Elmer Lach Elmer James Lach ( born January 22 , 1918 - April 4 , 2015 ) was a retired Canadian professional centre who played 14 seasons for the Montreal Canadiens in the National Hockey League . He was part of the Punch Line , along with Maurice Richard and Toe Blake . He led the league in scoring twice , and was awarded the Hart Memorial Trophy in 1945 as the league ' s Most Valuable Player . Lach won three Stanley Cup s with Montreal . He retired as the league ' s all - time leading scorer in 1954 , and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame 12 years later . Up until his death he was oldest suriving NHL player . Early life . He was born in Nokomis , Saskatchewan , a small town north of Regina . He began playing junior ice hockey for with the Regina Abbotts in the 1935 - 36 SJHL Season . He played the two following seasons with the Weyburn Beavers of the Saskatchewan Senior Hockey League ( SSHL ) . In the 1938 – 39 season , Lach joined the Moose Jaw Millers of the SSHL . In his first season with the Millers , he led them in assists , with 20 , and was the leading playoff scorer . He also scored 17 regular - season goals . The next season , he scored 15 goals and 29 assists , and led in playoff scoring again . Lach was also noted for his defensive contributions . Career . Lach signed with the Montreal Canadiens on October 24 , 1940 . He came to the Canadiens ' training camp with only an overnight bag , not expecting to be offered a contract . In his NHL season , Lach played 43 games , scoring seven goals and adding 14 assists . He was limited to only one game the following season , after suffering an elbow injury in the first game . He returned the following season to score 58 points in 45 games . He set a still - standing Canadiens records by scoring six assists in one game on February 6 , 1943 . In the 1943 – 44 season , Montreal head coach Dick Irvin tried a line combination of Lach at centre , Maurice Richard on the right wing , and Toe Blake at left . This line became known as the Punch Line and dominated the NHL for four seasons . In the first season of the Punch line , Lach played 48 games , scoring on average an assist per game ; he also added 24 goals . At the conclusion of the season , Lach was named to the Second All - Star team . He also won his first Stanley Cup , helping sweep the Chicago Black Hawks in the Stanley Cup Finals . In the 1944 – 45 season , Lach played in all 50 games , picking up a league - leading 80 points , of which 26 were goals and 54 were assists . That season , linemate Maurice Richard became the first player in the NHL to score 50 goals in 50 games . That season , the Punch line amassed 220 points in total , a NHL record until the 1960s . Lach was presented the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league ' s Most Valuable Player , and was named to the First All - Star team . After being eliminated by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the semi - finals in the 1944 - 45 NHL season , Lach and the Canadiens won another Stanley Cup in the 1945 – 46 season . Lach led all players with 34 regular season assists , and was named once more to the Second All - Star team . In the 1947 – 48 season , Lach became the first recipient of the Art Ross Trophy , after leading the league in points , with 61 . The Punch line ceased to exist after Blake retired at the end of the season . Lach led the league in assists for the last time in the 1951 – 52 season , with 50 . In the 1952 – 53 season , Lach won his third and final Stanley Cup in a memorable finish . At 1 : 22 of overtime , he scored the Cup - winning goal against the Boston Bruins ; however , in the on - ice celebration immediately after the goal , Maurice Richard accidentally broke Lach ' s nose with his stick . Retirement . Lach retired in 1954 as the league ' s leading scorer , having played 664 regular season games , scoring 215 goals and 408 assists for 623 points , as well as 76 postseason games , where he scored 19 goals and 45 assists for 64 points . He retired as he had accepted an offer to coach the Montreal Junior Canadiens . He also stood behind the bench for the Montreal Royals for two seasons , before pursuing business interests . He was elected into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1966 . In 1998 , he was ranked number 68 on List of 100 greatest hockey players by The Hockey News . He became the oldest living former NHL player on Septermber 23 , 2014 with the passing of Al Suomi . Lach suffered a stroke on March 28 , 2015 and passed away at the age of 97 on the morning of April 4 , 2015 .