A Little Patience
Before he became the defining talent of his generation, Guy Lafleur was a bust. e first overall pick in 1971, he joined the
Canadiens that fall bearing the weight of massive expectations. He’d scored 233 goals – that’s not a typo – in his final two seasons of junior hockey with the Quebec Remparts, leading Montreal’s faithful to expect the flashy winger to instantly take the place of Jean Beliveau, who’d retired the previous spring.
It didn’t work out that way – how could anyone replace a legend of Beliveau’s stature? – and while Lafleur put up a perfectly reasonable 64 points as a rookie he was subjected to relentless criticism for inconsistency and failing to deliver on his vast promise.
When he followed up with seasons of 55, and 56 points, respectively, there was loud criticism of his selection, with many voices suggesting GM Sam Pollock should have taken Marcel Dionne (who put up 90 points as a sophomore in Detroit) over Lafleur.
You probably know what happened next. In 1974-75, his fourth season in the NHL, Lafleur finally evolved into Le Démon Blond, authoring the first of six consecutive 50-goal seasons on his way to becoming one of the most creative, entertaining, and beloved players of all time.
I thought of that painstakingly slow transformation in the days following Lafleur’s passing. Here was a player who came into the league facing impossible demands from an unforgiving fan base, but who persevered through early struggles to ultimately realize his massive potential. e talent and desire were always there. All he needed was the patience to allow him to put it all together.
If today’s hobby had existed back then, it’s easy to imagine Lafleur’s cards starting at stratospheric levels before slowly falling out of favor with all but the most dedicated collectors. And what a mistake that would have been.
Lafleur’s long journey is instructive as we consider the development of Shane Wright, the capable center who should become a Canadien as the top pick in the 2022 dra. Or Alexis Lafreniere. Or Jack Hughes. None of these players is likely to become the next Lafleur. But they, along with so many other young hopefuls, are on a journey that is well worth the time and attention of collectors.
All they need is a little patience.