Rousseau played valuable, unheralded role in Canadiens dynasty

Legendary hockey reporter and analyst Stan Fischler writes a weekly scrapbook for NHL.com. Fischler, known as The Hockey Maven, will share his knowledge, brand of humor and insights with readers each week.

Once a month, he will let a picture from his vast collection do the talking in his "Picture is Worth 100 Words" feature. Today, Stan features Bobby Rousseau, a forward who excelled for the Montreal Canadiens for a decade before concluding his NHL career with the Minnesota North Stars and New York Rangers.

Bobby Rousseau (in white, shooting at New York Rangers goalie Ed Giacomin) had family pride to uphold.

His brothers, Rollie and Guy, had cups of coffee with the Montreal Canadiens. But Bobby, playing in the shadow of Jean Beliveau and a host of future Hockey Hall of Famers, helped the Canadiens win the Stanley Cup four times (1965, 1966, 1968, 1969) in a span of five seasons.

Rousseau was voted winner of the Calder Trophy as the NHL's top rookie in 1961-62, relying on a big shot, breakaway speed and savvy. He also was the only player between 1955 and 1968 to score five goals in a game (against the Detroit Red Wings on Feb. 1, 1964).

After 10 seasons with the Canadiens, Rousseau played for the Minnesota North Stars in 1970-71, then moved on to the New York Rangers for four seasons before retiring after the 1974-75 season. He was a big reason Rangers reached the Stanley Cup Final in 1972, scoring 21 goals during the regular season and finishing with 17 points (six goals, 11 assists) in 16 playoff games.

(P.S. After his hockey career ended, Rousseau turned to his other passion -- he became a golf pro and course owner.)