Like many in his time, Claude Larose was brought up in the Montreal Canadiens organization right from junior. His career was often under the leadership of Scotty Bowman. Bowman coached him with the Peterborough Petes, Hull-Ottawa Canadiens, Omaha Knights and, of course, the NHL Habs.
Larose ended his career just 57 games shy of the 1,000 mark in the regular season and three off the 100 game plateau in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Four times, he played for the Canadiens as the team captured the Stanley Cup. Once, he helped their EPHL team win a title and once he was a championship with Montreal’s CPHL affiliate in Omaha.
This Claude Larose should not be confused for a player who appeared around the same time. The other Claude Larose played a handful of games in the NHL and was a regular in the World Hockey Association.
Claude Larose – Junior and Minor Pro
Larose played three years of major junior hockey with the Peterborough Petes (T.P.T.’s at the time) from 1959-60 to 1961-62. In his second season, he tied for fourth in the OHL with 36 goals. For the first two years, Scotty Bowman was the head coach of the Petes.
Claude Larose Collection
Claude’s first pro action came in 1961-62, while still a junior. He played one regular season game, along with six in the playoffs for the EPHL’s Hull-Ottawa Canadiens. The team won the championship with a win over the Kingston Frontenacs in the finals.
He was reunited with Bowman in 1962-63 with Hull-Ottawa. That year, he saw his first NHL action, playing in four games for the Habs.
In 1963-64, Larose had a decent offensive output with 49 points in 47 regular season games with the Omaha Knights on 27 goals and 22 assists. Bowman coached the first eight games of the season before moving on and being replaced by Bill McCreary. The Knights won the CPHL championship over the Fred Shero coached St. Paul Rangers. In eight playoff games, Claude had eight goals and 14 points.
That 1963-64 season in the CPHL mostly iced his minor pro career. In 1964-65, he was a regular with Montreal. Larose would return to the minors for just one more short stint in 1967-68, playing for the Houston Apollos of the CPHL.
Claude did coach in the American Hockey League. In 1988-89, he was behind the bench for the Binghamton Whalers. The team did not qualify for the Calder Cup playoffs and Larose was better suited as the assistant coach of the NHL’s Hartford Whalers.
Claude Larose – NHL
Between 1962-63 and 1977-78, Larose played in 943 regular season games in the National Hockey League with the Canadiens, Minnesota North Stars and St. Louis Blues. Over that time, he scored 226 and assisted on 257 for 483 points.
In 97 Stanley Cup playoff games, he added 32 points. He was a member of Stanley Cup winning teams with Montreal in 1964-65, 1967-68, 1970-71 and 1972-73.
Claude’s first full season in the NHL was 1964-65. After being sent down by the Habs to the Houston Apollos in 1967-68, Larose was traded in June of 1968, along with Danny Grant to the Minnesota North Stars for future considerations.
He spent two years in Minnesota before returning to Montreal. In June, 1970, he was brought back to the Canadiens in exchange for Bobby Rousseau. In December, 1974, he would be on the move again, traded to the St. Louis Blues for cash.
Over his career, Larose was a 20+ goal scorer five times. He topped out in 1976-77, scoring 29 for the Blues.
After retiring as a player, Claude Larose spent several years behind the bench as an assistant coach for the Hartford Whalers.
Claude Larose – Rookie Card
The Claude Larose rookie card appears as number 75 in the 1965-66 Topps set, four years after playing his first game with the Canadiens. However, he did see limited time with the Habs before his first full season in 1964-65. His final card appears in the 1977-78 O-Pee-Chee and Topps sets as a member of the St. Louis Blues.
Larose’s 1971-72 O-Pee-Chee card is considered an uncorrected error because his last name is spelled LaRose instead of just Larose.
However, his 1970-71 O-Pee-Chee card number 56 is perhaps a much more glaring error. On the back, his birthplace is given as Hearst, Quebec. Hearst is, in fact, in Ontario.
Claude Larose Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1959-60 | Peterborough Petes | OHA | 48 | 9 | 10 | 19 | 34 |
| 1960-61 | Peterborough Petes | OHA | 46 | 36 | 27 | 63 | 108 |
| 1961-62 | Peterborough Petes | OHA | 50 | 18 | 36 | 54 | 150 |
| 1961-62 | Hull-Ottawa Canadiens | EPHL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 1962-63 | Hull-Ottawa Canadiens | EPHL | 49 | 19 | 24 | 43 | 42 |
| 1962-63 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1963-64 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 21 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 43 |
| 1963-64 | Omaha Knights | CPHL | 47 | 27 | 22 | 49 | 105 |
| 1964-65 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 68 | 21 | 16 | 37 | 82 |
| 1965-66 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 64 | 15 | 18 | 33 | 67 |
| 1966-67 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 69 | 19 | 16 | 35 | 82 |
| 1967-68 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 42 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 28 |
| 1967-68 | Houston Apollos | CPHL | 10 | 6 | 7 | 13 | 32 |
| 1968-69 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 67 | 25 | 37 | 62 | 106 |
| 1969-70 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 75 | 24 | 23 | 47 | 109 |
| 1970-71 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 64 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 90 |
| 1971-72 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 77 | 20 | 18 | 38 | 64 |
| 1972-73 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 73 | 11 | 23 | 34 | 30 |
| 1973-74 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 39 | 17 | 7 | 24 | 52 |
| 1974-75 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 8 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
| 1974-75 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 56 | 10 | 17 | 27 | 38 |
| 1975-76 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 67 | 13 | 25 | 38 | 48 |
| 1976-77 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 80 | 29 | 19 | 48 | 22 |
| 1977-78 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 69 | 8 | 13 | 21 | 20 |
| NHL Totals | 943 | 226 | 257 | 483 | 887 |