Newsy Lalonde

Edouard Crille “Newsy” Lalonde (October 31, 1887 - November 21, 1970) was one of the greatest lacrosse players in the first half of the 20th Century, and is also considered one of the greatest hockey players in that same span. In his youth, Edouard working in a newspaper plant and earned the nickname “Newsy” that stuck throughout his career. Lalonde played for the Toronto Professionals of the Ontario Professional Hockey League, leading them to the league championship game in his first season. He scored 32 goals in his first regular season and 29 goals in his sophomore year. In 1910, Newsy joined the Montreal Canadiens of the newly formed National Hockey Association and scored the first goal in Canadiens history. Lalonde was a goal-scoring machine as he registered 195 professional goals against four assists from 1904-1912 with eleven different teams. Newsy led the league in scoring seven times in the NHA, PCHA, NHL and WHL; a record that stood until Wayne Gretzky surpassed it in 1987. In 1910, he scored an NHA record nine goals in one game, a feat only matched by Tommy Smith of the Ottawa Vics. In the NHL Lalonde played six seasons for the Canadiens (1917-1922) and the New York Americans (1926-27). He led the league in goals (23), assists (10) and total points (33) in 1919 and again led in points in 1921. All told, Newsy Lalonde scored 459 career goals and 91 assists for 550 points in 346 games. He added 31 career playoff goals and four assists in 28 playoff games. Newsy was a member of the first Stanley Cup winning Montreal Canadiens team in 1916. His amazing hockey career was matched by his extraordinary lacrosse career. He earned more money on the lacrosse field than he did on the rink. In 1914, as a member of the Montreal Nationals, Lalonde scored an astonishing 66 goals. Newsy Lalonde was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1950.