Jean Beliveau (Murillo Pyramid Rank = #5)
Adjusted Stats
1950-1951 Mtl 2 GP 1 goal 1 assist 2 points 1.00 PPG
1952-1953 Mtl* 4 GP 8 goals 0 assists 8 points 2.00 PPG (no cup ring for Beliveau)
1953-1954 Mtl 52 GP 20 goals 32 assists 51 points 0.98 PPG
1954-1955 Mtl 82 GP 53 goals 51 assists 104 points 1.27 PPG
1955-1956 Mtl* 82 GP 67 goals 58 assists 125 points 1.52 PPG
1956-1957 Mtl* 81 GP 44 goals 68 assists 112 points 1.38 PPG
1957-1958 Mtl* 64 GP 35 goals 41 assists 76 points 1.19 PPG
1958-1959 Mtl* 75 GP 56 goals 57 assists 113 points 1.51 PPG
1959-1960 Mtl* 70 GP 42 goals 49 assists 90 points 1.29 PPG
1960-1961 Mtl 81 GP 38 goals 70 assists 108 points 1.33 PPG
1961-1962 Mtl 50 GP 22 goals 28 assists 49 points 0.98 PPG
1962-1963 Mtl 81 GP 22 goals 59 assists 81 points 1.00 PPG
1963-1964 Mtl 80 GP 36 goals 65 assists 101 points 1.26 PPG
1964-1965 Mtl* 68 GP 25 goals 29 assists 54 points 0.79 PPG
1965-1966 Mtl* 78 GP 34 goals 57 assists 91 points 1.17 PPG
1966-1967 Mtl 62 GP 14 goals 31 assists 46 points 0.74 PPG
1967-1968 Mtl* 65 GP 38 goals 45 assists 83 points 1.28 PPG
1968-1969 Mtl* 74 GP 37 goals 55 assists 91 points 1.23 PPG
1969-1970 Mtl 68 GP 22 goals 34 assists 56 points 0.82 PPG
1970-1971 Mtl* 74 GP 26 goals 53 assists 79 points 1.07 PPG
Adjusted Playoff Stats
1953-1954 Mtl 10 GP 3 goals 10 assists 13 points 1.30 PPG
1954-1955 Mtl 12 GP 7 goals 9 assists 16 points 1.32 PPG
1955-1956 Mtl* 10 GP 12 goals 7 assists 19 points 1.91 PPG
1956-1957 Mtl* 10 GP 6 goals 6 assists 12 points 1.20 PPG
1957-1958 Mtl* 10 GP 4 goals 7 assists 11 points 1.09 PPG
1958-1959 Mtl* 3 GP 1 goal 4 assists 5 points 1.56 PPG
1959-1960 Mtl* 8 GP 5 goals 2 assists 7 points 0.91 PPG
1960-1961 Mtl 6 GP 0 goals 6 assists 6 points 0.94 PPG
1961-1962 Mtl 6 GP 2 goals 1 assist 3 points 0.50 PPG
1962-1963 Mtl 5 GP 2 goals 1 assist 3 points 0.59 PPG
1963-1964 Mtl 5 GP 2 goals 0 assists 2 points 0.42 PPG
1964-1965 Mtl* 13 GP 9 goals 9 assists 17 points 1.34 PPG
1965-1966 Mtl* 10 GP 5 goals 5 assists 11 points 1.06 PPG
1966-1967 Mtl 10 GP 6 goals 5 assists 11 points 1.14 PPG
1967-1968 Mtl* 10 GP 7 goals 4 assists 11 points 1.10 PPG
1968-1969 Mtl* 14 GP 5 goals 10 assists 15 points 1.06 PPG
1970-1971 Mtl* 20 GP 6 goals 15 assists 20 points 1.01 PPG
Career - 1293 GP, 640 goals, 883 assists, 1520 points, 1.18 PPG
Career-Highs - 67 goals (55-56); 70 assists (60-61); 125 points (55-56); 1.52 PPG (55-56)
Avg. (18 seasons) - 72 GP, 35 goals, 49 assists, 84 points, 1.18 PPG
Peak Avg. (53-61) - 73 GP, 44 goals, 53 assists, 97 points, 1.33 PPG, 5 Cups
Playoff Career - 162 GP, 82 goals, 101 assists, 182 points, 1.12 PPG
Playoff-Highs - 12 goals (55-56); 15 assists (70-71); 20 points (70-71); 1.91 PPG (55-56)
Accolades - 2 MVP awards, 1 Art Ross, 1 Conn Smythe
All-Star teams - 6-time 1st-team, 4-time 2nd-team
10-time Stanley Cup Champion
There's a reason that these legends of the past get trotted out before every Saturday-night Canadiens game, and it's beyond just nostalgia (except in the case of the Maple Leafs: "He led the league in scoring for the week of February 12th - February 19th, 1988...please give a welcome to: Steve Thomas!"). In the case of Jean Beliveau, it's for the simple reason that he was the greatest center not named Gretzky or Lemieux to ever play the game of hockey.
The numbers, when adjusted under my formula, tell the story: six 100-point seasons; another three of 90 or more; and of course...a whopping ten Stanley Cup rings. That number of course doesn't seem plausible in today's era, in which we have a thirty-team league and a salary cap that prevents massive dynasties. So yes, seven of Beliveau's Cups came in an era when there were only six teams in the league...but it shouldn't be forgotten that three of them came post-expansion. And even by the standards of a six-team league, seven championships in thirteen years is pretty impressive.
What stands out for me about Beliveau and those Cup championships is how clearly integral he was to them. Consider that in the years when Beliveau missed time for injury for was subpar, Montreal came up short in their quest for the championship. Here's a comparison of Beliveau's seasons in the years when Montreal won the Cup, vs. how he performed when they did not:
Beliveau avg. in 10 championship years - 73 GP, 40 goals, 51 assists, 92 points, 1.25 PPG
Beliveau avg. in 8 non-championship years - 70 GP, 28 goals, 46 assists, 74 points, 1.07 PPG
(As an aside, you know you're in that rareified, Bill Russell-esque air when the numbers of seasons you won a championship is larger than the number you didn't.)
So Beliveau was obviously not some passenger on those ten championship teams. You have to give a lot of credit to someone who won the first ever Conn Smythe award as playoff MVP. He had 176 playoff points in 162 games, an even more impressive total when you consider how low-scoring the playoffs were in the 1960s. And Beliveau was still going strong even as he closed out his remarkable career. During the two runs to the Stanley Cup in 1969 and 1971, at the age of 37 and 39 respectively, Beliveau scored 37 points in 34 playoff games, both times leading the postseason in assists. It will be a while before we see that happening again from a player in his late 30s.
Add in his much-discussed dignity and class, the fact that he is one of only thirteen players to have 1,500 career adjusted points, and you have many reasons why Beliveau stands as one of the greatest centers to play the game. The man was a champion from the start of his career to the end. He doesn't quite make the Pantheon because his talent was never at the "holy fuck" level of Gretzky, Orr, Howe and Lemieux. But he's at the absolute top of Level 6, the greatest player that hockey's greatest franchise has ever known.
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