1975 O-Pee-Chee #164 Gilles Marotte PSA 8 NM-MT New York Rangers Defense Card

1975 O-Pee-Chee #164 Gilles Marotte, New York Rangers. Graded PSA 8 NM-MT. Certification number 24555288. The card is from the 1975-76 O-Pee-Chee hockey set. The photos show the exact card and holder you will receive, so please review them closely for condition and centering.

The back lists him on defense, born June 7, 1945 in Montreal, Quebec, home Verdun, Quebec, 5'9" and 205 pounds, acquired in a trade with Los Angeles, 11 years pro. It notes he was a first-team All-Star as a junior. His NHL totals through 1974-75 are listed as 704 games, 49 goals, 244 assists, 293 points and 812 penalty minutes.

Jean Gilles Marotte played junior hockey with the Victoriaville Bruins and the Niagara Falls Flyers, both Boston-sponsored clubs, and was a first-team all-star on the Flyers team that won the 1965 Memorial Cup. He reached the NHL with Boston in 1965-66 and finished third in Calder Trophy voting that year. He earned the nickname Captain Crunch for his hitting, built low and thick at 5'9" and 205 pounds, and he was a strong skater with a hard point shot.

On May 15, 1967 Marotte was the centerpiece of one of the most consequential trades in NHL history. Boston sent him to Chicago with Pit Martin and Jack Norris for Phil Esposito, Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield. Chicago considered Marotte the prize of the deal.

He spent three seasons with the Black Hawks, was traded to Los Angeles in February 1970, and had the best years of his career there, representing the Kings at the 1973 All-Star Game and setting a career high with 45 points. A 1973 trade brought him to New York, where general manager Emile Francis wanted him for his physical presence, and he played three seasons for the Rangers. He was claimed on waivers by St. Louis in 1976 and later played in the WHA with Cincinnati and Indianapolis.

Marotte finished with 808 NHL games, 56 goals, 265 assists and 321 points. According to his own O-Pee-Chee cards from the era, he turned down an offer to play professional baseball as a catcher to pursue hockey. He died July 26, 2005 at age 60 in Verdun, Quebec.

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