Édouard Cyrille "Newsy" Lalonde (October 31, 1887 – November 21, 1970) was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward in the National Hockey League (NHL) and a professional lacrosse player. Lalonde is regarded as one of hockey's and lacrosse's greatest players of the first half of the 20th century and one of Canadian sport's most colourful characters. He played for the Montreal Canadiens – considered to be the original "Flying Frenchman" – in the National Hockey Association and the NHL. He also played for the WCHL's Saskatoon Sheiks. Early life and family Lalonde was born to Pierre Lalonde (1847 – 1926) and Rose Lalonde (1849 – 1939). As a minor, he worked as, first, a reporter, then as a printer, for the Cornwall Freeholder and Woodstock, Ontario Express newspapers, where he acquired the "Newsy" moniker. On May 7, 1913, Lalonde married Iona Elizabeth Letters (1899 – 1966), daughter of James Harcourt and Sarah Job. The couple had two children. Early ice hockey career In 1904, Lalonde started his career with the Cornwall Victorias of the Federal Amateur Hockey League (FAHL). The next season, he played for the Woodstock club of the Ontario Hockey Association Senior A League. Lalonde made the trek to Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario in 1906 to play in the International Professional Hockey League, hockey's first known professional league. In his one season in the Sault, he was named to the IHL Second All-Star Team. In 1907, Lalonde signed with the Toronto Professionals of the Ontario Professional Hockey League, and with line mates Bruce Ridpath and Wally Mercer led the "Torontos" to the league championship, losing the Cup in a close match with the Montreal Wanderers in which Lalonde scored twice. The year 1910 saw the foundation of the National Hockey Association (NHA), precursor to the NHL, and Lalonde joined the Montreal Canadiens for their first season. Lalonde scored the first goal for the Montreal Canadiens. Halfway through the season, the Habs traded him to the Renfrew Creamery Kings, for whom Lalonde led the league in scoring. He rejoined the Canadiens for the 1911 season—professional hockey was only then developing any sense of teams retaining the rights to their players—during which he had several stick battles and provoked the ire of opposing fans. With the formation of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA) in 1912, Lalonde jumped to the Vancouver Millionaires, and promptly led the league in scoring its