Original Blue Noel Picard passes away

ST. LOUIS - The St. Louis Blues organization is saddened to learn of the passing of original Blue Noel Picard, who passed away Wednesday after a long battle with cancer.
Picard played for the Blues from 1967 until 1973, playing in 278 regular season games and registering 12 goals, 46 assists (58 points) and 583 penalty minutes. Picard also played in 47 playoff games for the Blues, including the club's first three appearances in the Stanley Cup Final.

In the early years of the franchise, Picard played as a defense partner with Bob Plager, who provided the following statement after learning of the passing of his friend:
"Noel was one of the best friends and teammates that I had here. He gave me a chance to be a better player. He made a lot of us better players and our success in the playoffs in those early years, he was a big, big part of us being successful. He was a player that gave a lot of our players a chance to become better players. I know he made a better player of me.
"Everybody knew Noel Picard. Everybody in this city from those days will have a Noel Picard story. He was around the city, everybody loved him and everybody talked about him. They all had stories, and some of them could be a little crazy, but those were the true ones."