The Montreal Canadiens have entered the quietest time on the calendar. While there is little to look forward to in the month of August, we decided to take a look back at some of the greatest players in franchise history. We continue our site countdown of the five best wingers in Canadiens history with Boom Boom Geoffrion.
When Bernard “Boom Boom” Geoffrion arrived on the NHL scene with the Montreal Canadiens in 1951, it was with the same kind of reverberation that earned him his famous nickname. He revolutionized the game of hockey on the ice with his innovative way of shooting the puck and also became a star off it with his larger-than-life personality, cementing his legacy as one of the true legends of the game.
Geoffrion is known in hockey history as much, if not more, for his invention of the Slapshot as his amazing playing career. The idea of swinging the stick back and forth, similar to golf, before striking the puck came about while he was playing junior hockey with the Laval Nationale. The new technique added so much more velocity and strength to a shot and made a thunderous cracking sound when the blade of the stick hit the ice that the name Slapshot was born, as was his moniker Boom Boom.
Following a great showing during a late season call up the previous year in which Boom Boom exploded out of the gate for 14 points in 18 games, expectations for Geoffrion’s rookie year in 1951-52 were high. He did not disappoint with a Calder Trophy-winning season in which he potted 30 goals, and 24 assists for 54 points in 67 games.
The homegrown superstar’s career was off and running, and he would capture his first Stanley Cup with the club the following year in 1953. Boom Boom was instrumental in the Cup run, leading the team in playoff scoring with six goals and four assists for 10 points in 12 postseason games.
Geoffrion took his game to another level in 1954-55. That year, he led the National Hockey League in scoring with 38 goals and 37 assists for 75 points in 70 games, earning his first Art Ross Trophy. His famous #5 flanking the great Jean Beliveau would be a fixture on a Canadiens dynasty that would go on to win five consecutive Stanley Cups from 1956-1960.
Geoffrion’s personal best came in 1960-61 when he became just the second player in NHL history to score 50 goals, following in the footsteps of his former teammate Maurice Richard. He also added 45 assists that season for a total of 95 points, capturing the Hart Trophy as the league’s most valuable player as well as a second Art Ross as the NHL scoring leader.
Bernie Geoffrion would play 766 games over 14 seasons in a Canadiens uniform, totaling 371 goals and 388 assists for 759 points. In addition to his 6 Stanley Cup wins, 2 Art Ross Trophies, Hart Trophy, and Calder Trophy, he appeared in 11 All-Star games. He was truly one of the very best and most memorable players in the history of the club. Geoffrion was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1972 and had his number 5 retired in Montreal in 2006.
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