| Round | Overall |
| 3 | 39 |
 |
 |
Left-hand shot
Pre-Draft Statistics
| Year | Team | League | GP | G | A | TP | PIM |
| 1968-69 | Montreal | OHA | 51 | 10 | 28 | 38 | 51 |
| 1969-70 | Montreal | OHA | 50 | 29 | 43 | 72 | 75 |
| 1970-71 | Montreal | OHA | 15 | 11 | 23 | 34 | 35 |
Pre-Draft Notes
Would have been selected higher if not for significant injuries in his draft year.
Career Vitals
| First contract: | August 16, 1971 |
| Debut: | January 5, 1972 (Vancouver at Montreal) |
| Final NHL game: | April 8, 1976 (playoffs) (Atlanta vs. Los Angeles) |
| Retired: | 1977 |
| Stanley Cup: | Never won |
| Numbers worn: | 19 (Vancouver); 8 (Kansas City); 20 (Atlanta) |
Career NHL Statistics
Teams: Vancouver,
Kansas City, Atlanta
Years: 1972-1976. Playoffs: 1976
| Regular Season | |||||
| GP | G | A | TP | PIM | |
| 5 years | 274 | 39 | 82 | 121 | 132 |
| Stanley Cup Playoffs | |||||
| GP | G | A | TP | PIM | |
| 1 year | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Complete statistics available at NHL.com | |||||
Pre-Draft Highlights
Scored 28 goals and 60 points in 44 games for Thetford Mines (QJHL) in
1967-68. ... Won Memorial Cup with Montreal (OHA) in 1969, playing on
line with Guy Charron and Norm Gratton. ... Won Memorial Cup with Montreal
(OHA) in 1970, scoring 12 goals and 27 points in 12 tournament games.
Career Highlights
Played on first Kansas City Scouts team (franchise became New Jersey Devils) in inaugural 1974-75 season, and played in team's first game on Oct. 9, 1974, at Toronto. ... Played on 1975-76 Nova Scotia team that won AHL regular-season title. ... Won AHL Calder Cup with Nova Scotia in 1976. ... Led AHL playoffs with eight goals for Nova Scotia in 1976.
Transaction History
June 12, 1974 -- Claimed by Kansas
City from Vancouver in NHL Expansion Draft.
Oct. 13, 1975 -- Traded by Kansas City with 1977 second-round
pick (Miles Zaharko) to Atlanta in exchange for Buster Harvey.
Aug. 17, 1976 -- Signed WHA contract
with Calgary. Jan. 9, 1977 -- Traded
by Calgary (WHA) to Minnesota in exchange for Butch Deadmarsh. The trade
was voided, and Deadmarsh was returned to Minnesota when Lemieux refused
to report to Minnesota and instead retired.
Life Outside the NHL
Full Name: Richard
Bernard Lemieux
Also Known as: Rich Lemieux
Other Post-Draft Teams: Rochester (AHL); Nova Scotia (AHL); Calgary (WHA)
Significant Injuries
Missed most of 1970-71 season with right knee injury, suffered during Montreal's Nov. 8, 1970, OHA game vs. Toronto in November 1970. At the time he was hurt, he had scored 10 goals in the team's first 10 games. The injury required surgery and he was forced to wear a cast until Jan. 5, 1971. He did not return until Montreal's March 14, 1971, game vs. Oshawa. ... Missed remainder of 1971 playoffs with broken hand, an injury suffered during Game 4 of Montreal's first-round playoff series vs. London on April 5, 1971.
Miscellaneous:
| Selected by Los Angeles Sharks in 1972 WHA Draft -- first-ever WHA Draft -- in February 1972. | Played on line with Don Lever and Bobby Lalonde for Vancouver in 1972-73. | Had WHA rights owned by Los Angeles team that relocated to Michigan on April 11, 1974. | Became unrestricted WHA free agent after Michigan-Baltimore franchise folded in 1976. |
| SNAPSHOT '71 | |
| Total Selected: | 117 |
| Forwards: | 63 |
| Defense: | 45 |
| Goaltenders: | 9 |
| Major Junior: | 84 |
| College Players: | 19 |
| Canadian: | 107 |
| Euro-Canadian: | 2 |
| American: | 8 |
| European: | 0 |
| Reached NHL: | 50 |
| Won Stanley Cup: | 5 |
| Hall of Fame: | 3 |
| All-Star Game: | 10 |
| Year-end All-Star: | 5 |
| Olympians: | 4 |
| Picks Traded: | 18 |
| 1971 PICKS BY TEAM | ||
| Boston | Buffalo | California |
| Chicago | Detroit | Los Angeles |
| Minnesota | Montreal | New York |
| Philadelphia | Pittsburgh | St. Louis |
| Toronto | Vancouver | |
OTHERS DRAFTED IN 1971