How Boston's First Drafted Player to Reach the NHL Ended up Torturing the Bruins

A look back at the second NHL draft, in 1964, when a future Hall of Fame goaltender was selected in the third round and then quickly traded away.

Feb 1973; Detroit, MI, USA; FILE PHOTO; Montreal Canadiens goalie Ken Dryden in the net against the Detroit Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena. / Malcolm Emmons-Imagn Images

The first player that the Boston Bruins selected in an NHL Draft who actually played in the league, turned out be one of the franchise's biggest nemesis.

We're talking maybe the biggest Bruins killer, at least emotionally, of all time. For example, after getting his first taste of the National Hockey League with six games near the end of the 1970-71 season, he helped lead the quarterfinal upset against reigning champion and top-seeded Boston, and key the Montreal Canadiens winning the Stanley Cup.

We're talking about Ken Dryden, of course, the 6-4 goaltender who was like a wall to the Bruins and many other hockey teams as part of a dynasty in the 1970s. Despite not even playing a full decade, retiring at age 26 after just seven full seasons and eight playoffs, he won six Stanley Cups and the Vezina Trophy five times.

The tall Hall of Fame inductee also won a Conn Smythe Trophy and Calder Memorial Trophy, and had his No. 29 retired by the Canadiens. He frustrated the Bruins so much that Phil Esposito once famously called him "that thieving giraffe."

And yes, he was drafted by the Bruins, although Dryden didn't know that for years.

On this date in 1964, Dryden, then only 16 and still in high school, was selected 14th overall in the third round of the 1964 NHL Draft. A couple of weeks later, June 28th to be exact, the Bruins traded Dryden, along with the second-overall pick in the draft, right wing Alex Campbell, to the Canadiens in exchange for two of its draft selections, defenseman Guy Allen (second round, No. 12 overall, and forward Paul Reid (third round, No. 18 overall).

As the story goes, Dryden's agent told him that he had been drafted by the Canadiens.

No one else involved in the trade played in the NHL, and for a while it looked like Dryden might not either. At the time, he was interested in attending law school and held off on going pro. Instead, he went to Cornell University and led to the Big Red to three straight ECAC tournament titles and the 1967 national championship. He went 76-4-1, was undefeated at home, and had a career 1.59 goals-against average (GAA) and a .939 save percentage.

Name	Overall	Round/Pick	Pos.	Ht/Wt.	Amateur Team
Alex Campbell	2	1/2	RW	6-1, 175	N/A
Jim Booth	8	2/2	C	5-10/180	N/A
Ken Dryden	14	3/2	G	6-3/207	Etobicoke Jr. B
Allister Blair	20	4/2	F	NA	Ingersoll Jr. B

When he eventually signed with the Canadiens, Dryden played most of the 1970-71 season in the AHL while also taking full-time law classes at at McGill University (in Montreal). Near the end of this season, he was called up and took over as the starting goaltender from veteran Rogie Vachon for the playoffs, but Montreal didn't play him against Boston during two late-season meetings, saving him as a surprise playoff starter against Bobby Orr and Co.

Dryden's NHL career lasted just 397 regular-season games, but he had an incredible 74.3 winning percentage, 2.24 goal-against average and .922 save percentage. He notched 46 shutous. In 112 playoff games he was 80-32. with a 2.40 GAA, .915 save percentage. All four times Dryden faced Boston in the postseason, the Bruins were eliminated.

Dryden did go on to have a prolific legal career and got into politics. He ran for the House of Commons in the federal election held in June 2004, was elected to Parliament and named to Cabinet as Minister of Social Development. He was re-elected to Parliament in 2006.

In addition to his Batchelor of Arts degree in history from Cornell, and his Bachelor of Laws degree from McGill, Dryden was awarded numerous honorary degrees over the years, and was made an Honorary Inductee to the CoSIDA Academic All-America Hall of Fame in 2005.

Ken Dryden's Honorary Degrees

McGill University: Doctor of Letters (2018)
University of Winnipeg: Honorary Doctorate (2013)
Ryerson University: Honorary Doctorate (2013)
Niagara University: Honorary Doctor of Laws (2004)
St. Mary’s University: Honorary Doctor of Civil Law (2004)
McMaster University: Honorary Doctorate (2003)
University of Ottawa: Doctor of University / Doctor of Letters (2000)
York University: Honorary Doctorate (1996)
University of British Columbia: Honorary Doctorate (1992)
University of Windsor: Honorary Doctorate (1997)

Dryden also authored books numerous books, including "The Game" in 1983, plus did some broadcasting. He was the analyst alongside Al Michels for the Miracle on Ice during the 1980 Olympics. The first Hall of Fame player to be selected in a draft by any team, died on Sept 5, 2025. He was 78.

This is the third story in a series looking back the Boston Bruins draft history, including 1963 and the 1967 expansion draft.

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