Gilles Gilbert (March 31, 1949 – August 6, 2023) was a Canadian professional goaltender in ice hockey who was drafted in the third round of the 1969 NHL Amateur Draft from the London Knights. He played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Minnesota North Stars and Detroit Red Wings, but most notably for the Boston Bruins.
| Gilles Gilbert | |||
|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) Gilbert signing autographs for fans in 1975 | |||
| Born |
March 31, 1949 Saint-Esprit, Limoilou, Quebec, Canada | ||
| Died |
August 6, 2023 (aged 74) Quebec City, Quebec, Canada | ||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) | ||
| Weight | 175 lb (79 kg; 12 st 7 lb) | ||
| Position | Goaltender | ||
| Caught | Left | ||
| Played for |
Minnesota North Stars Boston Bruins Detroit Red Wings | ||
| NHL draft |
25th overall, 1969 Minnesota North Stars | ||
| Playing career | 1969–1983 | ||
Playing career
editGilbert played in the 1961 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the junior Quebec Aces.[1]
Gilbert played in the NHL between 1969 and 1983 and retired with a 3.27 goals against average.
In net for the Minnesota North Stars, he surrendered Jean Beliveau's 500th career goal on February 11, 1971.[2]
In 1973-74, he was traded to the Bruins as a replacement for Gerry Cheevers who had gone to the World Hockey Association (WHA), played in the NHL All-Star Game, and helped the team to the Stanley Cup finals that year. The Bruins lost the Finals series 4-2 to the Philadelphia Flyers, but over these six games Gilbert played as brilliantly as his opposing counterpart Bernie Parent who was named playoff MVP.[3][4]
In the 1975–76 NHL season, Gilbert set the NHL record for most consecutive wins by a goaltender with 17, and finished with a 33-8-10 record for a .843 winning percentage in 55 games.[5]
From 1976 to 1980, he teamed with Gerry Cheevers to form one of the best goaltending duos in the NHL, being runners-up for the Vezina Trophy in 1980.
Gilbert recorded 17 playoff victories for Boston. As of 2019 he ranks sixth in all-time playoff wins among Boston goaltenders.
Gilbert was the Bruins goalie during the 1979 Stanley Cup playoffs semifinal game 7 against the Montreal Canadiens, when Guy Lafleur tied the game after the infamous too many men penalty against Boston, and then Yvon Lambert scored the series-winning goal in overtime; Gilbert was still named the game's first star. Cheevers was benched after losing the first two games of the series, and Gilbert took over as the starter thereafter, overall being named the game's first star three times in the five games against Montreal. Montreal's Steve Shutt exclaimed of these performances that “Gilles Gilbert stood on his head. He was the reason they got to the seventh game”.[6][7]
Gilbert was in net for Detroit on February 11, 1982, when the Vancouver Canucks became the first team[8] with two successful penalty shots in the same game, as Thomas Gradin and Ivan Hlinka scored for the Canucks in the third period of a 4-4 tie.[9][10]
Post Playing Career
editGilbert was a pro scout and goaltending coach for the New York Islanders from 1996 to 2001.[11]
Later life and death
editGilles Gilbert latterly resided in Quebec City.[citation needed] He died on August 6, 2023, at the age of 74.[12]
Career statistics
editRegular season and playoffs
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | W | L | T | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% | GP | W | L | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% | ||
| 1966–67 | Trois-Rivières Reds | QJHL | 43 | 23 | 18 | 2 | 2540 | 188 | 1 | 4.44 | — | 14 | 9 | 5 | 850 | 65 | 0 | 4.59 | — | ||
| 1966–67 | Thetford Mines Canadiens | M-Cup | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | 3 | 1 | 276 | 18 | 0 | 3.91 | — | ||
| 1967–68 | Trois-Rivières Reds | QJHL | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1968–69 | London Knights | OHA-Jr. | 37 | — | — | — | 2200 | 167 | 1 | 4.55 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1969–70 | Iowa Stars | CHL | 39 | 17 | 16 | 5 | 2340 | 127 | 2 | 3.26 | — | 4 | 2 | 2 | 245 | 14 | 0 | 3.43 | — | ||
| 1969–70 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 60 | 6 | 0 | 6.00 | .846 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1970–71 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 17 | 5 | 9 | 2 | 931 | 59 | 0 | 3.80 | .889 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1971–72 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 218 | 11 | 0 | 3.03 | .891 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1971–72 | Cleveland Barons | AHL | 41 | 20 | 15 | 5 | 2319 | 140 | 2 | 3.62 | — | 4 | 1 | 2 | 187 | 18 | 0 | 5.78 | — | ||
| 1972–73 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 22 | 10 | 10 | 2 | 1320 | 67 | 2 | 3.05 | .904 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 60 | 4 | 0 | 4.00 | .900 | ||
| 1973–74 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 54 | 34 | 12 | 8 | 3210 | 158 | 6 | 2.95 | .900 | 16 | 10 | 6 | 977 | 43 | 1 | 2.64 | .912 | ||
| 1974–75 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 53 | 23 | 17 | 11 | 3029 | 158 | 3 | 3.13 | .893 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 188 | 12 | 0 | 3.83 | .859 | ||
| 1975–76 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 55 | 33 | 8 | 10 | 3123 | 151 | 3 | 2.90 | .887 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 360 | 19 | 2 | 3.17 | .868 | ||
| 1976–77 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 34 | 18 | 13 | 3 | 2040 | 97 | 1 | 2.85 | .884 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 3 | 0 | 9.00 | .571 | ||
| 1977–78 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 25 | 15 | 6 | 2 | 1326 | 56 | 2 | 2.53 | .885 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1978–79 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 23 | 12 | 8 | 2 | 1254 | 74 | 0 | 3.54 | .869 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 314 | 16 | 0 | 3.06 | .901 | ||
| 1979–80 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 33 | 20 | 9 | 3 | 1933 | 88 | 1 | 2.73 | .890 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1980–81 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 48 | 11 | 24 | 9 | 2618 | 175 | 0 | 4.01 | .866 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1981–82 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 27 | 6 | 10 | 6 | 1478 | 105 | 0 | 4.26 | .849 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1982–83 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 20 | 4 | 14 | 1 | 1137 | 85 | 0 | 4.49 | .850 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1982–83 | Adirondack Red Wings | AHL | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 198 | 11 | 0 | 3.33 | .890 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 416 | 192 | 143 | 60 | 23677 | 1290 | 18 | 3.27 | .883 | 32 | 17 | 15 | 1919 | 97 | 3 | 3.03 | .895 | ||||
"Gilbert's stats". The Goaltender Home Page. Retrieved September 28, 2017.
References
edit- ^ "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2019. Retrieved January 1, 2019.
- ^ Kreiser, John (February 10, 2020). "Feb. 11: Beliveau Scores 500th NHL Goal". National Hockey League. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
- ^ "Gilles Gilbert, Goalie the Flyers Defeated in Cup Finals, Dies at 74". August 8, 2023.
- ^ https://vault.si.com/vault/1974/05/27/jubilation-and-a-cup-in-philly [bare URL]
- ^ "1976: Boston goalie Gilles Gilbert extends his NHL-record". Chicago Tribune. February 29, 2000.
- ^ Farber, Michael. "Too Many Men". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved March 9, 2015.
- ^ "Guy Lafleur on Gilles Gilbert and famed blast for 1979 playoff goal: "I think I ruined his career." | the Province". January 6, 2012.
- ^ Maquire, Liam (November 20, 2012). Next Goal Wins!: The Ultimate NHL Historian's One-of-a-Kind Collection of Hockey Trivia. Random House of Canada. p. 20. ISBN 9780307363411. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
- ^ "Today In Canucks History". Vancouver Canucks. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
- ^ "N.H.L. Scoreboard: Brodeur Passes Hainsworth to Become Undisputed Shutout King". New York Times. December 31, 2009. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
- ^ "Gilles Gilbert - Stats, Contract, Salary & More".
- ^ Allen, Kevin (August 6, 2023). "Former Red Wings Goaltender Gilbert Dies at 74". Detroit Hockey Now. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
External links
edit- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
- Gilles Gilbert @ hockeygoalies.org