Joseph Gilbert Yvon Jean Ratelle (born October 3, 1940) is a Canadian former

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

player who played for the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in New York City. The Rangers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team plays ...

and

Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The t ...

. He featured in three

Stanley Cup Finals The Stanley Cup Finals in ice hockey (also known as the Stanley Cup Final among various media, ) is the annual championship series of the National Hockey League (NHL). The winner is awarded the Stanley Cup, North America's oldest professional spo ...

(1972, 1977, 1978). In twenty-one seasons he averaged almost a point a game and won the

Lady Byng Trophy The Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, formerly known as the Lady Byng Trophy, is presented each year to the National Hockey League "player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard o ...

twice in recognition of his great sportsmanship. He was inducted into the

Hockey Hall of Fame The Hockey Hall of Fame () is a museum and hall of fame located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League (NHL) records, memorabilia and National Hockey Le ...

in 1985. In 2017 he was named one of the "

100 Greatest NHL Players In 2017, the National Hockey League commemorated its 100th anniversary with a list of the 100 Greatest NHL Players. The list was made through voting compiled by a panel of 58 people, including media members, NHL alumni and NHL executives. The lis ...

" in history.

Playing career

Ratelle's hockey career almost ended at age 23 when he suffered a serious

back injury Back injuries result from damage, wear, or trauma to the bones, muscles, or other tissues of the back. Common back injuries include sprains and strains, Spinal disc herniation, herniated discs, and Vertebral compression fracture, fractured verteb ...

and had to undergo major

spinal cord The spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular structure made up of nervous tissue that extends from the medulla oblongata in the lower brainstem to the lumbar region of the vertebral column (backbone) of vertebrate animals. The center of the spinal c ...

surgery. He recovered to become a regular with the Rangers from 1963 to 1975. His greatest success came with linemates Vic Hadfield and Rod Gilbert in the " GAG Line" (i.e. Goal-a-Game Line). He led the Rangers in scoring between 1968 and 1973 when the team was a powerhouse among the league's best. Ratelle was poised to beat out

' legend

Phil Esposito Philip Anthony Esposito ( , ; born February 20, 1942) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player, coach and executive, and current broadcaster for the Tampa Bay Lightning. A member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, he played 18 seasons in ...

for the scoring title in 1972 when he had to sit out fifteen games due to an injury but came back for the Stanley Cup finals against Boston to lead his team. Only three other players - Esposito,

Bobby Orr Robert Gordon Orr (born March 20, 1948) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player, widely acknowledged as one of the greatest players of all time. Orr used his skating speed, scoring, and play-making abilities to revolutionize the ...

and

Johnny Bucyk John Paul "Chief" Bucyk (born May 12, 1935) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey left winger and member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. Having played most of his career with the Boston Bruins, he has been associated in one capacity or anothe ...

- had scored as many points in any season as Ratelle had done in his shortened season. His 109 points that season remained a Rangers' scoring record until

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

, when

Jaromír Jágr Jaromír Jágr (; born 15 February 1972) is a Czech professional ice hockey Winger (ice hockey), right winger and owner of Rytíři Kladno of the Czech Extraliga (ELH). He previously played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Pittsburgh ...

broke it. In November 1975, Ratelle was traded with Brad Park and Joe Zanussi to the Boston Bruins for Esposito and Carol Vadnais. Rangers general manager

Emile Francis Emile Percival Francis (September 13, 1926 – February 19, 2022), nicknamed "The Cat", was a Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and general manager in the National Hockey League (NHL). He played for the Chicago Black Hawks and New York Rangers f ...

made the trade out in part out of respect so that Ratelle did not have to relocate his family far, plus the Bruins had sought Ratelle's skills at center. With the Bruins for the remainder of the 1975–76 season, Ratelle scored over 100 points that season for the second time in his career. He played five more seasons with Boston, gaining admiration for his slick passing, skill at faceoffs, and all-around excellent play. 1961 Topps Jean Ratelle

At the time of his retirement after the 1980–81 season, Ratelle was the league's sixth all-time leading scorer. While he never played on a team that won the

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup () is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, and the International Ic ...

(being a finalist in 1972, 1977, and 1978), he was a member of the 1972 Team Canada squad that defeated the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

in the first

Summit Series The Summit Series, Super Series 72, Canada–USSR Series (), or Series of the Century (), was an eight-game ice hockey series between the Soviet Union and Canada, held in September 1972. It was the first competition between the Soviet nation ...

. He was well known as a gentlemanly player, finishing in the top five for the

Lady Byng Memorial Trophy The Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, formerly known as the Lady Byng Trophy, is presented each year to the National Hockey League "player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard ...

for sportsmanship and excellence nine times, including a stretch between the 1970 and 1978 seasons where he was in the top three six times and won the trophy twice.

Post-playing career

Ratelle retired as a player after the 1980–81 season and remained in the Bruins organization, serving for four years as an assistant coach and then sixteen years as a

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement ** Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

. In 1985, Jean Ratelle was inducted into the

. In the 2009 book ''100 Ranger Greats'', the authors ranked Ratelle at No. 7 all-time of the 901 New York Rangers who had played during the team's first 82 seasons. On August 28, 2017, the Rangers announced that they would retire Ratelle's number 19 jersey on February 25, 2018; this was done in a pre-game ceremony. In 2023 he would be named one of the top 100 Bruins players of all time.Bruins Announce “Historic 100” Ahead of All-Centennial Team Reveal https://www.nhl.com/bruins/news/bruins-announce-historic-100-ahead-of-all-centennial-team-reveal

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ratelle, Jean 1940 births Living people Baltimore Clippers players Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy winners Boston Bruins coaches Boston Bruins players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Canadian ice hockey centres Canadian ice hockey coaches Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters players Guelph Royals players Hockey Hall of Fame inductees Ice hockey people from Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean Kitchener Beavers (EPHL) players Lady Byng Memorial Trophy winners Lester B. Pearson Award winners National Hockey League players with retired numbers New York Rangers players Trois-Rivières Lions (EPHL) players 20th-century Canadian sportsmen