The Flyers Alumni Association extends condolences to the family of Jean-Guy Gendron, who passed away on July 4 at the age of 87. He was one of the more capable offensive players in the early years of Flyers history and a well-respected gentleman off the ice.
Mr. Gendron was born on August 30, 1934, in Montreal, Quebec. The Flyers acquired the contract of the former New York Rangers, Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins forward, who spent the 1964-65 to 1966-67 seasons in the American Hockey League with the Quebec Aces, when the new Philadelphia franchise purchased the Aces to be their AHL farm team. He dressed in just one game for the Flyers in the inaugural 1967-68 season, remaining with the Aces but became a regular with the NHL club the next year.
Mr. Gendron was one of the better goal-scorers early in Flyers franchise history. Playing left wing on a line centered by Andre Lacroix with Leon Rochefort on right wing, the 5-foot-9, 165-pound forward notched a 55-point season (20 goals, 35 assists) in 1968-69. He went on to post 23 and 20 goals the next two seasons. He remained with the Flyers through the 1971-72 season. Mr. Gendron finished his career with two seasons with the Quebec Nordiques in the fledgling World Hockey Association. Thereafter, he became the Nordiques’ head coach for two years. For his Flyers career, Jean-Guy Gendron appeared in 278 regular season games as a Flyer. He posted 69 goals (17 on the power play), 86 assists, 155 points and 203 penalty minutes in that span. The little winger also played in eight Stanley Cup playoff games, producing one assist and six penalty minutes. For his NHL career, Gendron played in 863 games (182 goals, 201 assists, 383 points, 701 penalty minutes) and 42 playoff games (seven goals, four assists, 11 points, 47 penalty minutes).
