Frank Mahovlich Francis William " Frank " Mahovlich , Order of Canada ( born January 10 , 1938 in Timmins , Ontario ) is a retired NHL player , nicknamed the " Big M . " He played on six Stanley Cup - winning teams and is an inductee of the Hockey Hall of Fame . Playing career . The son of immigrants from Croatia , Mahovlich was scouted by several National Hockey League teams while playing for the Schumacher Lions of the Northern Ontario Hockey Association . He signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs , who sent him to one of their Ontario Hockey Association affiliates , the St . Michael ' s Majors . Mahovlich played there while attending St . Michael ' s College School from 1954 – 57 . While at St . Michael ' s , he received instruction from Joe Primeau , who Mahovlich would later call the best coach he ever had . Mahovlich received the Red Tilson Trophy as the top player in the Junior A OHA for the 1956 – 57 season , in which he scored 52 goals in 49 games . He joined the Leafs in 1957 and was a 20 - goal scorer in his first season , winning the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year in what was otherwise a rough season with the last - place Leafs , Punch Imlach was hired to run the Leafs and soon became head coach and general manager . In the 1960 – 61 season , Imlach put Mahovlich on a line with Red Kelly and Bob Nevin . The three immediately clicked and were the team ' s top three scorers that year , led by Mahovlich ' s 48 goals — a Leaf record that would stand for 21 years . The following season , the Leafs won the Stanley Cup , and repeated as champions in 1963 and 1964 . Mahovlich led the team in goals scored in all three seasons . Initially , Mahovlich and Imlach got along well , but their relationship deteriorated after a few seasons , particularly when Mahovlich ' s contract was up for renewal in 1962 . He felt the Leafs gave him a low - ball offer and walked out on the team during training camp in September . Red Burnett at the " Toronto Star " described the situation as a " cold war " between Imlach and Mahovlich . At that time , the National Hockey League All - Star Game was played at the beginning of the season , and during a reception in Toronto attended by team executives in the days before the game , Chicago Black Hawks owner James D . Norris offered the Leafs $ 1 million for Mahovlich . He believed he had an agreement with Leafs co - owner Harold Ballard and paid $ 1 , 000 as a deposit with the balance to be delivered by cheque the next morning . The next day , the Leafs gave Mahovlich the money he had been asking for , and told the Black Hawks that their apparent agreement the night before had been a misunderstanding . The Leafs returned the $ 1 , 000 deposit . The Black Hawks accused the Leafs of reneging on a deal . Conn Smythe , at this point a minority shareholder in the Leafs , was adamant that the deal should be rejected . Mahovlich also had a rocky relationship with fans at Maple Leaf Gardens and was often booed at home games . Imlach — who mispronounced Mahovlich ' s name for years — became a constant critic and , under pressure from fans and management , Mahovlich was admitted to Toronto General Hospital in November 1964 , suffering from what was publicly described as " constant fatigue " but diagnosed as acute Clinical depression . Mahovlich was flooded with well - wishes from fans during his time off . He returned to the lineup a month later and was still able to lead the Leafs in scoring in the 1964 – 65 season , despite missing 11 games . Mahovlich led the Leafs in scoring again in the 1965 – 66 season . The Leafs won one final Stanley Cup in the 1966 – 67 season , with Mahovlich having his lowest - scoring year in seven seasons . Early into the next season , Mahovlich was again admitted to hospital , although this time it was acknowledged publicly as depression and tension . " Mahovlich is a sensitive , easily - bruised individual , " wrote Milt Dunnell in a page - one story in the " Toronto Star " . On March 3 , 1968 in a blockbuster trade , Mahovlich was sent to the Detroit Red Wings with Pete Stemkowski , Garry Unger , and the rights to Carl Brewer for Norm Ullman , Paul Henderson , Floyd Smith and Doug Barrie . Mahovlich had a strong finish to the season with the Red Wings , and the following year put up his best point totals in eight seasons , playing on a line with Gordie Howe and Alex Delvecchio and setting his personal record for goals in a season with 49 . Initially , one of his teammates on the Red Wings was his younger brother , Peter Mahovlich , who split his time between the Wings and their minor league affiliate . In 1970 – 71 , Red Wings general manager Sid Abel wanted to get rid of coach Ned Harkness and was overruled by team owner Bruce Norris . Once Harkness took over as general manager , he got rid of players he deemed a threat to him . On January 13 , 1971 , Mahovlich was traded to the Montreal Canadiens for Mickey Redmond , Guy Charron and Bill Collins . He was reunited with his brother , who had become a star player himself with the Canadiens . Mahovlich spent three - and - a - half seasons in Montreal , playing on the Stanley Cup - winning teams of 1971 and 1973 . In the 1971 Stanley Cup playoffs , Mahovlich was key to the Canadiens ' triumph , scoring 14 goals and 13 assists in 20 games for a then - record 27 points ( since broken ) . During the 1971 – 72 season , Mahovlich scored a career - high 96 points , which he nearly matched the following season with 93 points . He also was a member of Team Canada for the 1972 Summit Series against the Soviet Union . In 1974 , he left the NHL for the World Hockey Association , and represented Canada again at the 1974 Summit Series . In the WHA , he played for the Toronto Toros and the Birmingham Bulls until his retirement in 1978 at the age of 40 . While with the Bulls , Mahovlich was placed on an unproductive line with Frank Beaton and Dave Hanson , one of the Hanson Brothers who had been in the movie " Slap Shot " . According to John Brophy , when a reporter asked Mahovlich what was wrong , he replied , “ I don ’ t know , but I seem to play a lot better with Howe and Delvecchio . ” He attempted an NHL comeback with the Detroit Red Wings in 1979 , but it was unsuccessful , and he formally retired on October 7 , 1979 . Mahovlich was a First Team All - Star three times ( 1960 - 61 , 1962 - 63 , and 1972 - 73 ) and a Second Team All - Star six times ( 1961 - 62 , 1963 - 64 , 1964 - 65 , 1965 - 66 , 1968 - 69 , and 1969 - 70 ) . Post - playing career . Mahovlich was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1981 and Canada ' s Sports Hall of Fame in 1990 . In 1994 , he was made a Member of the Order of Canada . In 1998 , Mahovlich was appointed to the Senate of Canada by Prime Minister Jean Chrétien , and in the same year , he was ranked number 26 on " The Hockey News " ' list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players , the highest - ranking player who had spent at least a majority of his career with the Maple Leafs .