is named after him in La Baie, Quebec (Now part of the City of Saguenay, QC)

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

			Regular season					Playoffs
Season	Team	League	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1957–58	Hull-Ottawa Canadiens	OHA-Jr.	24	7	12	19	8	—	—	—	—	—
1957–58	Hull-Ottawa Canadiens	EOHL	34	5	17	22	16	—	—	—	—	—
1957–58	Hull-Ottawa Canadiens	M-Cup	—	—	—	—	—	13	2	5	7	10
1958–59	Hull-Ottawa Canadiens	EOHL	26	4	13	17	22	1	0	1	1	9
1958–59	Buffalo Bisons	AHL	3	0	0	0	0	—	—	—	—	—
1958–59	Hull-Ottawa Canadiens	M-Cup	—	—	—	—	—	9	4	5	9	12
1959–60	Montreal Canadiens	NHL	11	0	1	1	0	—	—	—	—	—
1959–60	Hull-Ottawa Canadiens	EPHL	55	25	31	56	55	7	1	4	5	2
1960–61	Montreal Canadiens	NHL	29	1	3	4	18	5	0	0	0	2
1960–61	Hull-Ottawa Canadiens	EPHL	37	7	33	40	28	—	—	—	—	—
1961–62	Montreal Canadiens	NHL	70	3	17	20	18	6	0	2	2	2
1962–63	Montreal Canadiens	NHL	69	1	17	18	10	5	0	0	0	0
1963–64	Montreal Canadiens	NHL	70	5	16	21	24	7	2	1	3	9
1964–65	Montreal Canadiens	NHL	68	3	17	20	22	13	1	9	10	18
1965–66	Montreal Canadiens	NHL	59	6	29	35	8	10	2	9	11	2
1966–67	Montreal Canadiens	NHL	60	8	26	34	14	10	2	4	6	2
1967–68	Montreal Canadiens	NHL	73	4	26	30	18	13	3	6	9	2
1968–69	Montreal Canadiens	NHL	75	7	32	39	18	13	1	4	5	6
1969–70	Montreal Canadiens	NHL	58	2	19	21	7	—	—	—	—	—
1970–71	Montreal Canadiens	NHL	76	11	52	63	23	20	3	14	17	15
1971–72	Montreal Canadiens	NHL	76	6	51	57	24	6	0	2	2	0
1972–73	Quebec Nordiques	WHA	75	14	75	89	32	—	—	—	—	—
1973–74	Quebec Nordiques	WHA	68	9	44	53	10	—	—	—	—	—
1974–75	Quebec Nordiques	WHA	68	16	56	72	18	11	0	10	10	2
1975–76	Quebec Nordiques	WHA	80	12	77	89	16	5	0	3	3	0
1976–77	Quebec Nordiques	WHA	53	4	31	35	16	17	2	9	11	2
1977–78	Quebec Nordiques	WHA	54	5	37	42	26	1	0	1	1	0
1978–79	Quebec Nordiques	WHA	56	6	38	44	8	—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals			794	57	306	363	204	108	14	51	65	58
WHA totals			454	66	358	424	126	34	2	23	25	4

References

↑ "J. C. Tremblay; Hockey Player, 55". New York Times. 9 December 1994. Retrieved 28 December 2013.
↑ "WHA Hall of Fame Members". whahof.com.

External links

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