DEEMED BY MANY AS THE LEAGUE’S BEST DEFENSIVE FORWARD, BOB GAINEY WAS NAMED THE FIRST RECIPIENT OF THE SELKE TROPHY.

Heads turned in surprise when the Montreal Canadiens made their initial selection in the 1972 Amateur Draft, choosing forward Bob Gainey of the OHA’s Peterborough Petes. General Manager Sam Pollock’s decision proved to be a wise one.

The 6-foot-2, 200-pound forward, a defensive specialist who learned his craft under Roger Neilson, became one of the greatest players to ever put on a Canadiens jersey. Gainey played 16 seasons with the Habs, years that were among the most successful in the team’s history.

Summoned to join the big team after just six games with the AHL’s Nova Scotia Voyageurs, Gainey learned the ropes during the 1973-74 campaign, appearing in 66 games and laying the groundwork for the illustrious career that followed.

Gainey had a lot of tools. He could skate, stickhandle, pass and check. Marking the best players in the league, Gainey covered them like a blanket, emerging as one of the NHL’s top defensive forwards in his sophomore season. Unlike many of his peers, he rarely resorted to tactics that resulted in penalties.

Nullifying top snipers when playing at full strength and thwarting their power-play efforts, his unflagging efforts made Gainey a fan favorite in the Montreal Forum. While his primary duties involved preventing the enemy from scoring, Gainey could light the lamp as well, if not at will, scoring at least a dozen goals in 12 consecutive seasons.

Strong, smart and skilled, Gainey was an essential component of the Canadiens return to dynasty status in the 1970s. He played hard, he played clean and often, he played hurt. Dismissing injuries that sidelined others as nothing more than the regular aches and pains of his profession, Gainey played on, missing no more than a handful of games in most seasons.

By the 1975-76 season, the team had retooled and stood poised to recover the oldest trophy in pro sports. Coach Scotty Bowman expected nothing but the best his men had to offer. Gainey, by now established as the best at what he did, quietly led the way. The Habs won the Stanley Cup in four consecutive years, from 1976 to 1979. In 1978-79, Gainey was declared the outstanding playoff performer and awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy.

Long considered the top defensive forward in the league, Gainey’s domination was formally recognized by the NHL when he was named the first recipient of the Frank Selke Trophy in the spring of 1978. He would also be awarded the Selke in each of the following three years, as he remains the only four-time winner of the award.

Named team captain prior to the 1981-82 season, Gainey proudly wore the “C” for the next eight years, leading the Canadiens to the 1986 Stanley Cup, his last championship as a player.

Gainey retired after the 1988-89 season and began his transition to the off-ice side of the game. After a year overseas, he returned to the NHL with the Minnesota North Stars. He spent five years as coach before devoting himself exclusively to his duties as GM when the team moved to Dallas, building the team that won the 1999 Stanley Cup.

Once described by legendary Soviet coach, Anatoli Tarasov as “technically the best player in the world”, Gainey was inducted to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1992. He rejoined the Canadiens as general manager in 2003 and twice filled in behind the bench for the Habs in 2005-2006 and 2008-2009.

On February 23, 2008, Bob Gainey’s legacy was recognized by the Canadiens as his No. 23 jersey was retired. Decked out in full equipment wearing the only NHL jersey he’d ever known, Gainey took a few final laps around the ice, much to the delight of his children and the Bell Centre crowd.