Jean-Baptiste "Jack" Laviolette (July 17, 1879 – January 10, 1960) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. Laviolette played nine seasons for the Montreal Canadiens hockey club and was their first captain, coach, and general manager. Laviolette was one of the first francophone stars of ice hockey. He was born in Belleville, Ontario, but grew up in Valleyfield, Quebec. He was a solid scorer from the defenceman position, but Laviolette's true place in hockey history has less to do with his scoring prowess and more to do with his role as a founding organizer of the Canadiens hockey club. He was their first player, coach and general manager in their inaugural 1910 season. With the formation of the National Hockey Association (NHA) in December 1909, (replaced 7 years later by the NHL), team/league owner Ambrose O'Brien asked Laviolette to put together a team made up of French Canadian players to play as the "Les Canadiens" franchise in Montreal. Laviolette completed the task in time for the NHA's inaugural season. Among those that would sign on to that first team would be future hall of famers Newsy Lalonde, Didier Pitre and the "Chicoutimi Cucumber," Georges Vezina. The team he built would go on to be the most successful franchise in professional hockey. Playing career Laviolette first played elite-level senior men's amateur hockey in 1904 for the Montreal Le National, famous for being one of the first men's teams composed of francophones. From 1905 onward, he played as a professional, first with the Michigan Soo Indians of the International Professional Hockey League for three seasons, and then returned to Montreal to play for Montreal Shamrocks in the 1908 and 1909 seasons. A teammate of Laviolette on all of those teams was forward Didier Pitre. He then starred for the new Montreal Canadiens franchise from 1910 until 1918, both in the NHA and the NHL, scoring 51 goals in 156 games, winning the Stanley Cup in 1916. Laviolette lost his right foot in an automobile accident on May 1, 1918, ending his playing career. A benefit game for Laviolette was arranged at the Mount Royal Arena in 1921. He was the guest of honour, and also refereed. Playing style Primarily a defenceman position wise, Laviolette was renowned for his strong skating and his marvelous speed, which helped dub the Montreal Canadiens team The Flying Frenchmen. He would occasionally also play as a forward.