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Jean Béliveau scored his 500th goal on February 11, 1971.
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Jean Béliveau with Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe Trophy, 1965.
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The hockey and sporting world is mourning the passing of Jean Béliveau (right: sitting in the locker room showing the puck that signified his 500th goal / Montreal Gazette), the legendary Montreal Canadiens centre who in his later life was revered as an ambassador of the game.
Béliveau — a key member of several Montreal hockey dynasties — died on December 2, 2014, at the age of 83.
As a player, the lanky Quebecer won the Stanley Cup ten times, and notched another seven cups as a hockey executive. Read the full biography of the man Canadiens fans affectionately called “Le Gros Bill.”
For a glimpse of what made Béliveau so great, watch this short video (segment on Béliveau begins at 4:20).
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