But Michel Briere was the Penguins' star that never really was.
Briere only played one season, 1969-70. He came out of nowhere to electrify.
Briere was a third-round pick from Malartic, a town in northern Quebec. He played junior hockey for Shawinigan, Quebec, piling up 75 goals and 86 assists in his final junior campaign, 1968-69. Briere was a slightly built center, just 5-foot-10, 165 pounds. But he could skate fast and make the puck dance. He possessed amazing vision.
"Everywhere he went to play, he was on top of the game all time," said Rejean Houle, formerly of the Montreal Canadiens and the first pick overall in the '69 NHL draft (Briere went 26th overall). "He was bit of a small center at the time, like Henri Richard. Like Dave Keon."
Briere led the Penguins in assists as a rookie, dishing 32. He tacked on 12 goals, totaling 46 points in 76 games.
But Briere really broke out in the playoffs, scoring five goals and adding three assists in 10 post-season games.
The Penguins, in their third season, made the playoffs for the first time and even won a series, sweeping Oakland four games to none in the first round. Briere's overtime goal in Game 4 finished off the Seals.
The Penguins' year ended when they lost to St. Louis in six games in the Eastern Division final. That was the closest they came to the Stanley Cup Final until winning the trophy in 1991.
"The first thing you noticed at training camp was how determined he was for a small guy," said Ken Schinkel, who played for the Penguins from 1967-73. "This guy was the type of player you could maybe build your team around. He would have been a star in the league for a long time."
But it was not to be.
Briere wrecked his car in Val d'Or, Quebec, on May 15, 1970. He suffered major head trauma and died on April 13, 1971, after four brain surgeries and 11 months in a coma. He was 21. His funeral in Montreal was attended by Penguins GM Jack Riley, Coach Red Kelly, equipment manager Ken Carson and three other representatives from the team.
Les Binkley was the Penguins' goaltender on the '69-70 team. "You're always reminded about it, what would have happened if he'd been here with the team," said Binkley.
Briere's legacy lives on.
His No. 21 is one of two numbers retired by the Penguins, the other being Lemieux's No. 66. The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League's MVP is named after Briere. (Lemieux won it in '84, Sidney Crosby in '04 and '05.) The Penguins' rookie of the year award likewise carries Briere's name.
Briere's No. 21 hangs in the rafters of PPG Paints Arena. The banner carries the Penguins' colors of the era, blue and white. One wonders how many of those seeing it know who Briere was.
They should take the time to find out. Briere left his mark during his one season with the Penguins, and would have had a special career if fate hadn't intervened.
Mark Madden hosts a radio show 3-6 p.m. weekdays on WXDX-FM (105.9).
