A look at how Maurice Richard played the game of hockey

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Self-confessed Montreal Canadiens diehard fan Pietro Triassi of Montreal is a great source of information about anything that has to do with his beloved hockey team. Today, he shares about how Maurice “The Rocket” Richard played the game of hockey. At 18 years of age, while studying to become a machinist at the Montreal Technical School, young Richard played in a number teams, one of which was an amateur club, wherein he scored 133 of the team’s 144 goals. If the concept of a sports phenom was already introduced in his time, he would definitely be its poster child.

In 1940, he signed with the Montreal Senior Canadiens, the farm team of the Habs, shares Pietro Triassi of Montreal. His stint was temporary, but his talent did not go unnoticed. He eventually signed with the Montreal Canadiens for the 1942–43 season, the franchise in which he won the Stanley Cup for a total of 8 times. In the 1944–45 NHL season, he scored 50 goals in 50 games, a record he held for many years. Maurice Richard’s nickname “Rocket” was given to him by teammate Ray Getliffe because of the unrivalled speed he had, which he used to run past everyone during practices, and more importantly, in actual games.

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He was a fierce competitor, who was adored by many fans, attests Pietro Triassi of Montreal. In 1955, a fight broke out between him and Hal Laycoe of the Boston Bruins. Richard went after Laycoe with his stick and struck a linesman who intervened, which prompted NHL president Clarence Campbell to suspend Richard for the rest of the season. Angered fans attacked Campbell in a game at the Montreal Forum. This became known as the Richard Riot.

As speed was ultimately the essence of his game, he led the NHL in goals five times during his 18-season career and he was also the league’s all-time leader in goals when he retired. He was also a 14-time All-Star who held a lot of National Hockey League records.

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