Dec. 2: Beliveau dies at 83

THIS DATE IN HISTORY: Dec. 2
2014:The NHL loses one of its icons when Hockey Hall of Famer
Jean Beliveau
dies at age 83.

Beliveau's scoring totals (507 goals, 1,219 points in 1,125 NHL games, all with the Montreal Canadiens) are just part of what makes him one of hockey's most revered players. His grace on the ice makes hockey look easy, but his size and strength command respect from opponents. He's cherished by fans throughout Canada for his character as well as his performance on the ice.
Beliveau plays with two generations of stars in Montreal. In the 1950s, he's part of a team that includes
Maurice Richard
,
Doug Harvey
and
Jacques Plante
; in the 1960s, his teammates include Hall of Famers
Serge Savard
,
Yvan Cournoyer
and
Rogie Vachon
. Beliveau is part of Montreal's late-1950s team that wins the
Stanley Cup
five consecutive times, then serves as captain when the Canadiens win in
1965
,
'66
,
'68
,
'69
and
1971
.

Beliveau's final appearance is Game 7 of the 1971 Cup Final against the Chicago Black Hawks, when Montreal rallies after allowing the first two goals for a
3-2 victory
that gives him his 10th championship. The Hall of Fame waives its usual three-year waiting period and inducts him in 1972.
Beliveau's success continues after he retires. He is part of seven more championship teams while serving in Montreal's front office.

MORE MOMENTS
1909:The National Hockey Association, the predecessor of the NHL, is formed in Montreal. Charter members include the Montreal Wanderers, Renfrew Creamery Kings and the Montreal Canadiens.
1925:The New York Americans play their first NHL game, a
2-1 overtime win
against at the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Billy Burch
scores the first goal in Americans history and
Charlie Langlois
gets the winner at 3:10 of overtime.
1967:
Johnny Bucyk
scores two goals in
a 4-4 tie
against the Chicago Blackhawks to become the Boston Bruins all-time leading goal-scorer. It's his 230th in a Boston uniform, passing the mark of 229 goals held by
Milt Schmidt
. Bucyk finishes his NHL career in 1978 having scored 545 of his 556 goals with the Bruins.
1969:The NHL Board of Governors announces in New York that expansion franchises have been awarded to Buffalo and Vancouver. The new teams, the 13th and 14th members of the League, are to begin play in 1970-71.

1986:
Denis Potvin
of the New York Islanders becomes the first defenseman in NHL history to have 700 assists. He reaches the milestone with an assist (and scores a goal) in
New York's 3-3 tie with the Calgary Flames
at the Saddledome.
1995:The Detroit Red Wings match the most goals ever scored against the Canadiens when
they win 11-1
at the Forum.
Vyacheslav Kozlov
scores four goals,
Sergei Fedorov
has a goal and four assists, and
Igor Larionov
finishes with a goal and three assists in Detroit's most lopsided victory ever against Montreal. Canadiens goalie
Patrick Roy
allows nine goals before being lifted midway through the second period. Four days later, he's traded to the Colorado Avalanche.
Exactly 22 years later, the Canadiens get some revenge by
defeating the Red Wings 10-1
at Bell Centre, ending a five-game losing streak.
2015:The New York Rangers play their first game in Brooklyn when they face the New York Islanders at Barclays Center. Kyle Okposo scores on the first shot of the shootout and Jaroslav Halak stops all three shots he faces to give the Islanders
a 2-1 victory
. The win gives the Islanders a 9-4-2 mark in their first 15 games at their new home; they move to Brooklyn after playing their home games at Nassau Coliseum from 1972-2015.

2017: Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals moves up on two all-time NHL lists when he scores a second-period power-play goal in a
4-3 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets
at Capital One Arena. The goal is the 577th of Ovechkin's NHL career, tying him with Hockey Hall of Famer
Mark Recchi
for 20th place on the all-time list. It's also his 218th power-play goal, passing
Jaromir Jagr
and
Mike Gartner
for 10th place all-time.
2018:The Anaheim Ducks become the first team to rally from four goals down and defeat the reigning Stanley Cup champion when they
overtake the Capitals 6-5
at Capital One Arena. The Ducks trail 5-1 in the second period before scoring five unanswered goals, including the game-winner by
Pontus Aberg
with 5:05 remaining in the third period. Ryan Miller relieves John Gibson and makes 19 saves to earn his 374th NHL win, tying
John Vanbiesbrouck
for the most by a U.S.-born goalie in NHL history.
2019: The New York Islanders match a team record with 18 wins in their first 25 games by
defeating the Detroit Red Wings 4-1
at Little Caesars Arena. Jordan Eberle scores his first two goals of the season to help the Islanders equal the team mark set in 1978-79, when New York went on to finish first in the overall standings.