Years before Mario Lemieux hoisted the Penguins onto his broad shoulders and carried them to Stanley Cup glory, another center of French-Canadian descent wowed the Steel City faithful with his slick moves and clever, determined play.
Like No. 66, Michel Edouard Briere was a junior hockey scoring champion. Unlike Mario, he was not expected to be a franchise player. Although he piled up a whopping 320 points during two seasons with the Shawinigan Bruins, he was overlooked by the other NHL teams in the 1969 Amateur Draft. Even the Penguins passed on the will o’ the wisp center.
“We took Rick Kessell on the second round and Michel Briere on the third round,” general manager Jack Riley recalled. “He was the 26th player picked in the draft. We made a mistake there.”
Scout Dick Coss, who pleaded with Riley to select the La Belle Province scoring sensation, knew Briere was something special.
“This kid spent his life playing against and beating boys who towered over him,” Coss said. “Michel knew what the other pro scouts were saying about him as a junior—that he was too small. But every summer, he’d go down into the mine or to the saw-mill and build himself up.”
Briere clearly believed in himself, too. When Riley offered him a $4,000 signing bonus, the rookie demanded an additional $1,000.
“I asked him why,” Riley recalled. “It’s really not that much extra money,” Briere responded, “because I’ll be playing for the Penguins for the next 20 years.”
The youngster proved to be a quick study.
“At the start of the season, Penguins coach Red Kelly tried to protect Briere, keeping him out of matchups with stronger, more experienced centers,” wrote Pittsburgh Press Sports Editor Roy McHugh. “On faceoffs it seemed that Montreal’s Jean Beliveau beat him to the draw every time—at the start of the season. By the end of the season, Briere was beating Beliveau, getting his stick on the puck before it hit the ice.”
In an era when few players made the jump from junior hockey to the NHL, Briere flourished. Slotted between Val Fonteyne and Jean Pronovost on the speedy “Jet Line,” he led the club in assists and finishing third in scoring.
“He looked like a kid, he looked like a little boy, and he was out there doing great things,” Pronovost said.
Kelly marveled at Briere’s elusiveness. One night in Philadelphia two Flyers lined him up in their crosshairs. At the last second Michel squirted through an opening and the unfortunate foes cracked heads, knocking each other unconscious.
“If they looked at the puck, he’d be gone,” Kelly said. “He was slippery, he could shift and make movements, but all the time he was doing this he was still skating. A lot of guys, when they shift, aren’t going anywhere. Michel kept on skating at the same rate of speed.”
Considered the Pens’ brightest star, Briere soon was targeted for abuse. During the 1970 Stanley Cup Semifinals, St. Louis coach Scotty Bowman assigned the rugged tandem of Noel Picard and Bob Plager the task of stopping the precocious rookie by any means.
Using his quickness and wits to fullest advantage, Briere made the brawny defenders look foolish. With Picard and Plager lumbering in his vapor trail, he enjoyed an extraordinary series, racking up a team-high four goals.
It appeared that Briere would make good on his promise to play in Pittsburgh for 20 years. However, on the evening of May 15, 1970, fate intervened to deliver a crushing blow. While traveling with friends near his hometown of Malartic, Quebec, Michel’s car skidded off the road. As a result of injuries sustained in the accident, the 20-year-old lapsed into a coma.
The Penguins rallied around their fallen teammate. In a touching display of support, they took his jersey on road trips during the 1970-71 season. During trips to Montreal the team visited Briere in the hospital.
“You’d walk in and sit down, you’d take hold of his hand,” Kelly recalled. “He’d turn his head toward you and his eyes would open, staring. He couldn’t talk. I was always optimistic, but the last time I saw him …”
Michel tragically passed away on April 13, 1971. To honor his legacy, the Penguins retired his No. 21. Over the team’s 44-year history, only Lemieux was afforded the same tribute.
👍🏼🥅🏒 Nice story writing, Rick! To all those who are seriously interested, I have a very rare autograph collection of a group of Penguins from their 1969-70 season (the 3rd season – Stanley Cup semi-finals). This group has their autographs on one small piece of paper which is in outstanding condition (no rips, tears, or yellowing). The Penguins are: Michel Briere, Red Kelly, Val Fonteyne, Wally Boyer, Jack Riley, and Ken Carson. Head Coach Kelly was an 8-time Stanley Cup champion defenseman and forward. Fonteyne was an original Penguin. Boyer was a 2nd year Penguin. Riley was the original General Manager. Carson was the original trainer. To know that Briere held this small piece of paper in his strong hands and left his signature on it is enough to send chills down your spine. This autograph collection is available to the highest bidder. “ChrisChance” on Facebook Marketplace. 🔊
Glenn Hooper
I am from Nova Scotia and was at Crabby Bills in Indian Rocks Beach Florida last year before a Sunday afternoon NFL game.I had an Expos hat on and a big burly guy and his wife with Pittsburgh Steeler jerseys on stopped to talk to me.thinking I may be from Canada and a hockey fan. We started talking about Sidney Crosby and the rest of the Pens. He then asked if I ever heard tell of Michel Briere and I told him I certainly did and knew all about his career and untimely death. He ended up being a 6 or 7 year old kid whose parents billeted Briere in his first year in the NHL.He said he always felt like he was his big brother as he took him everywhere especially the rink and other sporting events.He was pretty emotional telling me the story and it still bothers him to this day. Just before they left he came over to me with tears in his eyes to thank me for remembering his big brother Michel Briere. A very emotional day 49 years later. RIP #21.😢
Thank you, Glenn, for sharing your very touching experience.
I was 12 years old and just starting to be aware of hockey the season Michel played for the Penguins. I never got to see him play. But everyone who did says he was a special player who would’ve been a star in the league for a long, long time.
Such a terribly tragic story. He had so much promise…a whole life and career ahead of him…snuffed out in a moment. It underscores how precious and fragile life can be, and how each day is a gift to be lived to the fullest. We just never know…
Rick
Hello Rick, just enjoyed that article on Michel. You nailed it especially what you said about my dad (Dick Coss) from what I remember (10yrs old) about my dad. Something you may not of known my dad worked during the day, came home, had supper and headed down to the ND hospital to talk and keep Michel company, 7 nights a week, He brought me once to visit, not the same man I met in the dressing room after a game in Montréal.Good article. Thanks for mentioning my dad, he loved Michel like he was part of our family.
You are so welcome. And thank you, so much, for sharing about your dad and his very special relationship with Michel.
What a terribly tragic, sad story. We’re left to wonder what could’ve been…
Rick
Hi Rick,
Thanks for the memories.
Many famous people become lionized after their death. Briere is among the few who measure up to the hype. I saw him play several times and he skated like the wind, and he was a brilliant puck handler who’s stick work was second to none. He was a would be hall of famer as far as I’m concerned. I’ll always be happy to say I saw him play.
Oh, I was a big Pronovost fan, too.
— 55
Hey 55,
Welcome back to PenguinPoop. Hope all is well … 🙂
Unfortunately, I didn’t see Briere play…thank you for reinforcing what everyone seemed to believe…that he would have been a bona fide star and perhaps a 70-80 point per season player (a lot in those days).
Pronovost was terrific. (Remember the chant, “Let’s Go Pron-o-vost?”) Marvelously consistent offensively…three straight 40-goal seasons including 52 in 1975-76…and a really good defensive player to boot. He and Syl Apps and Lowell MacDonald made quite a combo.
Rick
Rick,
This is a masterful post. I have read many sports columns over the years and this ranks amount the best.
i never knew about Michel Briere but you brought him to life, my friend.
Seriously well done. Mitch Albom level writing
Best,
PensFanBoy17
Thank you PensFanBoy17. I really appreciate your very kind comments… 🙂
Rick
Rick
Wow – great article and a chance to walk down memory lane. My Son is
currently playing HS & Traveling hockey and I’m always talking to him
about the old school player and players that played for the Pen’s back in
the day – Briere’s name is one I reference on a regular basis. His instincts
and Hockey IQ were advanced – he played well beyond his years.
For me the article is bittersweet – brings back great memories but we missed
out on a lot of great hockey with this kid – he was special.
Great job
Thank you Mike.
You wonder how the Pens’ future might’ve turned out with Briere. He was little before my time, but every account I’ve read about him says he would’ve been a star. Not a supernova like Mario Lemieux, but a really good hockey player.
One of the great what-ifs in Penguins history… What if Briere had lived? What if the 1974-75 team (possibly my all-time favorite) hadn’t lost four-straight to the Islanders after going up 3-0? What if the owners hadn’t been forced into receivership, which led to a new ownership group taking over and gradually dismantling what was a very promising team?
Then again…that new ownership group had ties to Edward DeBartolo, Sr., who eventually (almost accidentally) took over. Without DeBartolo’s willingness to absorb countless millions in losses, perhaps the Pens would never have gotten to draft Lemieux. The franchise may have gone the way of the California Golden Seals/Cleveland Barons.
The hand of fate…so unkind to the Pens early…has been very kind, indeed, over the past 30 years. Four once-in-a-generation players…five Stanley Cup champions (and a near-miss on a sixth).
Makes for a great story … 🙂
Rick