Gilles Gilbert

Playing career

Gilles Gilbert was born on March 31, 1949, in Saint-Esprit, Quebec, to French-Canadian parents. He played in the 1961 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the junior Quebec Aces. His junior hockey career began with the Trois-Rivières Reds in the Quebec Junior Hockey League (QJHL), where he appeared in 43 games with a 4.44 goals-against average (GAA) and a 23-18-2 record. He made five appearances in the 1967 Memorial Cup playoffs as part of the Thetford Mines Canadiens, but the team was eliminated in the semifinals.

In the 1967-68 season, Gilbert played 46 games for the Reds, improving his GAA to 4.30. At age 18, he led all QJHL goaltenders with six playoff wins for Trois-Rivières in 1967. After being drafted by the Minnesota North Stars in 1969, Gilbert spent most of the 1969-70 season with the CHL affiliate Iowa Stars, posting a 17-16-5 record and a 3.25 GAA in 39 games, helping the team reach the Adams Cup, where they lost 4-1 to the Omaha Knights. He made his NHL debut on February 8, 1970, against the Pittsburgh Penguins, a 6-3 loss.

The following season, Gilbert served as a backup to Cesare Maniago, earning his first NHL victory on October 21, 1970, against the Montreal Canadiens at the Montreal Forum in a 3-1 win, finishing the year with a 5-9-2 record in 17 games. During the 1971-72 season, he appeared in only four games for the North Stars (1-2-1) and spent the rest of the season with the AHL's Cleveland Barons, where he went 20-15-5 with two shutouts and a 3.62 GAA; the Barons were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Baltimore Clippers 4-2.

Gilbert returned to the North Stars for the 1972-73 season as a backup, recording his first NHL shutout on November 11, 1972, against the New York Islanders in a 3-0 win. He started 22 games that season, accumulating a 10-10-2 record, a 3.05 GAA, and a 0.904 save percentage, and made his postseason debut in a loss as the North Stars were eliminated in the first round by Philadelphia. During his time with the North Stars, Gilbert also played shortstop on a semi-professional baseball team.

Later life and death

After his playing career, Gilbert lived in Quebec City, his hometown. He and his wife Diane raised a son, Terry, and a daughter, Jennifer, and later had three grandchildren. He once co-owned a nightclub in Quebec City. For years, he worked with Canadian Hockey Enterprises, organizing hockey tournaments for all ages. An avid golfer, he also hosted an annual celebrity charity golf tournament in Winchendon, Massachusetts. Gilbert passed away on August 6, 2023, at age 74.