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Mario Tremblay

Mario Tremblay
Born (1956-09-02) September 2, 1956 (age 60)
Alma, Quebec, Canada
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb)
Position Right Wing
Shot Right
Played for NHL
Montreal Canadiens
NHL Draft 12th overall, 1974
Montreal Canadiens
Playing career 1974–1986

Joseph Daniel Mario Tremblay (born September 2, 1956 in Alma, Quebec) is a former professional ice hockey player and former coach in the National Hockey League (NHL). He was honoured by his hometown of Alma, which named its local arena "Le Centre Mario-Tremblay". Since 1981, Tremblay has owned the sports bar in his hometown called "Bar-Restaurant chez Mario Tremblay".

Tremblay, nicknamed "Le bleuet bionique" (The Bionic Blueberry), played with the Montreal Canadiens for his entire NHL playing career (1974 to 1986), winning five Stanley Cup championships with the team as a player in 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, and 1986. In 852 regular season games in the NHL, he scored 258 goals and added 326 assists for 584 points, with 1043 penalty minutes. He scored the winning goal in game six of the 1978 Stanley Cup finals, giving the cup to the Canadiens. He was the winner of the Molson Cup for the 1982-83 season. Tremblay is 10th on the Montreal Canadiens all-time list for plus-minus at 184.

Tremblay was hired four games into the 1995–96 season as head coach of the Canadiens although he had no previous coaching experience. As coach, he developed a long running dispute with star goaltender Patrick Roy, which eventually led to Roy's departure from Montreal. The two had almost come to blows in a Long Island coffee shop before Tremblay was announced as a coach and his first appearance in the dressing room was greeted with snickers from Roy. They almost fought a second time after Tremblay fired a shot at Roy's throat during practice.

Tremblay kept Patrick Roy in net during a December 2, 1995, game versus the Detroit Red Wings, in which the Wings scored nine goals on Roy, who was jeered by the Montreal fans. Roy stormed off the ice and told team president Ronald Corey that it was the last game he would play for the Canadiens. Four days later, Roy was traded to Colorado with captain Mike Keane for Jocelyn Thibault, Martin Rucinsky and Andrei Kovalenko. Roy went on to lead the Avalanche to the Stanley Cup twice before retiring. The rivalry would continue into the coaching ranks, as Roy would later (on October 15, 2013) tie Tremblay's record for longest winning streak (six games) to begin an NHL coaching career.


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