Claude LaForge

Claude LaForge
Born	(1936-07-01)July 1, 1936 Fort William, ON, CAN
Died	May 4, 2015(2015-05-04) (aged 78) Longueuil, Quebec, Canada
Height	5 ft 8 in (173 cm)
Weight	160 lb (73 kg; 11 st 6 lb)
Position	Left Wing
Shot	Left
Played for	Montreal Canadiens Detroit Red Wings Philadelphia Flyers
Playing career	1957–1973

Joseph Claude Roger LaForge (July 1, 1936 – May 4, 2015) is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey left winger. He played parts of 8 years in the National Hockey League (NHL). He played for the Montreal Canadiens, Detroit Red Wings, and Philadelphia Flyers.

Career

Before playing in the NHL, LaForge played 2 games with the Montreal Royals and 1 season with the Shawinigan-Falls Cataracts of the Quebec Hockey League (QHL) and 1 season with the Cincinnati Mohawks of the International Hockey League (IHL). In 1958, LaForge was chosen to play on the QHL Second All-Star Team.

He started his NHL career with the Montreal Canadiens during the 1957–58 season. He would play a total of 5 games with the Canadiens. On June 3, 1958, the Canadiens traded LaForge along with Gene Achtymichuk and Bud MacPherson to the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for money.

LeForge spent time between the Red Wings and their AHL-affiliates, the Hershey Bears and Pittsburgh Hornets. After spending parts of 5 years with Detroit, he was sent down to the Hornets and was then traded to the Quebec Aces of the American Hockey League (AHL) in exchange for Terry Gray on March 1, 1966.

When the Philadelphia Flyers bough the Aces on May 8, 1967, LaForge's NHL rights were transferred to the team. He played 65 regular season games with the Flyers. In August 1970, the Flyers traded LaForge to the Denver Spurs of the Western Hockey League (WHL) in exchange for money. After spending 3 seasons with the Spurs, LaForge retired from playing professional ice hockey.

Other websites

• Claude LaForge player profile at NHL.com
• Claude LaForge career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database