If not the best goalie of all time, Jacques Plante was certainly the most important - the man who introduced the art of modern goaltending to the NHL and whose influence is seen every night a game is played. "Jake the Snake" was born in Shawinigan Falls, Quebec, and from the time he started playing, his destiny was to play for the Montreal Canadiens.
After a usual four-year apprenticeship with the Montreal Royals in Quebec senior hockey and two years with the Buffalo Bisons, Plante quickly emerged as Montreal's goalie of the future. He played a few games for the Habs in 1952-53 and 1953-54, and in his first full season began an incredible run of five consecutive Stanley Cup wins and five consecutive Vezina Trophy wins, records that have yet to be equaled.
Throughout his career he was plagued with recurring asthma and after missing 13 games due to a sinusitis operation, Plante began wearing a mask in practices in 1956. Coach Toe Blake endorsed the move cautiously because it kept his goalie healthy and happy, but he warned Plante that a mask wasn't permitted during games. However, during a Montreal versus New York game the night of November 2, 1959, Plante was hit in the face by a shot. He went off to the dressing room for stitches and when he returned he was wearing a mask. Blake was livid, but he had no other goalie to call upon and Plante refused to return to the goal unless he kept the mask. Blake agreed on condition that Plante discard the mask when the cut had healed. In the ensuing days Plante refused, and as the team continued to win, Blake became less obstinate. The Montreal record stretched into an 18-game unbeaten streak with Plante protected and the mask was in the NHL for good.
Plante was a pioneer of the style of play for goaltenders as well. While there had been other goalies before him who periodically came out of their crease to play the puck, he was the first to skate in behind the net to stop the puck for his defensemen. He also was the first to raise his arm on an icing call to let his defensemen know what was happening on the ice, and he perfected a stand-up style of goaltending that emphasized positional play, cutting down the angles and staying square to the shooter. His book, On Goaltending, was the first of its kind and solidified his place in the game as not just a great stopper but a man who truly understood hockey and wanted to have an influence on how the game would be played in the future.
Plante retired in 1965 after playing two seasons with the Rangers, but he was lured out of retirement by the St. Louis Blues and the prospects of sharing the goaltending with the great Glenn Hall for the expansion team. Together they took the Blues to two Stanley Cup finals, and in 1969 Plante shared the Vezina Trophy with Hall at the ripe old age of 40. He also played with Toronto and Boston and played for one final season with the Edmonton Oilers in the WHA before becoming a scout and goalie coach in St. Louis. In 1962 he was the last goalie to win the Hart Trophy before Dominik Hasek in 1997, and he ranks among the leaders in games played and shutouts. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1978.
Jacques Plante passed away in 1986 at just 57 years of age.
Primary Source: The Hockey Hall Of Fame’s Player Search
Here is what our friends at Wikipedia have to say about Jacques:
Here are Jacques’ lifetime stats courtesy of HockeyDB.com:
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If you like the look of Jacques Plante’s mask, then you should consider buying something from our fun Heritage Sports Stuff website where we are selling some great vintage goalie mask products. Our agreement with Jacques Plante's family expired in November 2019 - our loss - but we are still working with some other great goalies and some other great masks. Here are the Magnificent Seven Goalies and their masks.
Goalies Rule is a celebration of great goalie masks from the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s. Even though the era of face-fitting masks has passed, these masks are timeless in their beauty and simplicity. Goalies Rule marries some great goalie mask images with some great products ranging from t-shirts and cell phone cases to pillows and stretched canvas prints. These products will make fantastic gifts for the hockey fan / goalie fan in your family. These products are fun, iconic and really eye-catchingly beautiful.
We are a Direct-To-Consumer (D2C) company making Direct-To-Print products – what this means is that if you place an order with us today, your product will be made for you within 48 hours and shipped to you anywhere in North America from our production facility in Florida. If you are in Europe, they will be shipped from our facility in Germany or Latvia. And if you’re in Asia, they’ll be shipped to you from our facility in China.
Your satisfaction is guaranteed. If you receive your purchase and you are dissatisfied for any reason, just let me know and I will make it right either by refunding your payment in full or sending you another product.
Goalies Rule is owned and operated by me, Scott Sillcox of Aurora, Ontario. I’m a real person and I’d like to have nothing but delighted customers. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please call me 416-315-4736 or email me.
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Scott
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