In the opening ceremonies of the 2012 Mastercard Memorial Cup, it was great to see Yvan Cournoyer and Guy Lafleur honoured. Seeing the two Montreal greats standing side by side was a huge reminder of how amazing it was the Cournoyer was such a star in the National Hockey League, considering he endured through most of the 1970’s. At just 5’7″, Yvan was certainly worthy of his selection into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Just the facts:
- Cournoyer was a member of 10 Stanley Cup winning teams in Montreal.
- Yvan’s rookie card is the fourth highest valued in the 1965-66 Topps set.
- His rookie card is UER with Topps misspelling his first name Yvon on the front.
- Cournoyer played all 8 games of the 1972 Summit Series for Canada.
The Yvan Cournoyer rookie card appeared as number 76 in the 1965-66 Topps set, despite having played his first games with the Canadiens two years before. At $100, the card is the fourth ranked rookie card in the set behind Phil Esposito, Gerry Cheevers and Ed Giacomin, but is the only card that was a double print. The card is an uncorrected error (UER) with his first name spelled Yvon on the front of the card, an error that would be made more than once throughout his career. The 1965-66 set featured 128 cards with a common card now valued at $8. The complete set of Topps cards is valued at $2700.
Yvan Cournoyer Collection:
Cournoyer starred in junior hockey with the Montreal Junior Canadiens of the Ontario Hockey Association for three years from 1961-62 to 1963-64. In his final year, he scored 63 goals and totaled 111 points over 53 games. He led the league in goals and finished second in points. In that final season, Yvan also played with the NHL Canadiens for five games.
Yvan played nearly 1,000 regular season games and 147 playoff games in an NHL career that spanned from 1963-64 to 1978-79, all with Montreal. He was part of ten Stanley Cup winning teams with the Habs, the second highest total in NHL history behind Henri Richard.
Cournoyer’s career highs include 87 points in 1968-69. He led the team and was sixth in the NHL that season. In 1971-72, he scored 47 goals to lead the Habs and place fourth in the NHL. He played all eight games of the 1972 Summit Series for Team Canada against the Soviet Union.
Yvan was team captain in Montreal from 1975-76 to 1978-79, his final four years in the NHL and all Stanley Cup winning seasons. Cournoyer was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1982 and his number 12 was retired by the team in 2005. He shares the number with Dickie Moore.
Yvan Cournoyer Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1961-62 | Montreal Junior Canadiens | OHA | 32 | 15 | 16 | 31 | 0 |
| 1962-63 | Montreal Junior Canadiens | OHA | 36 | 37 | 27 | 64 | 0 |
| 1963-64 | Montreal Junior Canadiens | OHA | 53 | 63 | 48 | 111 | 0 |
| 1963-64 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 5 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 1964-65 | Quebec Aces | AHL | 7 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 1964-65 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 55 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 10 |
| 1965-66 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 65 | 18 | 11 | 29 | 8 |
| 1966-67 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 69 | 25 | 15 | 40 | 14 |
| 1967-68 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 64 | 28 | 32 | 60 | 23 |
| 1968-69 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 76 | 43 | 44 | 87 | 31 |
| 1969-70 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 72 | 27 | 36 | 63 | 23 |
| 1970-71 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 65 | 37 | 36 | 73 | 21 |
| 1971-72 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 73 | 47 | 36 | 83 | 15 |
| 1972-73 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 67 | 40 | 39 | 79 | 18 |
| 1973-74 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 67 | 40 | 33 | 73 | 18 |
| 1974-75 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 76 | 29 | 45 | 74 | 32 |
| 1975-76 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 71 | 32 | 36 | 68 | 20 |
| 1976-77 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 60 | 25 | 28 | 53 | 8 |
| 1977-78 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 68 | 24 | 29 | 53 | 12 |
| 1978-79 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 15 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 2 |
| NHL Totals | 968 | 428 | 435 | 863 | 255 |