He could never quite find his way in the National Hockey League but that doesn’t mean Gord Labossiere didn’t have a notable hockey career. Labossiere won two minor league scoring titles, was the guy in Houston before the Howe’s arrived and scored the final goal in the history of the EPHL.
Gord did find his way to the NHL and did get on some cardboard, appearing on the front of five mainstream hockey cards. In the summer 1972, he was traded to the expansion New York Islanders but he went the World Hockey Association route instead. That was the end of his time in the NHL.
Junior and Minor Pro
AHL Years
Hockey Card Collection
NHL Career
WHA Career
Rookie Card
Career Stats
Gord Labossiere – Junior and Minor Pro
Gord Labossiere played two years in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL). In 1956-57, he played for the Winnipeg Rangers, a team that fell in the semi-finals to the Winnipeg Monarchs.
In 1957-58, Labossiere was with the Brandon (Transcona) Rangers and it was definitely a successful campaign. Gord scored 44 goals and assisted on 35 for 79 points in just 30 games. He won the scoring title and led the league in goals. He was named a First Team All-Star and was honoured as the league’s MVP.
He spent the following five years exclusively in the minors and mostly in the WHL. His first pro hockey games came while still a junior in 1957-58, appearing in two WHL games for the Saskatoon Regals.
1962-63 was Labossiere’s breakout season. With the Sudbury Wolves in the EPHL, he scored 34 and assisted on 67 for 101 points over 72 games. He took the scoring title and was named a First Team All-Star. His 34 goals tied him for sixth in the league, two behind a young Phil Esposito of the St. Louis Braves. His 67 assists were good for second, just two behind Murray Hall of the Braves. He also finished ninth with 94 penalty minutes.
That year, the Wolves finished third in the four team EPHL during the regular season with Gerry Cheevers playing most of the games in net. Sudbury then lost in the finals to the Kingston Frontenacs. It was the end of the road for the league and Gord has the distinction of scoring the last goal ever in the EPHL.
AHL Years
1963-64 brought a move to the American Hockey League, along with his first games in the NHL. By the following season, Labossiere was establishing himself as a scoring star in the AHL. No doubt, in a 31 team league, Gord would have been up in the NHL by this point. In 1964-65 with the Baltimore Clippers, he tied for fifth in the league with 38 goals and tied for ninth with 79 points.
Gord Labossiere Collection
In 1965-66, he moved to the Quebec Aces to play under head coach Bernie Geoffrion. The team finished first overall in the AHL but fell in the opening round of the Calder Cup playoffs. Labossiere tied for fifth with 62 assists and finished eighth with 82 points. He also placed sixth with 137 PIM.
Another breakout season came in 1966-67, perhaps inspired by the impending expansion in the NHL coming the following season. With the Aces, he scored 40 and assisted on 55 for 95 points over 72 games. He tied for second in goal scoring and finished fifth for assists. His 95 points were tops in the AHL, earning him the John B. Sollenberger Trophy. Gord was named a First Team All-Star.
After some time in the NHL, Labossiere returned to the American Hockey League for 1969-70, playing for the Springfield Kings. Appearing in just 60 games, he finished second with 59 assists, ten behind the leader Jude Drouin of the Montreal Voyageurs. His 89 points also put him in second, 17 behind Drouin. The Kings reached the Calder Cup finals before falling to the Buffalo Bisons.
In 1971-72, Labossiere once again found himself mostly playing in the AHL. In 66 games with the Cleveland Barons, he scored 40 and assisted on 45 for 85 points. He finished third in goal scoring, eighth for assists and tied for fourth in the overall scoring race.
Gord Labossiere – NHL
Between 1963-64 and 1971-72, Gord Labossiere played in 215 regular season National Hockey league games with the New York Rangers, Los Angeles Kings and Minnesota North Stars. Over that time, he scored 44 goals and assisted on 62 for 106 points. In ten Stanley Cup playoff games, he added five points.
Originally property of the New York Rangers, Gord was traded to the Montreal Canadiens on June 8, 1965 with Earl Ingarfield Sr., Dave McComb and Noel Price for Cesare Maniago and Garry Peters. He played 16 games with the Rangers and would never play for the Habs.
The Los Angeles Kings took Labossiere in the third round of the 1967 NHL Expansion Draft, 13th overall. He was one of the team’s top players in their inaugural 1967-68 season with 40 points in 68 games. He added five points in their seven playoff games.
His only other nearly full season in the NHL came in 1970-71 when he appeared in 74 games in a season split between the Kings and North Stars. On January 26, 1971, Gord was traded from Los Angeles to Montreal with Ray Fortin for Ralph Backstrom. Immediately, the Canadiens shipped him to Minnesota in exchange for Rey Comeau.
After minimal time with the North Stars in 1971-72, the team traded him to the New York Islanders on June 6, 1972 for cash. Labossiere didn’t sign with the Islanders, instead going to the Houston Aeros for the inaugural World Hockey Association season.
Gord Labossiere – WHA
Gord Labossiere played 301 regular season games in the WHA between 1972-73 and 1975-76, all with the Houston Aeros. Over that time, he scored 101 goals and assisted on 162 for 263 points.
Before Gordie Howe showed up in 1973-74 with his boys, Mark and Marty, Labossiere was an offensive force with the Aeros. In 1972-73, he scored 36 and assisted on 60 for 96 points over 78 games. He placed seventh in the WHA for assists and ninth for points.
Over his four years, Gord appeared in 50 Avco World Trophy playoff games, scoring 16 goals and totaling 44 points. Labossiere and the Aeros won two Avco World Trophy championships with one other visit to the finals.
In 1973-74, Houston was first overall in the WHA and won the championship, beating the Chicago Cougars in the finals. The following year, the repeated as regular season champs and took out the Quebec Nordiques for the title. In 1975-76, the Aeros were first overall again but lost to the Winnipeg Jets in the final series.
Gord Labossiere – Rookie Card
The Gord Labossiere rookie card appears as number 38 in the 1968-69 O-Pee-Chee NHL hockey card set. He is shown as a member of the Los Angeles Kings. He would get on the front of two more cards with the Kings, his only three hockey cards as an NHL player.
Labossiere was included in the 1972-73 O-Pee-Chee set with the Houston Aeros. However, he was left off the Quaker Oats WHA set. His final card, and only other one in the WHA, came in the 1975-76 O-Pee-Chee WHA set as a member of the Aeros.
Gord Labossiere Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1956-57 | Winnipeg Rangers | MJHL | 29 | 20 | 13 | 33 | 57 |
| 1957-58 | Brandon Rangers | MJHL | 30 | 44 | 35 | 79 | 97 |
| 1957-58 | Saskatoon Regals | WHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1958-59 | Saskatoon Quakers | WHL | 64 | 25 | 19 | 44 | 83 |
| 1959-60 | Edmonton Flyers | WHL | 65 | 20 | 18 | 38 | 72 |
| 1960-61 | Edmonton-Winnipeg | WHL | 63 | 22 | 28 | 50 | 82 |
| 1961-62 | Sudbury Wolves | EPHL | 30 | 10 | 11 | 21 | 44 |
| 1961-62 | Seattle Totems | WHL | 21 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 12 |
| 1962-63 | Sudbury Wolves | EPHL | 72 | 34 | 67 | 101 | 94 |
| 1963-64 | Baltimore Clippers | AHL | 48 | 17 | 17 | 34 | 20 |
| 1963-64 | New York Rangers | NHL | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| 1964-65 | Baltimore Clippers | AHL | 72 | 38 | 41 | 79 | 72 |
| 1964-65 | New York Rangers | NHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1965-66 | Quebec Aces | AHL | 63 | 31 | 51 | 82 | 137 |
| 1966-67 | Quebec Aces | AHL | 72 | 40 | 55 | 95 | 71 |
| 1967-68 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 68 | 13 | 27 | 40 | 31 |
| 1968-69 | Springfield Kings | AHL | 25 | 13 | 23 | 36 | 40 |
| 1968-69 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 48 | 10 | 18 | 28 | 12 |
| 1969-70 | Springfield Kings | AHL | 60 | 30 | 59 | 89 | 94 |
| 1970-71 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 45 | 11 | 10 | 21 | 16 |
| 1970-71 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 29 | 8 | 4 | 12 | 4 |
| 1971-72 | Cleveland Barons | AHL | 66 | 40 | 45 | 85 | 71 |
| 1971-72 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 9 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 |
| 1972-73 | Houston Aeros | WHA | 78 | 36 | 60 | 96 | 56 |
| 1973-74 | Houston Aeros | WHA | 67 | 19 | 36 | 55 | 30 |
| 1974-75 | Houston Aeros | WHA | 76 | 23 | 34 | 57 | 40 |
| 1975-76 | Houston Aeros | WHA | 80 | 23 | 32 | 55 | 18 |
| NHL Totals | 215 | 44 | 62 | 106 | 75 | ||
| WHA Totals | 301 | 101 | 162 | 263 | 144 |