Jack Bionda, a member of Canada's Sports Hall of Fame considered one of Canada's finest box lacrosse players ever, has died at the age of 66.

Bionda, a native of Huntsville, Ontario, died Wednesday night of apparent complications after undergoing knee replacement surgery in London, Ontario. There was no immediate word on cause of death.

He was a lacrosse showman, dazzling fans and opponents alike with his stickwork.

"He had a stellar career," said Michael Lachapelle, general manager of the Canadian Lacrosse Association. "He was a unanimous choice in the (Lacrosse) Hall of Fame and is still quite often referred to as the greatest player to play the game.

"But more importantly, one of the shining lights that Jack brought to things was even after his playing career was over, he's always kept an absolute dedication to the game."

That included participation in celebrity games, where Bionda often outshone NHL players more than half his age.

"He would play and then he would be sore for about two weeks," said his daughter Jocelyn Knox.

He was also involved in pro lacrosse and was General Manager of the Philadelphia Wings in 1974 in a fledgling pro lacrosse league.

Bionda also played hockey, playing 13 games for the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1955-56 and 80 games for the Boston Bruins from 1956 to 1959.

But lacrosse was his true love.

Bionda played in seven Mann Cup finals, winning five and was twice named Mann Cup MVP, with the Victoria Shamrocks and New Westminster Salmonbellies in the 1950s and early '60s.

"I remember that in a 1958 game at Queens Park Arena, Bionda was so incredible that he sent an awestruck 19-year-old rookie reporter running to a thesaurus," recalled Vancouver Sun columnist Archie McDonald, the cub reporter in question.

"What's another word for unbelievable, I asked myself?"

In 1959, he scored 70 goals and added 74 assists in 28 games. In fact Bionda won the scoring title every year he played a full season.

Defense was never his strongpoint, but his explosive offense more than made up for it. He scored 685 goals and added 506 assists for 1,191 points in just 326 Senior A lacrosse games in British Columbia

"If he wanted a goal, he simply got it," Cleve Dheensaw wrote in his book Lacrosse 100 -- One Hundred years of Lacrosse in B.C.

"The stories are legend about him ramming his body through three or four defenders in a vain attempt to stop this pug-nosed, hulking mass of a human being as he moved through them before ramming the ball part the goaltender with his vicious shot.

"His habit of sticking his tongue in his cheek so that it ballooned out only added to the sight. The more determined Bionda was to beat his man, the bigger the balloon got."

Bionda also played in Nanaimo, British Columbia, and Portland, Oregon, in a career that stretched from 1945 to 1968.

"To play against or with, he was just one of the greatest players ever," said Bob Allan, a former teammate and former coach of the national field lacrosse team.

"He continued to be an ambassador for the game. He was always attending games and functions to support lacrosse."

Lachapelle recalled a lacrosse demonstration Bionda put on a few years ago on Parliament Hill with members of the national team.

"He had a stick specially designed so he could use it one-handed and he was throwing balls between his legs and behind his back and over his shoulder. It was just amazing."

"He's worked on it his whole life," he added. "He never left the game and the game never left him."

Bionda played junior hockey for the Toronto Marlboros and Soo Greyhounds in the early '50s. He also played for the Springfield Indians of the AHL and the Portland Buckeroos of the WHL.

He was inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in 1982.

Bionda is survived by his wife Joanne and seven children. Funeral services are scheduled for Monday in Huntsville at the Salvation Army Citadel.

The Outsider's Guide contributed to this article.