Geoffrion, Bernard ("Boom Boom")
Hockey
b. Feb. 14, 1931, Montreal, Quebec
One of the first players to use the slap shot as a primary scoring weapon, Geoffrion was a major player on the Montreal Canadiens' formidable power play during the 1950s. Usually a right wing, Geoffrion played the point on the power play because of his blistering shot. Even if it didn't go in the net, it was so hard for a goalie to control that the rebounds often set up easy shots for his teammates.
When he was fourteen, an assistant coach on his junior hockey team told him to forget the sport because he'd never make it to the NHL. That simply made Geoffrion more determined than ever and five years later he went to the Canadiens without ever playing in the minor leagues.
After 18 games in 1950-51, Geoffrion won the Calder Trophy as the league's outstanding rookie the following season and he won the Hart Trophy as the most valuable player in 1955. In 1960-61 he became the second player in history to score 50 goals in a season (the first was teammate Rocket Richard).
A freak injury in a 1958 practice session sent Geoffrion to the hospital with a ruptured bowel. He was given the last rites of the Catholic church and, after emergency surgery saved his life, he was told to forget about hockey until the following season. Less than six weeks later, he was on the ice for the Stanley Cup final series against Boston. In the sixth game, he scored the first Montreal goal, assisted on the second, and scored the winner in a victory that brought the Canadiens their third straight Stanley Cup.
Geoffrion retired in 1964 but returned to hockey with the New York Rangers in 1966 to play two more seasons. He became coach of the Rangers in 1968 but stomach problems forced him to quit before the season was over and he moved into the front office. In 1972, he went to the expansion Atlanta Flames as head coach but again quit abruptly.
In his 16 NHL seasons, Geoffrion scored 393 goals and had 429 assists in 883 games. He had 58 goals and 60 assists in 132 playoff games.