Sylvain Lefebvre

Sylvain Jean Lefebvre (born October 14, 1967) is a Canadian former ice hockey defenceman who played on five National Hockey League teams from 1989 to 2003. He won the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in 1996. Lefebvre was most recently an assistant coach for the Columbus Blue Jackets.[1]

Sylvain Lefebvre
Born (1967-10-14) 14 October 1967
Richmond, Quebec, Canada
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight 204 lb (93 kg; 14 st 8 lb)
Position Defence
Shot Left
Played for Montreal Canadiens
Toronto Maple Leafs
Quebec Nordiques
Colorado Avalanche
New York Rangers
NHL Draft Undrafted
Playing career 1987–2004

Playing career

Sylvain Lefebvre signed with the Montreal Canadiens in 1986 and made the team's roster in 1989–90 as an undrafted free agent. He played three seasons with the Habs before being traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for a third round draft pick prior to the start of the 1992–93 season. Lefebvre played two seasons with the Leafs before being traded to the Quebec Nordiques as part of the Wendel Clark-Mats Sundin trade on June 28, 1994. Lefebvre played the next five seasons with the Quebec Nordiques/Colorado Avalanche before signing a four-year, $10-million US contract with the New York Rangers that secured a club-option for him to play a fifth season at $3 million in the 1999 off-season. Lefebvre's productivity decreased after several injuries, including a shattered index finger which occurred while blocking a shot. The doctor compared the injury to taking a hammer and hitting his finger until the bone is shattered into little pieces. Lefebvre's career low came in the 2002–03 season. After four years with the Rangers, Lefebvre left the NHL and decided to join old friend Sebastien Bordeleau for one season to play for the Swiss team SC Bern where he and his team won the cup. He retired shortly thereafter.

After winning the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in 1996, Lefebvre was involved in an incident that attracted media attention. As part of tradition, each player on the Stanley Cup winning team can take personal possession of the trophy for a day during the summer following the championship, a practice that has led to several misadventures. When it was his turn, Lefebvre decided to have his daughter baptized in it.

Retirement and coaching career

Lefebvre was named as assistant coach of the American Hockey League's Lake Erie Monsters. On June 4, 2009, the Colorado Avalanche announced that Lefebvre would serve as an assistant coach.[2]

On June 13, 2012, Sylvain Lefebvre became the head coach of the Hamilton Bulldogs of the American Hockey League, the Montreal Canadiens' affiliate. The Canadiens purchased and relocated the Bulldogs to become the second iteration of the St. John's IceCaps in 2015, keeping Lefebvre as head coach of their affiliate.[3] In 2017, the Canadiens' AHL franchise was again relocated, becoming the Laval Rocket, taking Lefebvre with the team.[4] After one season in Laval and finishing with the worst record in the AHL during the 2017–18 season, Lefebvre was released immediately upon the conclusion of the season.[5] Lefebvre then spent three seasons with the AHL's San Diego Gulls as an assistant. In June 2021, Lefebvre was announced as an assistant coach in the NHL with the Columbus Blue Jackets,[1] but was replaced on September 13, 2021, due to his decision not to get a COVID-19 vaccine.[6]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GPGAPtsPIM GPGAPtsPIM
1984–85 Laval Voisins QMJHL 66751231 —————
1985–86 Laval Titan QMJHL 718172548 1410125
1986–87 Laval Titan QMJHL 7010364644 1516712
1986–87 Sherbrooke Canadiens AHL ————— 10000
1987–88 Sherbrooke Canadiens AHL 793242773 62354
1988–89 Sherbrooke Canadiens AHL 77153247119 61344
1989–90 Montreal Canadiens NHL 683101361 60002
1990–91 Montreal Canadiens NHL 635182330 111016
1991–92 Montreal Canadiens NHL 693141791 20002
1992–93 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 812121490 2133620
1993–94 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 84291179 1803316
1994–95 Quebec Nordiques NHL 482111317 60222
1995–96 Colorado Avalanche NHL 755111649 2205512
1996–97 Colorado Avalanche NHL 712111330 1700025
1997–98 Colorado Avalanche NHL 810101048 70004
1998–99 Colorado Avalanche NHL 762182048 1901112
1999–00 New York Rangers NHL 822101243 —————
2000–01 New York Rangers NHL 712131555 —————
2001–02 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 1505511 —————
2001–02 New York Rangers NHL 4105523 —————
2002–03 New York Rangers NHL 3502210 —————
2003–04 SC Bern NLA 1124614 1506644
NHL totals 94530154184674 12941418101

References
  1. "CBJ name Sylvain Lefebvre assistant coach". NHL.com. Retrieved 2021-07-02.
  2. "Former Avs join Sacco staff". Denver Post. 2009-06-20. Retrieved 2009-06-20.
  3. "Canadiens' AHL team moving from Hamilton to St. John's: reports". CBC.ca. March 6, 2015.
  4. "LEFEBVRE NAMED HEAD COACH OF LAVAL, CARRIÈRE GM". AHL. 28 July 2017.
  5. "SYLVAIN LEFEBVRE RELIEVED OF HIS DUTIES AS HEAD COACH OF THE LAVAL ROCKET". Laval Rocket. 17 April 2018.
  6. "Columbus Blue Jackets Announce Coaching Staff Changes". OurSports Central. 13 September 2021.
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