Beliveau Hospitalized: Hockey Hall of Fame Great Has Stroke
Montreal Hockey great Jean Beliveau is being treated in hospital after having a second stroke in two years on Monday.
The Canadiens announced on Tuesday the Hall of Famer is ''undergoing active investigation and treatments'' in Montreal. Spokesman for the team Donald Beauchamp said, Beliveau and his family requested privacy at this time.
When news of his hospitalization broke Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper issued a statement wishing the hockey great a "speedy recovery."
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"Mr. Beliveau is a great Canadian and a remarkable ambassador for our national sport,'' Prime Minister Stephen Harper said in a statement. ''We wish him a speedy recovery.''
Beliveau, who won 10 Stanley Cups with the team, has long since been plagued by health problems. In 1953 he was diagnosed when he underwent his first physical for the team as having "an Austin's motor in a Cadillac chassis." In spite of this diagnosis Beliveau went on to become a 13-time all-star and enter the Hall of Fame in 1972.
In 1996 a string of health problems was sparked for the Hockey great when he was treated for cardiac problems. In 2000 Beliveau was then diagnosed with a malignant throat tumor for which he underwent 35 chemotherapy treatments, and has since been in remission for cancer. In January 2010 he suffered his first stroke, and only a year later he underwent surgery to treat abdominal aneurysms.
Beliveau had a phenomenal 20 year career with the Canadiens, joining the team for good in 1953 after playing a number of games with them since 1951.
When he retired in 1972, he had scored a total of 507 goals, won the Hart Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player twice, and won the inaugural Conn Smythe Trophy in 1965.
Eighty-year-old Beliveau was the third highest trending term on Twitter in Canada on Tuesday afternoon.
