MONTREAL (AP) — Ken Dryden, the Hall of Fame goaltender who helped the Montreal Canadiens win six Stanley Cup titles in the 1970s, has died after a fight with cancer. He was 78.
The Canadiens announced the death early Saturday, saying Dryden’s family asked for privacy. A team spokesperson said a close friend of Dryden’s appointed by the family contacted the organization, adding he died peacefully Friday at his home.
“Ken Dryden was an exceptional athlete, but he was also an exceptional man,” Canadiens owner Geoff Molson said. “Behind the mask he was larger than life. We mourn today not only the loss of the cornerstone of one of hockey’s greatest dynasties but also a family man, a thoughtful citizen and a gentleman who deeply impacted our lives and communities across generations.”
Dryden backstopped the NHL’s most successful franchise to championships in six of his eight seasons in the league from 1970-71 to ’78-79. He won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year, the Vezina as the best goalie five times and the Conn Smythe as playoff MVP in 1971, while being a six-time All-Star.
“Ken embodied the best of everything the Montreal Canadiens are about,” Molson said.
Known for resting his blocker and glove hands on top of his stick in a relaxed manner that became one of hockey’s most recognizable poses, the 6-foot-4 Dryden retired at just 31 in 1979.
Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983, he amassed a record of 258-57-74 with a .922 save percentage, 2.24 goals-against average and 46 shutouts in just over seven NHL campaigns, and went an eye-popping 80-32 in the playoffs.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney he was “deeply saddened to learn of the passing of the Hon. Ken Dryden, a Canadian hockey legend and hall of famer, public servant and inspiration.”
“Few Canadians have given more, or stood taller, for our country,” Carney said. “Ken Dryden was Big Canada. And he was Best Canada. Rest in peace.”
From Hamilton, Ontario, Dryden played three seasons at Cornell University from 1966-69, leading the Big Red to the 1967 NCAA title. He also was a cornerstone of Canada’s 1972 Summit Series team that defeated the Soviet Union.
Dryden entered the NHL in 1971 and spent just six games in the crease before making his NHL postseason debut. He and Montreal went on to upset rival Boston in the first round and beat Chicago in the final.
He also worked at a Toronto firm while sitting out the 1973-74 NHL season — after previously earning a law degree at Montreal’s McGill University.
After retiring as a player, he went into broadcasting and wrote “The Game,” one of the best known books about the sport, after publishing “Face-off at the Summit” as part of an accomplished career as an author.
Dryden served as president of the Toronto Maple Leafs from 1997 through 2004 — a stretch accented by trips to the Eastern Conference final in both 1999 and 2002 — before resigning to enter politics. He ran for the federal Liberals in 2004 and was named minister of social development in Prime Minister Paul Martin’s cabinet.
Dryden, who also taught at various universities across Canada, held onto his seat in Toronto’s York Centre riding in 2006 when the Liberals were ousted, and again in 2008, but lost in 2011.
Dryden is survived by wife Lynda and their two children
Brother Dave Dryden was a longtime NHL and WHA goalie. He died in 2022 at the age of 81.
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