Organization mourns the loss of Mike Bossy New York Islanders legendary goal-scorer, Mike Boss

One of hockey’s most prolific goal-scorer and a legend of the New York Islanders, Mike Bossy dies at the age of 65 after being diagnosed with lung cancer in October. Bossy is one of the greatest goal-scorers in NHL history. He was also a member of Islander’s 4-straight Stanley Cup Championship teams in the 1980s.

TVA Sports, where Mike Bossy worked as a hockey analyst in Canada confirmed his death on Thursday night. Mike Bossy was in his native Montreal where the Islanders will play against the Canadians. Bossy helped the team win the Stanley Cup 4-times from 1980 to 83, and the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP in 1982.

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The New York Islanders mourn Mike Bossy’s death

Bossy died at the age of 65. Mike Bossy had announced his diagnosis with lung cancer in an open letter on the TVA Sports website in October. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said,

“The National Hockey League mourns the passing of Mike Bossy, the dynamic winger whose goal-scoring prowess during a remarkable 10-year career ranks, by almost any measure, as one of the greatest in NHL history and propelled the New York Islanders to four straight Stanley Cups”. “Bossy scored 573 goals in 752 games — a 0.76 goals-per-game average that is the highest in the League’s history. He is the only player ever to record nine straight 50-goal seasons and his five 60-goal seasons are matched only by Wayne Gretzky. One of only eight players in NHL history to have scored 50 goals in his first 50 games of a season, he was similarly dominating in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, during which he scored 85 goals in 129 games.”

Mike Bossy at least scored 70 goals in each of his 4-full seasons with Laval of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League but wasn’t selected until the Islanders chose him in the 1977 NHL Draft. As mentioned in nhl.com, Al Arbour, New York Islanders coach had to persued general manager Bill Torrey to choose Bossy, arguing that, “I can teach a player to check, but I can’t teach a player to score, and we need goals.”

It’s a 3rd loss for the Islanders following fellow Hall of Famer Clark Gillies’ death in January and Jean Potvin’s death in March. Bossy’s daughter Tanya said that now her father was “no longer in pain.” She further added,

“My dad loved hockey, sure, but first and foremost he loved life”. “Until the end of his journey, he hung on. He wanted to live more than anything.”

Mike Bossy scored more than 50 goals in each of his first 9 seasons. It was NHL’s longest goal streak. He is one of the players who scored 50 goals in 50 games and remains an all-time leader in goals in a game.

Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello said,

“The New York Islanders organization mourns the loss of Mike Bossy, an icon not only on Long Island but across the entire hockey world. His drive to be the best every time he stepped on the ice was second to none”.

Bossy was an 8-times All-Star winner, finishing with 573 goals and 553 assists for 1,126 points in 752 games. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1991 and was named as one of the NHL’s top 100 Greatest Players in 2017.

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