bruinsfan1970
Global Moderator
I remember watching him as a kid and his kick saves were just lightning quick. One of my favorite goalies of all time. RIP Gilles Gilbert!!!
In Memoriam Gilles Gilbert - R.I.P.
- Thread starter Gee Wally
- Start date
Repose en paix monsieur Gilbert. To young!
Gilbert vs Parent in 74. A goaltending dual for the ages.
Maybe it was Sinden, maybe not. I do respect your opinion. My theory, and no more to believe mine than yours, is that Cherry had a problem with goalies. Cherry had trouble getting along with his goalies in Colorado, I remember that distinctly. Also, Cherry wasn't one to kow-tow to Harry. Cheevers had a 4.50 GAA against Montreal that season. Given Cheevers' problems in earlier seasons, as well as that season at the Forum, Cherry should have been very quick with the hook. Worst decision of Cherry's career, IMO.
Goalies in hockey and soccer, much like pitchers in BB, are different animals that the others. Cheevers, a favorite of Cherry's, was more hockey player than goalie, and I think that is why Cherry favored Cheevers. Also, Cherry didn't like that he thought that Gilbert was playing for a new contract more than for the team. That might have mattered for a skater, who could go for points and goals, not passing the puck or not backchecking, but I don't see how that could matter for a goalie. JMO.
Deedot
I'm your Huckelberry
Gilles Gilbert was my favorite goalie of all time. I loved his style, swagger & altheticism and his glove was one of the best in that era. I tried to model my game after him during my teen years in hockey. Such a sad day for Gilbert’s family and for the Bruins!
ShiftyNifty16
Blow it up, burn it down, hit reset and start over
Crushing heartbreak. Loved him, so many great childhood memories. R.I.P. dear man.
Remember Cheevers and Harry were together in Oklahoma City. Cherry admitted it was easier for him to have a few beers with Cheevers as well.
Gilbert, the born-again, found-again netminder was a story by himself. Sprawling, kicking, rolling on the ice, assaulted by 52 Canadiens shots — “The most shots I’ve seen since I was a peewee,” he said — what else could he have done? What else? There were some saves that he made that were total inspiration, total reflex, totally out of his or anyone else’s mind. What else could he do?
"For sure, we thought we had the game," he said. "We had it. The thing is that you never know. You never can say that. The game goes on and on, seems like forever, and these are the Canadiens. You never know."
"We were there," Gilbert said, "but we're only human. We can't stop everything."
- Mar 2, 2015
- 860
- 2,002
My favourite Bruin growing up hands down, and that say's something being from Kingston Ontario (Kenny the Rat Linseman, Rick Smith, Don Cherry) ..had heart, skill and style as a player ....Tim Thomas of his time with the Bruins. I am truly saddened but will celebrate his well lived life.
One of my all time favorite Bruins. RIP GG #1. Recently purchased a copy of his mask and proudly display it in my office.
mikelvl
Registered User
I haven't really stopped to process this one, I almost don't want to. But the posts on here have summed up my feelings perfectly. This one is as tough as they come. RIP
My friend, I would never forget that Harry and Cheevers were together in OKC. I was there!
- Mar 3, 2002
- 916
- 1,444
Caper Bruins fan
Registered User
My family had moved from Massachusetts to Cape Breton in 78 . I was surrounded by Canadians fans everywhere ( in school in the neighborhood) . I can remember my Dad turning the tv off and I was alone on the sofa and I cried like a baby .
quietbruinfan
Salt and light
Tomorrow’s Globe:
www.bostonglobe.com
Gilles Gilbert joined the Bruins at the back end of their glorious, captivating run in the 1960s and ‘70s, on the heels of the franchise’s two Cup wins (’70 and ‘72), and submitted possibly the most dazzling performance of his career in the painful OT loss to the Canadiens in the legendary “too many men” playoff game at the Forum in ‘79.
“Fun … smiles … incredibly talented … athletic …” mused Mike Milbury, recalling Gilbert’s run here that began in ‘73 when he was acquired from the North Stars for Fred Stanfield, “... brilliant in so many ways.”
Gilbert, who partnered in the Bruins late in ‘70s when Gerry Cheevers returned from the WHA, died last weekend in Quebec after a brief battle with cancer. He was 74.
“Fun guy … and you know, he was a terrific goaltender,” recalled Cheevers, reached at his home in Florida. “Athletically, he was probably the best the Bruins have had … loved the game. I truly enjoyed playing with him.”
Gilbert, then 28, took over the Boston net for Game 3 of the Habs series in ‘79, coach Don Cherry reluctant to pull Cheevers after back-to-back losses. Rumors at the time were that Cheevers, who backed the Cup wins in ‘70 and ‘72, was hindered by an injury incurred in Games 1 or 2.
“Not important,” said Cheevers, who watched from the bench as Gilbert backed the Bruins all the way to Game 7 in the semifinal series. “Gilles was in there because he deserved to be there … and he was sensational.”
Gilbert finished with 47 saves on a night when the Flying Frenchmen rolled up a 52-30 shot edge at the crazed Forum, faithful fans of Les Glorieux making the rafters shake. Rick Middleton’s goal at 16:01 of the third period provided a 4-3 lead and it looked as if the Bruins finally would shoo the Forum ghosts and dump the Habs in the playoffs for the first time since 1943.
“I can still hear it hitting the iron as it went in,” said Milbury, when reached at his home on the Cape, kidding when he added, “Did you really have to call me?”
The kill shot came with 9:33 gone in overtime, Yvon Lambert finishing off in front off a feed from Mario Tremblay. Habs, 5-4. The Bruins went home (the last game Cherry coached for the Black and Gold) and the Habs, backed by Ken Dryden, went on to beat the Rangers in the Final for their fourth consecutive Cup win.
In Gilbert’s years here, noted Milbury, he admired not only the goalie’s talent and compete level, but his ability to thrive despite a quirky relationship with Cherry. The coach, said Milbury, made it hard on Gilbert, at times unfairly scapegoating him.
“Things were changing … it was a different era, right? Hell, I was an American playing in the league, and who thought that would ever happen?” said Milbury. “But at a critical moment in that series, down 2-0, Grapes pulled the chord. And he didn’t like Gilles … didn’t like his attitude … didn’t like a guy who came to the rink who was happy-go-lucky, a different mind-set. But Grapes, you have to give him credit, he made a tough decision to go from Cheevers to Gilbert and it was the best decision he ever made as a coach. We stretched it to seven, and came within what seemed a millisecond of a triumph.”
A handful of those 47 saves Gilbert made were “spectacular,” recalled Milbury.
“Not like the butterfly goalies of today, who stand there and let it hit them,” he noted. “These were the old-timers, stand up, cut the angle … you know, kick save and a beauty? He made some beautiful saves that night.”
Gilbert was here for seven seasons, rolled up a record of 155-73-39, prior to Sinden dealing him to Red Wings on July 15, 1980 for Rogie Vachon. Cheevers, named the club’s new coach that summer after the failed Fred Creighton experiment, entered the 1980-81 season with Vachon and ‘80 Olympic hero Jim Craig as his goalie tandem.
Gilbert spent three seasons with the Dead Wings, went 21-48-16, and called it a career at age 34 following his final game in the spring of ‘83.
“He was a joy … bubbly … effervescent,” said Milbury, who years later, as GM of the Islanders, briefly employed Gilbert as the club’s goalie coach. “And on top of that he was incredibly athletic and competitive. When that guy was in the net, he was wired up and wanted to win as much as anyone in the game.’”
Gilles Gilbert, star of ‘too many men on the ice’ loss to Canadiens, was at his best when Bruins needed him most - The Boston Globe
That unforgettable performance in the spring of 1979 was one of many shining moments for Gilbert.
www.bostonglobe.com
Gilles Gilbert joined the Bruins at the back end of their glorious, captivating run in the 1960s and ‘70s, on the heels of the franchise’s two Cup wins (’70 and ‘72), and submitted possibly the most dazzling performance of his career in the painful OT loss to the Canadiens in the legendary “too many men” playoff game at the Forum in ‘79.
“Fun … smiles … incredibly talented … athletic …” mused Mike Milbury, recalling Gilbert’s run here that began in ‘73 when he was acquired from the North Stars for Fred Stanfield, “... brilliant in so many ways.”
Gilbert, who partnered in the Bruins late in ‘70s when Gerry Cheevers returned from the WHA, died last weekend in Quebec after a brief battle with cancer. He was 74.
“Fun guy … and you know, he was a terrific goaltender,” recalled Cheevers, reached at his home in Florida. “Athletically, he was probably the best the Bruins have had … loved the game. I truly enjoyed playing with him.”
Gilbert, then 28, took over the Boston net for Game 3 of the Habs series in ‘79, coach Don Cherry reluctant to pull Cheevers after back-to-back losses. Rumors at the time were that Cheevers, who backed the Cup wins in ‘70 and ‘72, was hindered by an injury incurred in Games 1 or 2.
“Not important,” said Cheevers, who watched from the bench as Gilbert backed the Bruins all the way to Game 7 in the semifinal series. “Gilles was in there because he deserved to be there … and he was sensational.”
Gilbert finished with 47 saves on a night when the Flying Frenchmen rolled up a 52-30 shot edge at the crazed Forum, faithful fans of Les Glorieux making the rafters shake. Rick Middleton’s goal at 16:01 of the third period provided a 4-3 lead and it looked as if the Bruins finally would shoo the Forum ghosts and dump the Habs in the playoffs for the first time since 1943.
“I can still hear it hitting the iron as it went in,” said Milbury, when reached at his home on the Cape, kidding when he added, “Did you really have to call me?”
The kill shot came with 9:33 gone in overtime, Yvon Lambert finishing off in front off a feed from Mario Tremblay. Habs, 5-4. The Bruins went home (the last game Cherry coached for the Black and Gold) and the Habs, backed by Ken Dryden, went on to beat the Rangers in the Final for their fourth consecutive Cup win.
In Gilbert’s years here, noted Milbury, he admired not only the goalie’s talent and compete level, but his ability to thrive despite a quirky relationship with Cherry. The coach, said Milbury, made it hard on Gilbert, at times unfairly scapegoating him.
“Things were changing … it was a different era, right? Hell, I was an American playing in the league, and who thought that would ever happen?” said Milbury. “But at a critical moment in that series, down 2-0, Grapes pulled the chord. And he didn’t like Gilles … didn’t like his attitude … didn’t like a guy who came to the rink who was happy-go-lucky, a different mind-set. But Grapes, you have to give him credit, he made a tough decision to go from Cheevers to Gilbert and it was the best decision he ever made as a coach. We stretched it to seven, and came within what seemed a millisecond of a triumph.”
A handful of those 47 saves Gilbert made were “spectacular,” recalled Milbury.
“Not like the butterfly goalies of today, who stand there and let it hit them,” he noted. “These were the old-timers, stand up, cut the angle … you know, kick save and a beauty? He made some beautiful saves that night.”
Gilbert was here for seven seasons, rolled up a record of 155-73-39, prior to Sinden dealing him to Red Wings on July 15, 1980 for Rogie Vachon. Cheevers, named the club’s new coach that summer after the failed Fred Creighton experiment, entered the 1980-81 season with Vachon and ‘80 Olympic hero Jim Craig as his goalie tandem.
Gilbert spent three seasons with the Dead Wings, went 21-48-16, and called it a career at age 34 following his final game in the spring of ‘83.
“He was a joy … bubbly … effervescent,” said Milbury, who years later, as GM of the Islanders, briefly employed Gilbert as the club’s goalie coach. “And on top of that he was incredibly athletic and competitive. When that guy was in the net, he was wired up and wanted to win as much as anyone in the game.’”
Remembering Gilles Gilbert. The Rock or Mad Dog, who was the most violent? | The Don Cherry's Grapevine Podcast
Don Cherry’s Grapevine Podcast Podcast Sponsor www.spreads.ca Promocode: Grapes Hockey Icon Don Cherry talks hockey and more! Coach’s Closet: https://coopink.ca/collections/coachs-closet Don Cherry’s Pet Rescue Foundation : https://www.doncherryspetrescue.org Twitter...
nORRis8
The NHL, the stupidest League ever.
This says it all about Gilbert. Playing while being wicked sick.
Cherry always talks about Cheever in his stint as Bruins coach, but he really loved "Jilly".
Cherry always talks about Cheever in his stint as Bruins coach, but he really loved "Jilly".
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