“I had to learn to make moves faster, but coach Blake corrected a habit I had of getting rid of the puck too soon,” Laperriere said, considering his 1963-64 rookie season that saw him also named to the NHL’s Second All-Star Team.
“He schooled me to hold onto it longer behind the line, then make a play. It helped me a lot, and I felt my bodychecking also improved later in the season.”
NHL President Clarence Campbell almost never remarked on the merits of a player, but he made an exception during the 1964 semifinal between the Canadiens and Maple Leafs.
“It’s fantastic the way Laperriere has taken over as the Canadiens leader,” Campbell told Montreal Star columnist Red Fisher. “I can’t ever remember someone that young taking over the way he has.”
Now, six decades after Laperriere first patrolled Montreal’s blue line, Hutson becomes the second defenseman on the team to win the Calder Trophy.
Top photo: Defenseman Lane Hutson, seen here at Bell Centre in April 2025, is the seventh member of the Montreal Canadiens to be voted winner of the Calder Trophy, which was photographed here at the Hockey Hall of Fame Resource Centre in November 2024.
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