Henri Richard
The Pocket Rocket: 11-time Stanley Cup champion and Canadiens legend.
Henri Richard (February 29, 1936 – March 6, 2020) was a Canadian professional ice hockey centre who played his entire NHL career with the Montreal Canadiens from 1955 to 1975. Nicknamed "Pocket Rocket" after his older brother Maurice "Rocket" Richard, he won the Stanley Cup 11 times as a player, the most in NHL history, tying Bill Russell for the most championships by an athlete in a North American sports league. In 2017, he was named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players'.
Quick Facts
- Played for
- Montreal Canadiens
- League
- NHL
- Position
- Centre
- Shoots
- Right
- Born
- 29 February 1936
- Birthplace
- Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Died
- 6 March 2020
- Place of death
- Laval, Quebec, Canada
Lore & Background
Henri Richard was born in Montreal, the seventh of eight children. His father worked as a machinist for the Canadian Pacific Railway. He joined the junior Montreal Canadiens at age 15 and led the Quebec junior league in scoring for two consecutive seasons before being promoted to the NHL. He played alongside his brother Maurice, though their styles differed: Henri was a tactical playmaker who led the league in assists twice. He scored the Stanley Cup-clinching overtime goal in 1966 against the Detroit Red Wings and also scored the game-tying and Cup-winning goals in Game Seven of the 1971 Final against the Chicago Black Hawks. He served as team captain from 1971 until his retirement in 1975.
Reader's Guide
Henri Richard's jersey number 16 was retired by the Canadiens at a pre-game ceremony on December 10, 1975. He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1979. He scored two Stanley Cup-winning goals, one of five players to have done so. His 1,256 regular-season games played in a Canadiens uniform are a franchise record. He was ranked number 29 on The Hockey News list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players in 1998 and was named to the NHL's 100 Greatest Players list in 2017.
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