Lucien Deblois

Lucien DeBlois was one of the top junior Canadian hockey stars of the mid 1970s so it was no surprise when he was selected eighth overall by the New York Rangers in the 1977 NHL Amateur Draft.

DeBlois had a four-year major junior career with the Sorel Black Hawks of the QMJHL. As a 16-year-old, he played in 56 games, scoring 30 goals and 35 assists for 65 points in 1973-74. He followed that up the next year with 46 goals and 53 assists for 99 points in 72 games. Playing in 70 games in 1975-76, DeBlois poured in 56 goals while picking up 55 assists for a 111-point season. By now he had caught the attention of many professional scouts. In his final junior year, DeBlois was ever bit as dominant an offensive performer as he'd been the previous years. He again collected 56 goals and increased his assists total to 78, giving him an impressive 131 points for the year.

Despite also being selected in the first round, ninth overall by the Quebec Nordiques of the WHA, DeBlois had always dreamed of playing in the NHL. He suited up for 71 games with the Rangers and scored 22 goals and eight assists for a 30-point rookie campaign.

After a disappointing offensive sophomore year, which saw him score just six goals for the Rangers, he was sent to the Colorado Rockies early in the 1979-80 season. He had seasons with 24 and 26 goals on a very bad team.

The year 1981 began a three-year stint with the Winnipeg Jets. During the 1983-84 season, DeBlois registered his best offensive season in the league, scoring 34 times while assisting on 45 others for a 79-point total in a full 80-game season.

DeBlois joined his fourth NHL team in the fall of 1984, signing with the Montreal Canadiens. He remained there for two seasons and helped the Habs to victory over the Calgary Flames in the 1986 Stanley Cup championship.

The next stop for DeBlois was a second tour of duty with the New York Rangers, the club that drafted him nine years earlier. This time around DeBlois had legitimate playing time, playing in more than 70 games in two of the three seasons. But by now it was evident that his offensive skills were eroding. He managed to score just 18 goals in 147 games.

DeBlois then played for a little more than a season with the Nordiques, the other team that drafted him while they were an organization in the now-defunct WHA. In his single full season with Quebec, DeBlois scored nine goals and added eight assists.

Early in the 1990-91 season he was shipped to the Toronto Maple Leafs, one of the league's worst teams at the time. DeBlois got off to a quick start, scoring ten goals and 12 assists in 38 games. However, he could only muster eight goals after 58 games the following season before being shipped back to Winnipeg late in early 1992. His NHL career would come to an end following a short eleven-game stint in Manitoba.

DeBlois retired having played in 993 NHL games, scoring 249 goals and 276 assists for 525 points and one Stanley Cup ring. DeBlois is now a pro scout with the Anaheim Mighty Ducks.