Can Lafrenière be the best French-Canadian Ranger ever?

Other notables

There were some other notable French-Canadians who have worn the Rangers’ uniform.  None of them are in the Hall of Fame, but they had solid careers in New York.

Theo Fleury

Theo Fleury was not born in Quebec as he was a native of Oxbow, Saskatchewan, but he was French-Canadian and was one of the top goal scorers of the 1990s.  He was one of the most sought after free agents when the Rangers signed him in 1999 and he played three turbulent seasons in New York. In his best season he scored 30 goals, but was dogged by substance abuse issues, entering the NHL’s assistance program twice in three years.

Fleury retired with 455 career goals and 1,088 points, both good for 58th on the all-time NHL list.

Pierre Larouche

Pierre Larouche was a gifted goal scorer who just missed becoming the second 50 goal scorer in franchise history when he scored 48 goals in 1983-84.  That’s still a Rangers franchise record for a center. He was the first NHL player to score 50 goals for two different teams, the Penguins in 1976 and Montreal in 1980.

Larouche was signed as a free agent by the Rangers in 1983 after a contract dispute with the Hartford Whalers.  He had been limited by a back injury while with the Whalers and the Bluehshirts jumped at the chance to sign him when he passed his physical.

A native of Taschereau, Quebec, Larouche played four years for the Rangers before back issues forced him to retire.  He scored 123 goals in 253 games for the Rangers.

Carol Vadnais

Carol Vadnais came to New York along with Phil Esposito in exchange for Jean Ratelle and Brad Park.  He went on to play seven seasons in New York as a solid defenseman, but he never came close to replacing Park, a future Hall of Fame defenseman.

The Montreal native ended his career with  587 points the fifth most by defenseman from Quebec Province.  His 1,087 games played is 10th most all-time among Quebec born defensemen.

Bobby Rousseau

Bobby Rousseau was a smooth skating forward who played his last three seasons as a power play specialist for the Rangers after ten years with Montreal and one year with the Minnesota North Stars.  He was acquired in a trade with Minnesota for Bob Nevin in 1971.  In 1972-73 he had 22 of his 45 points with the man advantage.

Montreal born, Rousseau was one of the first Rangers to wear a helmet and for years he and Bruce MacGregor were the only two players on the team to wear headgear.  He won the Calder Trophy in 1962 while with Montreal and was a four time Stanley Cup winner.

Phil Goyette

Phil Goyette was a gifted center who came to the Rangers in a blockbuster trade in 1963.  The Blueshirts sent Gump Worlsey, Dave Balon, Leon Rochefort and Len Ronson to Montreal in exchange for Goyette , Don Marshall and Jacques Plante.

He played seven years in New York, helping a perennial losing team to credibility.  The Blueshirts had made the playoffs only once in 14 season, but by the late 1960s they were becoming an NHL powerhouse.  In his best season, he scored 25 goals in 1967-68

Camille Henry

Born in Quebec City, Camille Henry was a New York Ranger for 12 years and was a prolific and productive scorer. He topped the 20 goal mark eight times with a career high 32 goals in 1957-58.  He won the Calder Trophy in 1954 and was a first team all-star in 1958, winning the Lady Byng Trophy that season.  Note that he beat Jean Beliveau for best rookie honors.

Nicknamed “The Eel” because he was so elusive to check, he was also the smallest player in the NHL at 5’7″ and 150 pounds.  He served as the Rangers captain in 1964-65.  He remains the holder of the Rangers franchise career record for power play goals with 116 and he sixth all time with 256 goals.