Maurice Richard |
| Even though Maurice Richard retired from active
competition in 1960, there are several goalies who would
like to be able to play against him still, because of the
mark he has left in everybody's memory. Glen Hall, who
was a star goaltender with the Detroit Red Wings and the
Chicago Black Hawks before joining the St. Louis Blues,
has kept a special memory of the ledgendary Number 9:
"His eyes were terrifying, and when he was roaring
towards me with the puck, they would sparkle, crackle
like a pin-ball machine." Maurice Richard, known also as the "Rocket," was a constant menace to goalies like Hall for eighteen seasons. During that time, the rocket scored at least 544 goals in regular season play. Only Gordie Howe is ahead of him in that department. Richard was the first player in history to score 50 goals in one season and is still the only man to have ever scored 50 goals in as many games. Nothing was more dramatic and spectacular than a goal by the Rocket. Maurice did not slide on the ice. He was so anxious to score, he seemed to be running. He used his backhand shot as well as his wrist shot to outmaneuver the opposing goaltenders. Richard had a major trump in his hand. He was ambidextrous, and this is why he could shoot correctly and powerfully when he would leave his right wing position to move on the enemy's net. Frank Selke, who was the managing director of the Canadiens during the Rocket's best seasons, used to say: "Not only was he endowed with phenomenal strength, but the Rocket possessed an unparalleled instinct. He was the most opportunistic player I have ever seen." Bill Chadwick, an ex-referee and member of the Hall of Fame, is one of Maurice Richard's numerous fans. He has said: "From the blue line to the net, he was unequalled. He possessed Herculean strength, and once I saw him score with a defenceman on his back." Maurice Richard learned about hockey when he was a boy playing at Lafontaine Park during the years prior to World War II. Even at that age, he was a prolific scorer. There were doubts, however, about his future as a hockey player, because he seemed to get hurt easily. After breaking his ankle when he was still playing for the seniors (amateurs), Maurice then broke his wrist in 1942 when he was making his debut with the Canadiens. he could not complete the season because of another broken ankle which made Tommy Gorman, the manager of the Canadiens at that time, say: "We have here a very fragile player." Gorman even thought of letting the Rocket go unconditionally, but Richard stayed and became stronger and more resistant as he matured. After that, he avoided being injured, and he looked like a small ox on skates. At the apex of his career, Richard was a little under six feet tall and weighed 180 pounds without an ounce of fat. Several formations in the National Legue used two players to take care of this right-winger and his fiery temperment. Richard considered that as a compliment - when opposing players stood in his way, he simply knocked them down then gave them a withering look. Richard was well known in the NHL for his temper, and because of it was involved in a great number of quarrels with officials as well as players of other teams. He was suspended in March 1955 by President Clarence Campbell, following an altercation with a linesman and a player of the Boston Bruins, and that caused a riot at the Forum. Everything was forgiven when the Rocket was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1961. This honor is usually granted to a player at least five years after he has announced his retirement. maurice Richard was chosen as an immortal of hockey only nine months after he hung up his skates. |