Biography
Joseph Jacques Omer Plante backstopped Montreal's dynasty and changed the position by regularly wearing a mask. Hockey Hall of Fame class of 1978.
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NHL / Hockey
Jacques Plante
1929 to 1986
MASK PIONEER
Canadiens goalie who popularized the mask and won six Stanley Cups.
6
Stanley Cups
Canadiens
7
Vezina
Era-labeled
1978
Hall of Fame
Hockey HOF
1
Mask era
Safety pioneer
Montreal Canadiens
1952 to 1975
Career statistics
NHL career (era-labeled)
Stanley Cups6
Vezina7era-labeled
HOF class1978
InnovationGoalie mask
Career timeline
1950s
Canadiens dynasty
Wins multiple Cups in Montreal.
1959
Mask moment
Popularizes wearing a mask in games.
1978
Hall of Fame
Enshrined.
1986
Passed away
Died February 27, 1986.
Achievements and awards
- 6x Stanley Cup Champion
- Hockey Hall of Fame (1978)
- Multiple Vezina honors (era-labeled)
- Goalie mask pioneer
Highlights
Video media. Opens on YouTube. Not a GameDNA ranking.
Legacy
Plante made goaltending safer without making it smaller. Every modern mask nods to his stubbornness.
Career statistics
NHL career (era-labeled)
Stanley Cups6
Vezina7era-labeled
HOF class1978
InnovationGoalie mask
Achievements and awards
- 6x Stanley Cup Champion
- Hockey Hall of Fame (1978)
- Multiple Vezina honors (era-labeled)
- Goalie mask pioneer
Career timeline
1950s
Canadiens dynasty
Wins multiple Cups in Montreal.
1959
Mask moment
Popularizes wearing a mask in games.
1978
Hall of Fame
Enshrined.
1986
Passed away
Died February 27, 1986.
Highlights
Video media carousel. Thumbnails use licensed Commons photos when available.
Legacy
Plante made goaltending safer without making it smaller. Every modern mask nods to his stubbornness.
Images
Separate photo slider. Wikimedia Commons licenses shown on each slide.
1 / 4
Photo: Michael Barera. License: CC BY-SA 4.0. Source
Sources
Research record: .orchestrator/research/legends/jacques-plante.md. Career totals are widely published league or Hall of Fame figures and should be read with competition and era labels. Image credits appear under the Images tab. Video links open third-party YouTube pages.