Focus Assignment

Focus Assignment
Maurice “Rocket” Richard


“He skates down the wing cuts into the middle, he shoots he scores! Maurice has done it, fifty goals in fifty games”. Maurice “Rocket” Richard was determined as a lion trying to catch its prey; this had led him to his great success. His presence had plagued many opposing players with fear and nervousness. With accomplishments of a god, a family that was behind his back and an emotional retirement he had done it all. The legacy of the “Rocket” has lived forever and will not be forgotten.

Maurice Richard was born in the Bordeaux district of Montreal on the 4th of August in 1921. Soon after he could walk he went straight to skating. He practiced everyday because of the back yard ice rink his father had made for him. Growing up he had joined the local and school hockey leagues. He had been each team’s top player every year as he was escalating his popularity and shredding through the hockey divisions. Though hockey was a second nature he decided to become a machinist for the Canadian Army. He was turned down all three times he applied due to past suffered injuries from hockey and inexperience. The rejection from the army pushed Maurice back to his hockey prime.

Coming back to hockey Maurice signed his first contract the day before his wedding day. The rookie season was a catastrophic disaster, he had only played sixteen games of eighty two from more injuries such as broken ankle and sprained limbs. Before the beginning of his sophomore season he changed his jersey number from fifteen to nine in honour of his first daughter. Maurice had come out of nowhere and was tallying points like no tomorrow. Everyone was astonished by his skill and determination, which consequently led his teammates to nickname him “Rocket”. The opposing goaltenders said, “You can see the fire in his eyes”. He carried the team on his back to win the Stanley Cup in only his second year of professional hockey career. As time went on he had achieved other milestones such as fifty goals in fifty games, this hard work earned him one hundred thirty five thousand a year. Except on night a huge bench brawl between Montreal and Boston broke out. During the skirmish, Maurice had struck the referee over the head and for that act of violence to an official was suspended. The suspension lasted for the rest of the season which was 5 games and the rest of the playoffs. During Maurice’s time off everyone in Montreal had started riots and vandalized the city. The riots lasted until Maurice was reinstated but that very year Montreal did not win the Stanley Cup.

Maurice “Rocket” Richard decided to hang his skates up in the year of 1960. His hockey life didn’t end yet, he had coached an expansion team named the Quebec Nordiques but was soon fired after a short period. From then on one of hockey’s greats had officially retired from hockey. Having played with Montreal his entire career, they retired his number right after he hung up his skates and was commemorated for his contributions to the team. The applause given to him was over fifteen minutes long and louder than a lions roar. Maurice had quoted, “Closing my eyes to the chants of fans made me feel younger”. His point totals where 978 games, 544 goals, 421 assists and 1285 penalty minutes. During game seven of the Stanley Cup Finals in 2000 heartbreaking news had arrived, Maurice Richard had died at the age of eighty seven. At his funeral over one hundred thousand people had come to pay there respects.

A chapter in the hockey books had finished and a new one was underway, the legacy of Maurice “Rocket” Richard was and still remembered but everyone. His life as hockey player was very successful and time well spent. No one would forget the commentating of his goals and fantastic plays.