ONE OF THE BEST OFFENSIVE BLUELINERS IN TEAM HISTORY, GUY LAPOINTE HOLDS THE RECORD FOR MOST GOALS IN A SEASON BY A DEFENSEMAN.

Guy Lapointe grew up in Montreal and spent many teenage hours outside the Forum pestering his hometown hockey idols for autographs. A devoted Canadiens fan since childhood, his favorite player was Jean Béliveau. A decade later he was Béliveau’s teammate and taking his turn being waylaid by youngsters as he left the iconic arena.

A member of the legendary “Big Three” that anchored the Canadiens’ defense in the 1970s, “Pointu” brought many tools with him when he took his place as a full-time blue-liner with Montreal in 1970-71.

Lapointe’s 15 goals set a team record for rookie defensemen. The 6-foot, 185-pounder also proved that he could handle physical play, picking up 107 penalty minutes. The Habs won the Stanley Cup in the spring of 1971, and Guy Lapointe had his name engraved on it the first of six times as a member of the Canadiens.

Named to the roster for the 1972 Canada-Russia series, Lapointe appeared in seven games, providing solid two-way play and holding his own with the best in the world.

Back in the NHL, Lapointe’s stock continued to rise. His strong skating, smooth puck-handling and powerful shot gained him respect as one of the league’s top defensemen. Lapointe’s point totals increased while the Canadiens’ dynasty piled up Stanley Cup Championships, climbing from a point-per-game average in the mid-forties to almost a full point.

Lapointe finished second to Bobby Orr in the Norris Trophy balloting and was named to the First All-Star Team in 1972-73.

In 1974-75, Lapointe’s 28 goals set a still-in-tact team mark for rearguards, which he followed up with 21 and 25-goal campaigns. He was also named a Second Team All-Star three years running, from 1974 through 1978.

Lapointe’s playoff performances were as consistent as his regular season play. With 25 goals, he shares the team’s all-time lead for defensemen with Larry Robinson, who is also the only blue-liner to record more playoff points.

As big a threat in his own dressing room as he was when facing off against on-ice opponents, Lapointe is held in high esteem as one of the premiere pranksters of his era. Ties and skate laces were mysteriously cut when Pointu was around. Shaving cream and other messy substances somehow found their way into shoes, skates, pockets and gloves. More than one teammate had his newspaper go up in flames as he sat peacefully reading it.

With 777 regular season games in a Canadiens sweater, Lapointe ranks 21st in all-time games played, 10th in career assists with 406, and 16th in total points with 572.

No other Montreal defenseman had ever matched Lapointe’s 20-goal campaigns until Sheldon Souray joined the fray with 26 tallies in 2006-07.

He remained in the game after retiring as a player, joining the coaching staff in Quebec and Calgary. He is currently the Amateur Scouting Coordinator for the Minnesota Wild.

Lapointe was inducted to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1993.

His jersey was retired by the Canadiens on November 8, 2014.