This Day in Hockey History – October 2, 1999 – Bourque’s High
Photo: By Dave Stanley, via Wikimedia Commons
The day after No. 99 was retired, Ray Bourque, No. 77, surpassed his fellow No. 77, Paul Coffey (at that point the defenseman with the most career goals), by scoring his 386th goal. In the first game of the season, held at Fleet Center (now TD Garden), Bourque’s second-period, power-play slap shot stood as the Boston Bruins’ only goal. Although they lost to the Carolina Hurricanes 1-3, the goal made Bourque the NHL’s highest-scoring defenseman.
Two years later, Bourque retired with a career total of 410 goals and 1579 points (in 1612 games). He continues to hold the record as highest-scoring defenseman as well as having the most career points by a defenseman.
Ray Bourque (By Ravenswing [CC BY 3.0],
from Wikimedia Commons)
On October 4, 2001, the Bruins retired No. 77 before their season opener. As Bourque told ESPN at his last game in Boston, “I’ll always be a Bruin. I have a lot of memories here that can’t be taken away.” The Avalanche retired No. 77 that November before they played the Edmonton Oilers.
Bourque had worn No. 7 for the Bruins until 1987, when Boston retired the number in honor of Phil Esposito. Like Gretzky, Bourque simply doubled his good fortune and made No. 77 hit the high-score jackpot.
