Joseph Gilbert Yvon Jean Ratelle - Born October 3, 1940 in Saint-Félicien, Quebec is a retired Canadian ice Hockey centre and coach.

- Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy Winner 1971 with New York Rangers.

- Lady Byng Memorial Trophy Winner 1972 with New York Rangers, 1976 with Boston Bruins.

- Lester B. Pearson Award (Ted Lindsay Award) Winner 1972 with New York Rangers.

- 1972 Summit Series Champion with Team Canada.

Stanley Cup finalist 1972, 1977, 1978.

Ratelle starred with the Guelph Biltmore juniors, where he accumulated 137 points in two seasons. Toward the end of the 1959-60 season, he played his first 3 pro games with the Trois-Rivières Lions of the Eastern Professional Hockey League / EPHL, scoring 3 goals (8 points). The promising forward was sent back to Guelph for another year of junior. Ratelle was the top player on the renamed Royals and led the OHA with 61 assists. He was also called up to the NHL for 3 games in early March, making his NHL debut with New York Rangers on March 4, 1961 vs Toronto Maple Leafs at Maple Leaf Gardens. also scoring his 1st NHL goal vs Cesare Maniago at 9:32 of 3rd period in a 5-4 Toronto win. He had 2 goals, 1 assist in the 3 games.

Ratelle split the 1961-62 season between the Kitchener-Waterloo Beavers of the EPHL and the New York Rangers. He was forced to work on his game while spending much of the next 2 seasons with the American Hockey League's Baltimore Clippers.

In 1963-64, a serious back injury resulted in a spinal fusion operation and the subsequent rehabilitation was painful and time-consuming.

Ratelle gained a regular place in the New York lineup in 1964-65. The next year another back injury slowed his progress even though the team's fortunes were on the upswing. Initially Ratelle was placed on the third line but at the insistence of Rod Gilbert was reunited with his junior colleague with great success.

By 1967-68, Ratell was a star in the league and recorded his first of eight 30-goal seasons. He scored his 1st NHL hat-trick, a natural Hat-trick vs Bruce Gamble of Toronto Maple Leafs, scoring 3 straight goals in the 2nd period on January 7, 1968 at Madison Square Garden in a 6-2 Rangers win.

Ratelle gained much fame as the pivot on the famous GAG (Goal-A-Game) Line with Gilbert and Vic Hadfield in the early 1970s.

Ratelle was awarded the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy in 1971. The 1971-72 season represented the high point of Ratelle's career. He established his personal high of 46 goals and 109 points and was the recipient of the Lady Byng Trophy and the Lester B. Pearson Award as the top player in the NHL as chosen by his peers.
He was also selected to the NHL Second All-Star Team in 1972.

Each member of the potent trio that season finished in the top five of the league's regular-season scoring list, though broken ankle suffered in March cost Ratelle a chance at the scoring title and limited his effectiveness in the playoffs. Even though the Rangers made it all the way to the finals, they might have fared better against Boston with a healthy Ratelle.

Ratelle was an important component of Team Canada when it defeated the USSR in the 1972 Summit Series. He scored four points in six games while playing chiefly a defensive role, and his overall skill and calm temperament impressed the Soviet players and coaching staff.

In November 1975, Ratelle was traded with teammates Brad Park and Joe Zanussi in a blockbuster deal to the Boston Bruins for Phil Esposito and Carol Vadnais. Ratelle finished strongly that year for his second 100-point campaign. Ratelle thrived following the trade from Manhattan with 90 points in 67 games as a Bruin and his continuing excellence helped Boston reach consecutive Stanley Cup finals in 1977 and 1978.

On March 21, 1976, Ratelle played his 1,000th game against the Montreal Canadiens.

In 1976 Ratelle was presented the Lady Byng Trophy for the second time.

He starred for several more seasons for Boston, gaining admiration for his slick passing, skill at faceoffs and all-around excellent play, retiring a Bruin after the 1981 season.

Ratelle played centre ice in the NHL for twenty-one seasons, playing in 1280 regular season games, scoring 491 goals (68 GWG) 776 assists with 276 penalty minutes and 123 NHL playoff games, scoring 32 goals (5 GWG / 1 OTG), 66 assists with 22 penalty minutes.

Ratelle played in NHL All-Star Games 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1980.

Ratelle served for several years thereafter as an assistant coach for the Bruins.

Jean Ratelle was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1985.

In January 2017, Ratelle was named one of the "100 Greatest NHL Players" in history.

On August 28, 2017, the Rangers announced that they would retire Ratelle's number 19 jersey on February 25, 2018 in a pre-game ceremony.

In 2023, Ratelle would be named one of the top 100 Bruins players of all time.