Four-time Stanley Cup winner Claude Lemieux dies at 60: Live updates
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Former NHL star Claude Lemieux, a four‑time Stanley Cup champion and 1995 playoff MVP, died at age 60, prompting tributes from the Montreal Canadiens and the broader hockey community.
Four-time Stanley Cup winner Claude Lemieux, who was playoff MVP in 1995 and was involved in a controversial hit in 1996, died Thursday at age 60, the Montreal Canadiens announced.
Lemieux, known for his pesky play and clutch goals, won his first Stanley Cup with the Canadiens in 1986.
“Today is a dark day for the Canadiens family and the entire hockey community. I wish to express my most sincere and deepest condolences to Claude’s family and loved ones,” said Geoff Molson, owner and CEO of Groupe CH. “A fierce competitor who rose to the occasion in big moments, Claude was a relentless, courageous, and tenacious player who led the team to the highest honors. He embodied the very essence of being a Montreal Canadiensplayer."
Lemieux had carried the torch into Montreal's Bell Centre before Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals on May 25.
Lemieux won the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1995 as the New Jersey Devils swept the Detroit Red Wings in the Stanley Cup Final.
He said at the postgame news conference that he was motivated while sitting in Jamaica and watching the broadcast of the New York Rangers lifting the Stanley Cup in 1994. The Devils had lost to the Rangers in double overtime of Game 7 in the conference finals.
"With last year being so close ... I was crying like a baby," he said.
Lemieux responded with a league-best 13 goals during the 1995 postseason and got his name on a playoff MVP trophy filled with the names of Hall of Famers and future Hall of Famers
"To be the most hated guy in hockey and have your name on this trophy is special," Lemieux said.
He joined the Colorado Avalanche in a trade that offseason after a dispute about his contract and won his third Stanley Cup. During the postseason run, he hit Kris Draper from behind into the boards, leaving the Red Wings player with severe facial injuries. Lemieux received a two-game suspension.
The Red Wings and Avalanche got into a brawl the following season as they tried to get back at Lemieux.
Darren McCarty, who fought Lemieux, reacted on social media to Lemieux's death.
"This is extremely sad no matter what feelings from past or present you hold," he wrote on X. "My thoughts and prayers to his family and friends and people who got to see the person off the ice wasn’t the person on. As I’ve said and will always call it as I see it 'If your on the ICE with Claude Lemieux and your turn your back. YOU Are an IDIOT. But off the ICE I’ll turn mine.'"
Lemieux moved back to the Devils for one season in 1999-2000, winning his fourth Stanley Cup.
He finished his career with the Phoenix Coyotes and Dallas Stars and then played 18 games during a comeback with the San Jose Sharks in the 2008-09 season.
Lemieux became a player agent after his retirement, representing Frederik Andersen, Timo Meier and Moritz Seider, among others. His son, Brendan, played in the NHL from 2017-24.
Claude Lemieux cause of death update
USA TODAY Sports contacted the Palm Beach County Medical Examiner's Office but has been notified that the information it has for Claude Lemieux is "exempt from public records."
The Palm County Medical Examiner's Office told USA TODAY Sports in response to an open records request that "all public records you have requested for Claude Lemieux are exempt from public records as specified under SB 474 - FS 406.135. (2) (c)."
The Florida statute cited by the Palm County Medical Examiner’s Office was enacted in 2024 and exempts photos, videos, audio recordings and autopsy reports related to suicide victims from general public records requests.
Claude Lemieux statistics
Lemieux played 21 NHL seasons and finished with 379 goals, 407 assists and 1,777 penalty minutes in 1,215 games.
He also had 80 goals, including 19 game-winners, 78 assists and 529 penalty minutes in 234 playoff games. He led the playoffs in goals in 1995 and 1997, with 13 each time.
Gary Bettman statement on Claude Lemieux
NHL commissioner has released a statement in the wake of Lemieux's death.
"The National Hockey League mourns the passing of Claude Lemieux, a four-time Stanley Cup champion and one of the greatest big-game players in hockey history," he wrote. You can read the full statement here.Ь
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