Claude Lemieux, the four-time Stanley Cup champion whose ferocious, hard-hitting style of play angered opponents and sometimes overshadowed his prodigious skills and ability to deliver in the biggest games, has died. He was 60.
The NHL Alumni Assn. announced Lemieux’s death in a post on social media Thursday. A cause of death was not immediately available, nor was it clear where Lemieux was when he died.
Just three days ago, Lemieux was the Montreal Canadiens’ torch bearer prior to Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Final at Bell Centre on Monday night. Former teammate Chris Nilan reposted a photo of him, Lemieux and Sergio Momesso from the arena with the message: “You never know when you’re going to see someone for the last time. Rest in Peace, Mon Ami.”
“Today is a dark day for the Canadiens family and the entire hockey community,” Canadiens owner Geoff Molson said. “A fierce competitor who rose to the occasion in big moments, Claude was a relentless, courageous and tenacious player who led the team to the highest honors. He embodied the very essence of being a Montreal Canadiens player. Today we mourn the untimely passing of one of our champions. Our thoughts are with his family on this difficult day.”
As a player, Lemieux was a mix of talent and abrasiveness, not afraid to cross the line in the name of competition.
He won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP after scoring 13 goals in 20 games for the New Jersey Devils to help them win their first championship in 1995.
A year later with the Colorado Avalanche, he was suspended for two games for a hit from behind on Detroit’s Kris Draper that fueled one of the nastiest rivalries in the history of the NHL. Lemieux returned to score the first goal in Game 3 of the final against Florida on the way to the Avalanche sweeping the Panthers to win the Stanley Cup for the first time in their first season since moving from his native Quebec.
Darren McCarty, a truculent member of the Red Wings who had multiple fights with Lemieux, posted a broken heart emoji on social media and heard the news from Draper. McCarty said Lemieux the person was totally different than the player, and the two later met for an interview with smiles about their clashes.
“Sad day: another brother gone,” McCarty said in a video message posted to YouTube. “If you’re struggling out there, no matter what, just reach out for some help. It can never be that bad. It’s a sad day, no matter what. Rest in peace, Claude.”
Lemieux also won the Cup with Montreal in 1986 and returned to the Devils to be a part of their title run in 2000. He played 1,449 regular-season and playoff games with six different teams from 1983-2009, finishing with Phoenix, Dallas and San José.
His 80 career playoff goals rank ninth in league history. Commissioner Gary Bettman called Lemieux “one of the greatest big-game players in hockey history.”
Lemieux had become an agent in the years since his playing career ended and represented Carolina’s Frederik Andersen, New Jersey’s Timo Meier, Detroit’s Moritz Seider and Boston’s Hampus Lindholm among more than a dozen clients in the NHL.
Part of a hockey family, Lemieux’s brother Jocelyn and son Brendan also played in the league. Brendan’s feisty style over more than 300 games most resembled his father’s.
At a gathering in December to celebrate the 30-year anniversary of Colorado’s ’96 Stanley Cup championship, Lemieux said of winning, “When it’s happening, when you’re in the middle of it, you don’t quite appreciate it as much as you should.” Late former teammate Chris Simon was represented during the on-ice ceremony by his children. He died in 2024 at 52.
“It’s very difficult, and especially with Chris passing at such a young age,” Lemieux said. “We have to count our blessings — be grateful for the days that we have and enjoy and appreciate those times when we get together.”
Whyno writes for the Associated Press. AP writer Pat Graham in Denver contributed to this report.
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