It is hard to imagine a classier hockey player, on and off the ice, than Jean Béliveau.
A supremely skilled centre for 18 seasons for the Montreal Canadiens, the 83-year-old Béliveau was also a gracious spokesman for the team and the sport.
The NHL club lost the man who embodied all the attributes of their dynasty teams of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s — talent, flair, intelligence and success.
He scored 507 goals, won 10 Stanley Cups and was captain for 10 seasons before his retirement in 1971, then moved seamlessly into an executive position with the club.
Words like class and gentleman were attached to Béliveau by virtually everyone who met him.
“Like millions of hockey fans who followed the life and the career of Jean Béliveau, the Canadiens today mourn the passing of a man whose contribution to the development of our sport and our society was unmeasurable,” team owner Geoff Molson said in a statement posted on the Canadiens’ website.
“Jean Béliveau was a great leader, a gentleman and arguably the greatest ambassador our game has ever known,” Molson added ....
