Marcel Elphège Dionne (dee-OHN; born August 3, 1951) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre. He played 18 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings and New York Rangers between 1971 and 1989.
Dionne played five seasons of junior hockey before being drafted by Detroit in 1971, where he immediately made the major league roster. His 77 points in his rookie season set the record for most points for a player in their first NHL season. He recorded his first 100-point season in the 1974–75 season, which saw him win the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy for the first time for his sportsmanship and named to the first of his eight selections to the NHL All-Star Game. Conflicts with management led to him signing as a free agent with the Kings in 1975. The 1976–77 season saw him record his first 50-goal season, and he would record five consecutive 50-goal seasons from 1978 to 1983, becoming the third player to do so in NHL history; he won the Art Ross Trophy as the leading scorer in the 1979–80 season. He was awarded the Lester B. Pearson Award for his play as voted by his peers in 1979 and 1980. In 1982, he became the ninth NHL player to score 500 goals. He was traded late in the 1986–87 season to the Rangers, where he recorded his 700th goal and 1,000th assist before he was cut prior to the 1989 season.
A prolific scorer, he recorded 50 goals or more in a season six times, and 100 points or more in a season eight times during his career. His 731 goals rank as sixth most in NHL history and is the most for a player who never reached or won a Stanley Cup. He was the third player with 1,000 career assists when he retired. Internationally, Dionne played for the Canadian national team at two Canada Cups and three World Championships, winning the Canada Cup once in 1976. Dionne was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1992. In 2017, Dionne was named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in history.
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Early life
Dionne was born on August 3, 1951, in Drummondville, Quebec, Canada to Gilbert Sr. and Laurette Dionne. He was the oldest of eight children, and his youngest brother Gilbert was 19 years his junior. Growing up, his father worked as a foreman at a steel plant while his mother ran a corner store and beauty salon with her children's help. Due to limited finances, Dionne's extended family pitched in to help cover the costs of his hockey equipment. He played baseball as a youth as well, but chose to focus solely on hockey due to lack of prospects for Canadian baseball players.
Playing career
Junior career
Dionne played in the 1962, 1963 and 1964 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournaments with his Drummondville youth team. During his pee-wee career, Dionne garnered widespread attention from hockey teams and fans. He would often find dollar bills stuffed in his gloves from fans, and his parents received a letter from the Montreal Canadiens informing them to "take special care of young Marcel." His short stature earned him the nickname "little beaver," a reference to a popular midget wrestler. At the age of 14, Dionne was voted the first star of the 1966 Cornwall International Bantam "A" Tournament after scoring 21 points in four games.
While playing with the Drummondville Rangers, Dionne earned the attention of scouts from the St. Catharines Black Hawks of the Ontario Hockey Association (OHA). While the Montreal Canadiens invited him to attend one of their junior camps, Dionne chose to move to St. Catharines and learn English in 1968. This sparked outrage among locals who threatened legal action if Dionne tried to move leagues. On advice from a lawyer, Dionne's parents pretended to separate, and Dionne moved to St. Catharines with his mother, brother, and three sisters. While he played in six of the Black Hawks' seven exhibition games, he was still ineligible to play in the OHA regular season without permission from the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA). The CAHA executive and branch presidents voted "by a narrow margin" to allow Dionne to play in the OHA. One of the Black Hawks' compelling arguments was that Dionne was already enrolled in Grade 13, which was not available in Quebec. He made his OHA regular season debut on October 18, 1968 against the Niagara Falls Flyers. Dionne finished his rookie season second in league scoring with 37 goals and 63 assists for 100 points. His points total set a new rookie scoring record, and he received the league's Rookie of the Year award.
When Dionne returned to the Black Hawks for his sophomore season, he won the league's scoring title and was named to the OHA's 1969–70 Second All-Star Team. He finished the regular season with 55 goals and 77 assists for 132 points. Dionne was named team captain in his final season with the Black Hawks before the start of the 1970–71 season. Despite missing 14 games, he improved upon his previous two seasons and finished with 62 goals and 81 assists. During the 1971 Richardson Cup finals against the Quebec Remparts, Dionne's Black Hawks' team bus was attacked by a mob after Game 4. The team laid on the floor of the bus as the mob outside lobbed bottles at the bus's windows. As such, the fifth game was played at a neutral site and the Black Hawks forfeited the remainder of the series due to fears of further violence.
Professional career
Following the draft, Dionne signed a rookie contract with the Red Wings for a record-breaking amount with various bonuses. While the exact terms were not released, his bargaining agent Alan Eagleson said: "If Marcel gets as many goals as I think he can, he'll be paid like a super-star...No matter what he does, he's got the best contract in the history of the league for a rookie." It was speculated that the amount was $50,000 with incentive clauses which could add another $15,000 to $20,000. Despite having a self-proclaimed "poor training camp," Dionne was named to the Red Wings opening roster for the 1971–72 season. He made his NHL debut on October 9, 1971, in the teams season opener against the Minnesota North Stars. He recorded his first career NHL goal on October 16, 1971, in a 9–2 loss to the St. Louis Blues. While the Red Wings began the season with a losing 2–5-0 record, Dionne scored three goals and two assists. Dionne spent the majority of his rookie season playing on a line with Bill Collins and Nick Libett. By January, he had earned more on ice responsibility and was part of the Red Wings' power-play and penalty kill unit. While playing in this dual role, Dionne ranked third on the team in scoring and 22nd in the league. He also set numerous personal and league-wide milestones in March. He recorded his first career NHL hat-trick on March 19, 1972, in a 7–6 win over the Montreal Canadiens. He then assisted on four goals the following game to tie with Rick Martin of Buffalo Sabres for 13th place on the NHL scoring list. Dionne added two goals and two assists in his next game to break the NHL record for most points by a rookie. He finished the regular season as the Red Wings' leading scorer with 28 goals and 49 assists and finished third in Calder Memorial Trophy voting as the NHL's top rookie. During the offseason, Dionne signed a three-year contract extension with the Red Wings and was the youngest player on Team Canada at the Summit Series.
Due to the Summit Series, Dionne missed the entire training camp and returned to Detroit three days before the 1972–73 season opener. The Red Wings began the season with a six-game win streak before losing four straight games. Following the fourth consecutive loss, head coach Johnny Wilson mandated a two-hour bag skate. However, both Wilson and general manager Ned Harkness felt that Dionne was not giving enough effort. Following the skate, Harkness told the media, "If he keeps it up and doesn't start working, he might find himself playing in the minors." While Harkness later said he was misquoted, Dionne expressed his frustration that he spoke to the media instead of having a conversation with him. On December 2, Dionne scored one goal and three assists in his 100th career NHL game. This tied him with Richard Martin and Fred Stanfield for seventh place in league scoring. However, his earlier conflicts with management continued into December and resulted in a suspension. Following a 7–0 loss to the Minnesota North Stars on December 9, Wilson mandated a morning practice before their game against the Vancouver Canucks. After Wilson called out Dionne for a perceived lack of effort, he told him to "go home and stay there until he felt he could come back and make a contribution to the team." Due to a miscommunication as to the meaning of that order, Dionne assumed he had been suspended and missed their game that night. However, the Red Wings claimed he had not been suspended until he failed to show for that evening's game. Immediately following their game against the Canucks, Harkness handed out a press released that said that Dionne was “suspended indefinitely (without pay) for failing to report for the game.” Despite this statement, Dionne was reinstated the following day after a discussion with the coaching staff. After rejoining the team, Dionne scored his second career hat-trick against the Canadiens on February 22, 1973. By the end of February, he had amassed 36 goals and 76 points. Dionne finished the regular season tied with Dennis Hull for 11th in league scoring with 90 points. His 167 total career points were the most ever collected by an NHL player through their first two seasons.
Retirement and legacy
When Dionne retired, he was second all-time in goals and third all-time in assists and points. He was the first player to record seven 100-point seasons in NHL history, recording his seventh in the 1982–83 season. His eight 100-point seasons has only been surpassed by three other players in league history. Success, alongside roster consistency, eluded Dionne in the playoffs, as he played for sixteen different coaches in his eighteen seasons in the NHL and he played in just 49 playoff games.
Dionne has maintained a large business and investment portfolio since his playing days, owning the Blue Line Diner in Niagara Falls, operating a sports memorabilia store in Buffalo and buying and selling real estate. On November 8, 1990, his number 16 jersey was retired by the Kings, the second player to be honored by the team. He was the franchise leader in goals (550) and assists (757) until he was passed by Luc Robitaille and Anže Kopitar, respectively.
Dionne was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1992. Prior to the start of the 1993–94 season, Dionne helped to create local interest in the ECHL's newest franchise, the South Carolina Stingrays. With the help of some young players, Dionne gave an on-ice demonstration of the rules of hockey to the southern audience. In 1998, he was ranked number 38 on The Hockey News' list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players, the highest-ranking player to have not won a Stanley Cup since 2001 when No. 14-ranked Ray Bourque won with the Colorado Avalanche. The Centre Civique arena in Drummondville was renamed Centre Marcel-Dionne in his honour in 1980. In January 2004, Dionne was featured on a Canadian postage stamp. As part of the NHL All-Stars Collection, Dionne was immortalized along with five other All-Stars.
Personal life
Dionne married St. Catharines native Carol Gaudet in Troy, Michigan in April 1974. They have three children together, two sons and one daughter. After he retired, the Dionne's settled in Buffalo and his sons, Drew and Garrett, played Junior B hockey for the Niagara Falls Canucks.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Bold indicates led league
Awards and honours
OHA
2× Eddie Powers Memorial Trophy winner – 1969–70, 1970–71
OHA Second All-Star Team – 1969–70
OHA First All-Star Team – 1970–71
NHL
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy – 1975, 1977
Lester B. Pearson Award – 1979, 1980
Art Ross Trophy – 1980
NHL All-Star Game – 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1985
NHL First All-Star Team – 1977, 1980
NHL Second All-Star Team – 1979, 1981
Ice Hockey World Championships Best Forward selection – 1978
Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1992