Ralph Backstrom

Ralph Gerald Backstrom (September 18, 1937 – February 7, 2021) was a Canadian professional ice hockey centre who later worked as a coach, entrepreneur, and hockey executive. He played junior hockey from 1954 to 1958 with the Montreal Junior Canadiens, which relocated and was renamed the Ottawa-Hull Canadiens in 1956. He captained the team that won the George Richardson Memorial Trophy in 1957 and the Memorial Cup in 1958.

Backstrom joined the Montreal Canadiens for the 1958–59 season and was selected the NHL's top rookie, receiving the Calder Memorial Trophy. He played 12 full seasons in Montreal, winning six Stanley Cups. Over an NHL career spanning 1956 to 1973, he also played for the Los Angeles Kings and the Chicago Black Hawks. From 1973 to 1977 he played in the World Hockey Association with the Chicago Cougars, the Denver Spurs/Ottawa Civics, and the New England Whalers.

After retiring as a player, he served as head coach of the University of Denver Pioneers for several years during the 1980s.