Joseph Jean Arthur Béliveau, CC GOQ (August 31, 1931 – December 2, 2014) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player who played parts of 20 seasons with the National Hockey League\'s (NHL) Montreal Canadiens from 1950 to 1971. Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1972, "Le Gros Bill" Béliveau is widely regarded as one of the Ten Greatest NHL players of all time. Born in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Béliveau first played professionally in the Quebec Major Hockey League (QMHL). He made his NHL debut with the Canadiens in 1950, but chose to remain in the QMHL full-time until 1953.\n', '

By his second season in the NHL, Béliveau was among the top three scorers. He was the fourth player to score 500 goals and the second to score 1,000 points. Béliveau won two Hart Memorial Trophies as league MVP (1956, 1964) and one Art Ross Trophy as top scorer (1956), as well as the inaugural Conn Smythe Trophy as play-off MVP (1965). He has 17 Stanley Cup championships, the most by any individual to date. All championships have been with the Montreal Canadiens: 10 as a player and 7 as an executive. In 2017, Beliveau was named one of the \'100 Greatest NHL Players\' in history.\n', '

Jean Béliveau was born in 1931 to Arthur and Laurette Béliveau, the oldest of eight children. His family traces their ancestry to Antoine Béliveau, who settled in 1642 in Port Royal, Nova Scotia. Expelled along with the other Acadians in 1755, the Béliveaus settled in the Boston area before moving to the Trois Rivières area of Québec in the mid-19th century. Jean\'s father was also part of a large family, one of six brothers, many of whom moved to western Canada in the 1910s while others remained in the Trois-Rivières area and St. Célestin. Jean\'s family moved to Victoriaville when Jean was six and Jean grew up in Victoriaville, attending L\'École Saint-David, L\'Académie Saint-Louis de Gonzague and Collège de Victoriaville schools.\n', '

Return to Jean Beliveau Autograph Profile