Not from Sweden, like the name might suggest. Ralph Backstrom came from Kirkland Lake, Ontario and put together a long and successful pro hockey career. Combining his NHL and WHA regular season games, Backstrom totaled a very respectable 1,336 games between 1956-57 and 1976-77.
The Calder Trophy winner in 1958-59 couldn’t quite grab a championship before and after his National Hockey League career. His Ottawa Junior Canadiens lost in the Memorial Cup to the Flin Flon bobers in 1956-57 and his Chicago Cougars lost in the WHA Avco World Trophy finals in 1973-74 to the Houston Aeros.
Junior and Minor Pro
NHL Career
Hockey Card Collection
WHA Career
Coaching Career
Rookie Card
Career Stats
Ralph Backstrom – Junior and Minor Pro
Ralph Backstrom played for the Montreal Junior Canadiens in the QJHL in 1954-55 and 1955-56. In his first year, he was teamed with future greats Henri Richard, Andre Pronovost and Reg Fleming.
Scotty Bowman played his last ten games of hockey that season and the team was coached by the legendary Elmer Lach. Backstrom tied for the league lead with 139 penalty minutes (equaling teammate Fleming). This is a trait that would not continue into his pro career.
With the Ottawa Junior Canadiens in 1956-57, Backstrom helped the team to a George Richardson Cup championship and a berth in the Memorial Cup finals. The team met up with the Flin Flon Bombers. The Ted Hampson led Bombers came out on top.
In 1957-58, Ralph saw time with four different clubs but mostly played for the Hull-Ottawa Canadiens of the EOHL. The team captain scored 21 and assisted on 25 for 46 points in 33 games. He also played a single game with the Montreal Royals in the QHL, two games with the Rochester Americans in the AHL and two National Hockey League games with the Habs.
Ralph Backstrom – NHL
Between 1956-57 and 1972-73, Ralph Backstrom played 1,032 regular season games in the National Hockey League with the Montreal Canadiens, Los Angeles Kings and Chicago Blackhawks. Over that time, he scored 278 and assisted on 361 for 639 points.
Ralph Backstrom Collection
In 116 Stanley Cup playoff games, Backstrom scored 27 and assisted on 32 for 59 points. He was a six time Stanley Cup champion with the Canadiens.
In his first full season in the NHL, 1958-59, Ralph was honoured with the Calder Memorial Trophy as NHL rookie of the year. Playing 64 of Montreal’s 70 regular season games, he scored 18 and assisted on 22 for 40 points. In eleven playoff games, Backstrom added eight points. That year, he won his first Stanley Cup championship.
A 20 goal scorer seven times, Ralph did it five times with the Habs and twice with the Kings. 1961-62 was his best offensive season with 65 points on 27 goals and 38 assists. He was seventh in the NHL for goal scoring while tying Norm Ullman (Detroit Red Wings), Dean Prentice (New York Rangers) and Frank Mahovlich (Toronto Maple Leafs) for eighth in assists. In the race for the Art Ross Trophy, he placed seventh.
On January 26, 1971, Backstrom was traded from Montreal to the Los Angeles Kings for Ray Fortin, Gord Labossiere and a draft pick. On February 26, 1973, he was sent from the Kings to the Chicago Blackhawks for Dan Maloney. His time in Chicago was short, appearing in just 16 regular season games. However, he played 16 more in the playoffs as the Blackhawks reached the finals before losing to Montreal.
Ralph Backstrom – WHA
Ralph Backstrom jumped to the World Hockey Association for the 1973-74 but he remained in Chicago. Playing for the Chicago Cougars, he finished tenth in the WHA with 50 assists and was awarded the Paul Deneau Trophy as the league’s most gentlemanly player. The Cougars reached the finals before losing to the Houston Aeros.
Ralph would go on to play for the Denver Spurs, Ottawa Civics and New England Whalers before retiring after the 1976-77 season. In all, he played 304 regular season games, scoring 100 and assisting on 153 for 253 points. He added 28 points in 38 post season games.
Backstrom competed for Canada at the 1974 Summit Series against the Soviet Union. The team was made up of WHA players and did not fare well against the Russians. Ralph contributed three goals and four assists over eight games.
Ralph Backstrom – Staff
Directly after retiring as a player, Ralph Backstrom went to school. Backstrom became assistant coach of the University of Denver Pioneers in 1977-78 and retained that position until the end of 1979-80. He took over as head coach from 1981-82 to 1989-90. None of the school’s eight national titles occurred with Ralph behind the bench.
His coaching time in the National Hockey League lasted just a season. In 1980-81, he took time out from the University of Denver for an assistant coaching gig with the Los Angeles Kings.
In 1990-91 and 1991-92, Backstrom was the head coach of the Phoenix Roadrunners in the IHL. That would be the end of his coaching career.
However, his time in hockey was not over. In 2003-04, he became the founder and franchise owner of the Colorado Eagles in the Central Hockey League. He saw the team win two Ray Miron President’s Cup championships in the CHL, 2004-05 and 2006-07.
Ralph Backstrom – Rookie Card
The Ralph Backstrom rookie card appears as number 15 in the 1958-59 Parkhurst NHL hockey card set. He is shown with the Montreal Canadiens, amidst his Calder Trophy worthy season. Backstrom’s final card is included in the 1976-77 O-Pee-Chee WHA set. He is shown with the New England Whalers on that card.
Ralph Backstrom Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1956-57 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1957-58 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1958-59 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 64 | 18 | 22 | 40 | 19 |
| 1959-60 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 64 | 13 | 15 | 28 | 24 |
| 1960-61 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 69 | 12 | 20 | 32 | 44 |
| 1961-62 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 66 | 27 | 38 | 65 | 29 |
| 1962-63 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 70 | 23 | 12 | 35 | 51 |
| 1963-64 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 70 | 8 | 21 | 29 | 41 |
| 1964-65 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 70 | 25 | 30 | 55 | 41 |
| 1965-66 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 67 | 22 | 20 | 42 | 10 |
| 1966-67 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 69 | 14 | 27 | 41 | 39 |
| 1967-68 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 70 | 20 | 25 | 45 | 14 |
| 1968-69 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 72 | 13 | 28 | 41 | 16 |
| 1969-70 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 72 | 19 | 24 | 43 | 20 |
| 1970-71 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 16 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 0 |
| 1970-71 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 33 | 14 | 13 | 27 | 8 |
| 1971-72 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 76 | 23 | 29 | 52 | 22 |
| 1972-73 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 63 | 20 | 29 | 49 | 6 |
| 1972-73 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 16 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 2 |
| 1973-74 | Chicago Cougars | WHA | 78 | 33 | 50 | 83 | 26 |
| 1974-75 | Chicago Cougars | WHA | 70 | 15 | 24 | 39 | 28 |
| 1975-76 | Denver Spurs/Ottawa Civics | WHA | 41 | 21 | 29 | 50 | 14 |
| 1975-76 | New England Whalers | WHA | 38 | 14 | 19 | 33 | 6 |
| 1976-77 | New England Whalers | WHA | 77 | 17 | 31 | 48 | 30 |
| NHL Totals | 1032 | 278 | 361 | 639 | 386 | ||
| 304 | 100 | 153 | 253 | 104 |