According to the Associated Press on Friday, former Montreal Canadiens defenseman Jean-Guy Talbot passed away last the age of 91. Talbot of Cap-de-la-Madeleine, Quebec played 17 National Hockey League seasons, of which 13 were with the Canadiens. Talbot played for the Canadiens from 1954 to 1967, the the Minnesota North Stars in 1967, the Detroit Red Wings from 1967 to 1968, the St. Louis Blues from 1968 to 1970, and the Buffalo Sabres from 1970 to 1971.
Talbot is best known for winning seven Stanley Cups with the Canadiens, including five straight Stanley Cups from 1955 to 1960. He also won the Stanley Cup with the Canadiens in 1965 and 1966. Talbot also represented the Canadiens in six NHL All-Star games in 1956, 1957, 1960, 1962, 1965 and 1967, and was on the NHL’s First All-Star Team in 1961-62. In 1962, Talbot was also a finalist for the Norris Trophy, which was won by fellow Canadiens defenseman Doug Harvey of Montreal, Quebec.
In 1066 NHL regular season games, Talbot had 43 goals and 242 assists for 285 points. He had 1014 penalty minutes, 39 power-play points, 11 shorthanded points, and eight game-winning goals. Of Talbot’s 39 power-play points, were two power-play goals, which both came in the 1961-62 season. Talbot’s first power-play goal came on October 28, 1961 in a 7-5 Canadiens win over the Detroit Red Wings. Talbot put the Canadiens up 4-1 at 12:24 of the second period from Claude Provost of Montreal and Henri Richard of Montreal. Talbot’s second power-play goal came on February 10, 1962 in a 4-2 Canadiens win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. Talbot scored from Provost and Dickie Moore of Montreal at 16:22 of the first period to put the Canadiens up 2-0 at the time.
In the playoffs, Talbot had four goals and 26 assists for 30 points in 151 games. He later coached the St. Louis Blues from 1972 to 1974, and the New York Rangers from 1977 to 1978.
