Former Montreal Canadiens goaltender Ken Dryden has died after a battle with cancer, the team announced early Saturday.
The Hockey Hall of Famer, six-time Stanley Cup champion, author and former Canadian politician was 78. He passed away peacefully on Friday, the Canadiens said.
“Ken Dryden was an exceptional athlete, but he was also an exceptional man,” Canadiens president-owner Geoff Molson said in a news release. “Behind the mask, he was larger than life. We mourn today not only the loss of the cornerstone of one of hockey’s greatest dynasties, but also a family man, a thoughtful citizen, and a gentleman who deeply impacted our lives and communities across generations. He was one of the true legends that helped shape this Club into what it is today.”
Dryden’s family asked for privacy at this time and suggested that those wishing to honor his memory make a donation to the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre or the Concussion Legacy Foundation.
Dryden was born on Aug. 8, 1947, in Hamilton, Ont. The Boston Bruins drafted him 14th overall in 1964. Shortly after he was drafted, the Bruins traded his rights to the Canadiens.
Dryden played NCAA hockey at Cornell University between 1966 and 1969, being named the ECAC player of the year in 1968-69 and being a three-time first all-star team netminder in the conference.
In 1970-71, Dryden spent most of the season in the AHL before getting called up to the Canadiens to finish the regular season with his first six NHL games. He went 6-0-0 with a 1.65 goals-against average and .957 save percentage.
As Montreal matched up with the Bruins in the first round of the playoffs, Canadiens coach Al MacNeil chose rookie Dryden to play in goal. Each team traded series leads before the Canadiens forced a Game 7. Dryden stopped 46 of 48 shots in the series-decider to help knock out the squad that drafted him.
Dryden, who was 23 at the time, then backstopped the Canadiens to a 4-2 semifinal series win over the Minnesota North Stars before facing the Chicago Black Hawks in the Stanley Cup final. That series also went seven games, but Dryden outmatched eventual Hockey Hall of Famer Tony Esposito with a .921 SP in the final round. Montreal won it all, and Dryden earned the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
The following season, Dryden won the Calder Trophy after going 39-8-15 in 64 games with a 2.24 GAA, .930 SP and eight shutouts.
Before the 1972-73 season, Dryden was part of a historic Canadian team that faced the Soviet Union in the 1972 Summit Series. He split half of the eight-game series with Tony Esposito, winning twice, including the deciding Game 8 in Moscow when Paul Henderson scored “The Goal” on Vladislav Tretiak at the other end of the ice.
Then in 1972-73, he won not only the Vezina Trophy for the first of five times but the Stanley Cup for the second time in three years.
Standing 6-foot-4, Dryden stood tall on the ice, literally and figuratively. He was also known for his iconic pose, where he put his hands on top of his stick and leaned forward during a break in the action.
From 1975-76 to 1978-79, Dryden helped the Canadiens win the Cup four straight times before retiring at 31 in 1979. He was inducted in the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983. The Canadiens retired his No. 20 in 2007.
More to come.
