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At the age of 22, emerging hockey star Jean Beliveau spent several days in October 1953 negotiating a contract to join the Montreal Canadiens. Reporters camped out at the Forum, anxiously waiting for news as the talks went on with General Manager Frank Selke Sr. When Beliveau finally signed, it was compared to the puff of white smoke sent up at the Vatican when a new pope is elected.
In fact, the contract was already set in motion six weeks earlier when the Quebec Aces player made a handshake deal with Hartland Molson to serve as a promoter with Molson brewery, a position he would hold for 18 years. In those days, players needed an off-season job to earn a living – and selling beer was a popular one.
“So much was based on honour in those days,” says family member Karen Molson of the handshake agreement.
Four years later, Hartland and his brother Tom bought the Canadiens. By combining two favourite pastimes for people across the country – drinking suds and watching hockey – the Molsons scored big financially.
“Owning the Canadiens was a huge responsibility for Hartland but also a great source of pride and pleasure,” Karen Molson told the Original Hockey Hall of Fame.
Hartland Molson wore many hats. He attended Royal Military College and played for the Kingston Combines in 1926, the only local team to have ever made it to the Memorial Cup – where they lost to the Calgary Canadians. He flew fighter planes in the RCAF in the Battle of Britain, helping turn the tide against the Nazis. He served in the Senate for decades.
Molson could have played professional hockey. Journalist Basil O’Meara summed up his skills: “Molson was an outstanding and aggressive competitor who could skate and stickhandle with the best of them.”
However, Molson declined to turn pro – there wasn’t much money in the sport back then. Instead, he went into the family business, eventually becoming president of the brewery in 1953. His ancestor John Molson had founded the company in 1786.
Buying the Habs would prove to be a fabulous investment, both financially and in bringing fame to Montreal and the Molson family. Players like Maurice Richard, Henri Richard and Jacques Plante propelled the team to nine Stanley Cups under Molson family ownership. Television was in its infancy and Molson Brewery helped develop that market by sponsoring Hockey Night in Canada for many years.
Fake Wanted poster for Beliveau
But back to the signing of Beliveau.
Prior to reaching a deal, he starred with the Quebec Aces of the Quebec Senior League. It wasn’t quite the NHL, although the hockey was fast-paced and highly entertaining. Fans across Canada assumed that Beliveau would sign with Montreal - but he held out.
The media frenzy became so intense that the Toronto Star issued a fake Wanted poster in 1952, offering a reward of $15,000 for Beliveau. He would soon ink a deal for much more than that.
After days of negotiations, Beliveau and Selke agreed to the record-breaking contract. On Oct. 3, 1953, the five-year deal was signed for a total of $105,000. That was $21,000 per year – unheard of at the time.
“This is the highest contract ever given any player – highest by a city block,” Selke told reporters who jammed into his office to hear the news.
“It’s the greatest thrill in my long career in hockey,” Selke said. "The fact that I’m able to offer a contract of this nature to a young fellow from a little town like Victoriaville only proves that gold is where you find it.”
Indeed, it was like the California and Klondike gold rushes combined into one. The Canadiens struck it rich.
Beliveau would lead the Habs to 10 Stanley Cups as a player. While serving as a senior vice president with the club, he collected seven more. An extraordinary number that has never been matched. And it all started with a simple handshake with Hartland Molson.
Molson was a 19-year-old RMC cadet when he joined that Kingston Combines squad, which was comprised of players from RMC, Queen’s and the junior Frontenacs. The Combines won the Eastern Canadian title by defeating North Bay, Quebec City and Fort William. This earned them the opportunity to compete for the Memorial Cup in Winnipeg.
The Kingston team had several outstanding players. Legendary goalie Bill Taugher would go on to play professionally with the Buffalo Bisons. Following the 1926 season, Kingston’s George Patterson would turn pro and score the first goal in Maple Leafs history. Prior to that the Toronto team was called the St. Patricks and wore white and green uniforms.
In Winnipeg, the Kingston Combines took on the Calgary Canadians in a best two-out-of-three series. The Kingston squad got the first win 4-2. However, the next two games were won by Calgary by the same score: 3-2.
One hundred years later, Kingston still has not made another trip to compete for the Memorial Cup.
While Hartland Molson and his brother Tom sold the Canadiens to their cousins in 1964, Hartland was involved until after Montreal won the 1968 Cup, when he retired. Four years later, the Molsons would sell the team to another family in the booze business – Edward and Peter Bronfman.
Hartland Molson was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in the builders category in 1973. He died in 2002.
“What he loved about hockey was its speed, its precision and the strong camaraderie between the players,” Karen Molson says.
In 2009, Geoff Molson and his brothers Andrew and Justin bought the Canadiens, bringing the team back into the family.
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