Gilles Gilbert
Gilbert signing autographs for fans in 1975
Born (1949-03-31)March 31, 1949
Saint-Esprit, Limoilou, Quebec, Canada
Died August 6, 2023(2023-08-06) (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

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.

Playing career

Gilbert 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

Gilbert was a pro scout and goaltending coach for the New York Islanders from 1996 to 2001.[11]

Later life and death

Gilles Gilbert latterly resided in Quebec City. He died on August 6, 2023, at the age of 74.[12]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

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

  1. ↑ "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.
  2. ↑ Kreiser, John (February 10, 2020). "Feb. 11: Beliveau Scores 500th NHL Goal". National Hockey League. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
  3. ↑ https://phillyhockeynow.com/2023/08/08/gilles-gilbert-goalie-the-flyers-defeated-in-cup-finals-dies-at-74-rick-macleish-boston-bruins-1974/
  4. ↑ https://vault.si.com/vault/1974/05/27/jubilation-and-a-cup-in-philly
  5. ↑ "1976: Boston goalie Gilles Gilbert extends his NHL-record". Chicago Tribune. February 29, 2000.
  6. ↑ Farber, Michael. "Too Many Men". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved March 9, 2015.
  7. ↑ "Guy Lafleur on Gilles Gilbert and famed blast for 1979 playoff goal: "I think I ruined his career." | the Province". January 6, 2012.
  8. ↑ 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.
  9. ↑ "Today In Canucks History". Vancouver Canucks. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  10. ↑ "N.H.L. Scoreboard: Brodeur Passes Hainsworth to Become Undisputed Shutout King". New York Times. December 31, 2009. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  11. ↑ https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/113927/gilles-gilbert
  12. ↑ Allen, Kevin (August 6, 2023). "Former Red Wings Goaltender Gilbert Dies at 74". Detroit Hockey Now. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
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