Family Ties: The Montreal Canadiens Edition

Perhaps the Habs just can't help it. They're the oldest team in the league and the most successful.

Les Glorieux.

Le Bleu, Blanc et Rouge.

Generations of little boys have dreamed of someday pulling on that jersey and stepping onto the ice.

And some families have made playing for the Canadiens a tradition.

The Morenz–Geoffrion clan have gone even a step beyond that. Ready for this one?

Canadiens tough guy Billy Coutu's sister-in-law was the mother of Howie Morenz's wife, Mary. Howie and Mary's daughter Marlene married Habs star and future Hall of Famer Bernie “Boom Boom” Geoffrion.

Bernie and Marlene are the parents of Danny, who spent one season with the Habs. Danny’s son Blake is currently playing for the University of Wisconsin-Madison and was drafted by the Nashville Predators. If Blake plays in the NHL, he'll be the fourth generation of the Morenz-Geoffrion family to play professional hockey.  Whether or not he plays for the Canadiens remains to be seen.

The Canadiens acknowledged the family relationship in a unique way during the retirement ceremony for Geoffrion's number. Morenz’s banner was lowered halfway to the ice and Geoffrion’s raised to meet it. The two banners were then raised the rest of the way together.

Without further ado, here are the rest of the family ties (the years played with the Canadiens are in parenthesis):

The Brothers

Georges (1910-1927) and Pierre Vezina (1911-1912) are generally accepted as the first siblings to play for the Canadiens.  However, because it was the early wild days of the NHA, a lot of records are unclear or missing altogether. It is a certainty that Pierre was brought along to practice with the team; whether it was to prevent Georges from jumping to the PCHA or just a contract stipulation by Georges is unclear. There is a single reference to Pierre playing one game, but the entire time he was practising with the Canadiens he was still the property of Club de Hockey de Chicoutimi and was never signed to a contract with the Canadiens. First or not? I’ll let you decide.

Sprague (1921-25) and Odie (1918-25) Cleghorn won a Stanley Cup together in 1924 and 1925. Sprague was one of the most feared defenseman of his time, while Odie provided the offense. Close to the end, they died within days of each other.

Billy (1921-27) and Bobby (1923-24) Boucher only played one season together, but it was enough to get their names engraved on Lord Stanley's Cup.

Aurèle (1922-38) and René (one game, 1924-25) Joliat got to play just one professional game together.

Pit (1925-26 partial; 1926-1938) and Hec (1925-26) Lépine got to play on the same line during the 1925-26 season.

Georges (1928-41) and Sylvio (1923-36) Mantha demonstrated excellent versatility: they both played defense and right wing.

Jean (1935-36) and Conrad (1935-36) Bourcier will only be recognised by the most die-hard fans: Conrad only played six games and big brother Jean played nine.

Ken (1940-42; 1945-50) and Terry (1941-43) Reardon got to play together in 1941-42.

Maurice (1942-60) and Henri (1955-1975) Richard are arguably the most famous brothers in hockey, and the most successful Habs family, with 19 championship seasons between them.

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