Vancouver Canucks Legends

Tyler Bouck

2012-01-28T15:54:00.000-08:00

I remember travelling to Prince George fairly regularly back in the late 1990s and early 2000s to watch the WHL Cougars play. Man they had a big defence, with the likes Zdeno Chara, Eric Brewer, Joel Kwiatkowski and Derek Boogaard, who played a lot on the blue line back then. They all went on to the NHL. Chara would prove to be the best, but Smithers native Dan Hamhuis, another future NHLer, came a long a bit after those giants and probably proved to be the best defenseman to play in P.G.

But I was always amazed at how popular a forward named Tyler Bouck was in that city. Like the pulp mill town itself, Bouck was a blue collar hustler and grinder and the fans adored his work ethic. His jersey would be seen in store windows hanging with pride.

And with good reason. Not only did he represent PG, but also Canada. Twice he represented Canada at the World Juniors, winning a silver in 1999 and a bronze in 2000.

Dallas drafted Bouck 57th overall in 1998. In his professional rookie season he played with the Stars for 48 games, but barely made an impact with just 2 goals. The next season he was traded to Phoenix, but only played 7 games with them. He was destined for the minor leagues.

At the time the young Bouck did not know how to handle the adversity, but it was a great life lesson for him.

"It's frustrating because I started the year with Dallas my first year and kind of expected big things," he said. "And that didn't happen. As a young guy, that was tough to get over. You just have to keep going and work through it.

"When I first got sent down . . . it bugged me and affected my game. Now, I just try to put that out of my mind and control what I can control. You go to the rink the same every day. It's a job that's better than going to work nine to five someplace. You can't complain no matter where you're playing."

Bouck never quit working, and it paid off when the Vancouver Canucks acquired him late in 2001 as part of a deal that saw Todd Warriner and Trevor Letowski join the team for Drake Berehowsky and Denis Pederson. Bouck would find a home with the Canucks farm team in Manitoba, proving to be a popular player in Winnipeg

But Bouck would also get a chance to return to the NHL, playing in parts of three seasons with the Canucks 4th line. He would diligently patrol his wing, hit hard when he was on the forecheck and even answered the bell a couple of times. Ultimately he was not the most memorable or even appreciated player in Canucks history, but he did a good job under the circumstances. He even chipped in a couple of goals.

He made favorable impressions among his teammates.

"I really like the way he plays," veteran Canuck Trevor Linden said. "Aggressive forechecker, likes to hit, good skater, has some skill. He's my type of player."

Bouck kept a great perspective on his job with the Canucks.

"I think the biggest thing I want to do is just make sure I'm noticed out there by getting hits and using my speed and letting them know I want to be here," Bouck said. "Most likely I will go back down to Manitoba, but I want them to know that I'm a guy they can call on."

The years in the Canucks organization were not necessarily easy for Bouck. When he first arrived he battled a devastating groin injury. When he got healthier flashier prospects seemed to get the call-ups, and the Canucks team depth limited the opportunities to play.

"It is frustrating when you don't get those chances," Bouck said. "But you're always going to work hard and try to impress them to get that shot. You question yourself and what you've got to do. It's tough because you can look at other teams and places and say: 'Maybe I'd fit in there or fit in there.' But it doesn't really matter because I'm a Vancouver Canuck and there's no point looking at other teams and thinking where you'd fit in because there's no chance to go to those places. You play the hand your dealt and that's what I'm doing."

Bouck never really did stick in the NHL. Which was too bad, because he was a good guy. He was a poor man's Adam Graves, which was probably by design. As an 11 year old Bouck had a chance to caddy for Graves at an Edmonton Oilers charity golf tournament. Graves took a liking to the kid and always kept in touch with him and even trained with him in the summer times. Bouck was very much Graves' understudy.

Bouck was always appreciative of Graves.

"Would I be here without him? Probably not," said Bouck. "He showed me what it took to be at this level."

In 91 NHL games Tyler Bouck scored 4 goals and 12 points. He returned to the minor leagues following his last stint in Vancouver. He then headed to Europe to extend his professional career, joining Ingolstadt of the German league.

Jason King

2012-01-28T15:14:00.000-08:00

Jason King will forever go down in hockey history as a member of the Mattress Line. That's what they called the line of Daniel and Henrik Sedin and rookie Jason King in 2003-04 season. Two twins and a King, get it?

The native of Cornerbrook, Newfoundland was a likeable forward with good hands around the net. He had a strong junior career with the Halifax Mooseheads of the QMJHL, but he was a late bloomer. He never even bothered going to his own NHL draft, figuring he would not get picked at all.

But the Canucks took a chance on King in the 7th round, taking him 212th overall. A lot of kids would be discouraged to be drafted so late, but King was delighted.

“When Vancouver selected me, I was thrilled. I was very happy it was a Canadian team. I knew I would have to work harder than I ever had before, but I was definitely looking forward to the challenge. I just tried to keep a positive outlook.”

King always had a mature ability to remain calm and patient when facing hurdles, and it served him well in a 9 year professional career, including stops in Anaheim and Europe.

The right-winger dedicated himself the rest of the summer and erupted with a final QMJHL season where he was virtually unstoppable, scoring 63 times in 61 games, ending the campaign with 99 points, along with another 17 in 13 post-season contests.

Suddenly he was on the prospect radar, but he remained level-headed about his future.
“A lot of things still had to fall in place,” he said. “All I could do was play my best hockey. If I did that, I really couldn't be too disappointed.”

In 2002-03, King had his first taste of NHL action, albeit briefly, appearing in eight games with the Canucks, posting two assists. The right-winger spent the majority of the season with Manitoba of the American Hockey League, notching 20 goals in 67 games with the Moose.

That performance prompted Vancouver to give King a legitimate shot at cracking the line-up in 2003, a tough challenge for any aspiring NHLer, even more so when you consider the talent quotient on the Canucks.

Knowing it was the break he had always hoped for, King didn't give the organization much of an option in determining his fate, performing strongly throughout camp, holding his own against such stout scorers as 2003 Lester B. Pearson Award winner Markus Naslund and premiere power forward Todd Bertuzzi.

The result? A well deserved spot on the roster.

Simply making the grade, however, wasn't enough for King, who would eventually team up with the Sedin twins, Henrik and Daniel, to form a dangerous trio at both ends of the rink.

“I definitely wanted to fit in and contribute and it's worked out well so far. I think the three of us bring something different to the rink. We really work well off one another. They're great at cycling the puck and that really gives me some good chances to put the puck in the net.”

The line was definitely fit for a King. Though their tenure together was brief, King was one of the very first wingers to benefit from playing with the brilliant Sedin twins.

King would spend the lockout season with the Canucks farm team in Manitoba. When the NHL finally returned a year later, King would not find a roster spot on the deep Canucks team. He was destined for another year in the minor leagues.

"I just have to keep playing as hard as I can and capitalize on my opportunities. I have to believe I will get another opportunity."

King did get another opportunity, though it was not with the Canucks. In the summer of 2007 the Canucks traded King to Anaheim for an undersized speedster named Ryan Shannon.

King would play just 4 games with the Ducks that season, spending the rest of the year in the minors. He jumped at a chance to earn bigger money playing in Germany.

Artem Chubarov

2012-01-28T11:31:00.000-08:00

Most Canadian hockey fans would have pegged Artem Chubarov as a rising offensive star after his performance in the gold medal game at the 1999 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championships in Winnipeg. Chubarov potted two goals for Team Russia, including the winner at 5:13 of overtime, in a 3-2 victory over Canada.

The following season those thoughts quickly disappeared. In his first NHL season with the Vancouver Canucks, Chubarov scored just 1 goal (and 10 points) in 49 games.

Now he did face a large adjustment, both on the smaller ice surface and to live in North American altogether. Chubarov admitted it was a tough year for himself, especially since he was still a kid.

Chubarov was never going to be an offensive superstar. But he had promise as a classic Russian centerman. The lanky pivot had a superb understanding of the defensive game and, in time, displayed quiet brilliance distributing the puck for offensive transitions. He was a very intelligent player, much like his idol Igor "The Professor" Larionov.

After a season of apprenticing in the minors, the Canucks brought Chubarov back and used him as a defensive specialist for 3 seasons. He was a big piece of the Canucks strong penalty kill unit at the time. He was also the team's best face-off man and was used for big defensive zone puck drops.

With the Canucks big West Coast Express line of Markus Naslund, Todd Bertuzzi and Brendan Morrison leading the way, and the young Sedins being apprenticed in the second line role, Chubarov never did get much of a chance to contribute in a more offensive way, which is unfortunate as he probably could have served as an excellent third line center or be pigeon-holed into the second line role. He only scored 25 goals in his short career, but he made them count. His first four goals were game winners - the first player in NHL history to accomplish that.

Ultimately Chubarov's NHL career was a short one. In 2004 he passed on the Canucks qualifying contract offer and headed home to Russia to play in the KHL. He never came back and was more or less never heard from again, at least in North America.

Whether he was homesick or not I do not know, but his disappearance was mysterious in one way. Stories surfaced that Chubarov was in such a hurry to leave Vancouver that he simply left his car at his player's underground parking spot at the arena. It stayed the for months before the Canucks finally had it removed. Whatever happened to the Chubarov's car we may never know!

One thing I do know - Artem Chubarov will go down as one of the more under-appreciated players in Canucks history.

Neil Belland

2011-12-09T20:41:00.000-08:00

This is Neil Belland. He was a part time defenseman with the Vancouver Canucks during the 1980s. He played 109 games in his career, scoring 13 goals, 32 assists and 45 points. He was a skilled puck mover and mobile skater, but had trouble handling the bigger NHL forwards. I remember more than a few occasions when Edmonton's Mark Messier unceremoniously running right over the 180lb Belland, funky moustache and all.

Belland was a late bloomer. Never drafted, the Canucks signed him in 1980 and let him develop in junior with the Kingston Canadiens.

Belland turned pro in 1981-82, and played really well in the minor leagues. With injuries decimating the Canucks blue line he was called up and surprised many with his solid play. In fact Belland dressed for all 17 of the Canucks playoff games as the advanced all the way to the Stanley Cup final for the first time in franchise history.

Expectations for Belland were greatly elevated after that strong rookie campaign, and he never really lived up to them. Over the next four season Belland was up and down between the Canucks and minor leagues, never really cementing a full time job with the Canucks notoriously weak blue line.

In 1993, while playing his fifth season of pro hockey in Austria, Belland suffered a serious injury to his right hand when an errant skate sliced him so severely that he had to retire. He tried his hand (no pun intended) at coaching before becoming a constable with the Toronto city police.

Trevor Linden

2011-11-21T22:51:00.000-08:00

Before you read this, I must confess: Trevor Linden may be my favorite player of all time.

I grew up watching hockey on the west coast in the 1980s. The Edmonton Oilers reigned supreme back then, and Wayne Gretzky was everybody's favorite. I also had a serious infatuation with Soviet hockey players long before they were allowed to play in the NHL.

I quickly became a pretty sophisticated fan of the entire league. And I've always had the history bug, allowing me to respect the legends that preceded my time.

But I was always a Vancouver Canucks fan, which was anything but easy for most of the 1980s. It was not until Trevor Linden's arrival that I finally had someone to truly admire. No disrespect to Tony Tanti, my other favorite Canuck of the 80s, but in so many ways Trevor Linden became the player I admired most.

In comparison to Gretzky and the Soviets, Linden may seem an odd choice. Linden was not flashy or high skilled, not a great scorer or a flawless skater. He was essentially a hard worker, the personification of selflessness, an unquantifiable hockeyist who excelled in intangibles, effort and class.

He was also a great person - the kind of person we all want to be. Perhaps that drew me to him as much as his hockey. His charity efforts, his tireless effort on the ice, and his genuine likability off of it.

I had first heard of Trevor Linden back when he was still in junior. Not being located anywhere near a WHL team at the time, Linden may have been the first junior superstar I had really learned of. So when Linden came to Vancouver, so too did a lot hope, at least in my heart.

I was not disappointed. And, by no small coincidence, probably for the first time of an adolescence of hockey, I truly realized just how much I loved this game.

Eye of the Tigers

Trevor Linden was drafted 2nd overall in the 1988 entry draft after leading his hometown Medicine Hat Tigers to 2 consecutive Memorial Cup Championships. He was also played a major part as an international member of Canada's gold medal-winning team at 1988 World Junior Championships.

The following season Trevor not only made the NHL, but was an instant success. As the youngest player in the entire NHL, Trevor would play a dogged physical game while setting a then-team rookie record of 30 goals, including a couple of hat tricks. His trophy case quickly filled as he won the Cyclone Taylor award (Canucks MVP- first rookie to win) and Molson Cup (most three star selections). He was also named as The Hockey News' rookie of the year, however he finished as runner-up to Brian Leetch for the NHL's Calder Trophy.

The 1989-90 saw Trevor slip slightly into the dreaded "sophomore jinx." The season was ended with a separated shoulder injury. Trevor recorded 20 goals and 31 assists.

The 1990-91 season saw him rebound as he was named as one of the 'tri-captains' with Dan Quinn and Stan Smyl, whom Linden credited, along with Harold Snepsts, as his mentor. One of his best nights of his career occurred on Dec 20 vs. Edmonton when he scored 6 points (3 goals, 3 assists) in one game. Linden was also the youngest player at the NHL all star game. Although the Canucks missed the playoffs, Trevor was asked to represent Canada at World Championships in Finland and was also invited to Team Canada tryouts at Canada Cup '91.

Captain Canuck

Before the beginning of the 1991-92 season, Linden was named as the new team captain, making him the youngest captain in the National Hockey League. The 21 year old Linden would go on to lead the team in scoring for the 2nd straight year. It also was the first season of Canuck dominance. Captain Canuck guided the team to a 42-26-12 record. The 96 points gave the Canucks their first Smythe Division title since 1975. The following season Linden would lead the team to another 1st place finish based on a 46-29-9 record for the team's first 100+ point season.

The 1994 Stanley Cup

Linden led the Canucks to the team's greatest moment in 1994 - game 7 of the Stanley Cup playoffs. After a relatively disappointing 85 point, 2nd place finish, the Canucks caught fire in the playoffs. After falling behind 3-1 in the opening round against Calgary, the Canucks stormed back to win 4 games to 3 and then would blow by Dallas and Toronto to face Mark Messier, Mike Keenan and the New York Rangers. Lead by Linden's leadership and physical play, Pavel Bure's goal scoring and Kirk McLean's incredible goaltending, the Canucks took the Rangers to 7 games. The final game was as close as could possibly be. Had Nathan Lafeyette's shot hit the inside of the goalpost instead of the outside, perhaps the Canucks could have forced overtime. Unfortunately, the Canucks would lose game 7 by a score of 3 goals to 2, both scored by Trevor Linden.

1995-96 would prove to be Trevor's best season statistically as he would set career highs in goals (33) assists (47) and points (80). But as anyone who knows Trevor, his value is not determined by statistical output, but rather by intangibles.

At the conclusion of the season, Linden was named the winner of the King Clancy Memorial Trophy as "the player who best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice and has made noteworthy humanitarian contributions to his community." Linden started "Captain's Crew," which gave children who would not otherwise have the chance the opportunity to attend Canuck games. He also is a big supporter of Canuck Place hospice, the Ronald McDonald House, Youth Against Violence and Children's Hospital. Linden would also win the Gillette World Champion Award, given to the Canadian athlete demonstrating athletic excellence, sportsmanship and humanitarian contributions.

1996-97 was a tough season for Linden, and marked the downward trend in his career. The season started out great as he was part of the World Cup version of Team Canada. The disappointing loss to the Americans was just the first of several disappointments for Linden. His league leading ironman streak came to a finish, at 482 games as Trevor was seriously injured (knee) for first time in his career. The injury meant he would produce career lows in goals (9), points (40) and penalty minutes (27).

Goodbye, Trevor

1997-98 saw the arrival of Mark Messier, considered by many to be the greatest captain in North American sports. As a sign of true leadership, Trevor handed the team captaincy over to Mark Messier prior to start of season. To hand over something so important and so honored as the captaincy of a NHL team shows that Linden was more concerned with the good of the team than his own ego.

Trevor would wind up with a nagging groin injury that Mike Keenan would conveniently use to place Linden in his famous doghouse, and is soon traded to the New York Islanders in exchange for Brian McCabe, Todd Bertuzzi and a draft pick.

One day after being traded, Linden headed to Nagano as a member of the first ever Olympic Team Canada that included the top 25 Canadian born NHL players. Linden would score the only goal in Canada's disappointing loss to Dominik Hasek and the Czech Republic.

Linden was named captain of the New York Islanders after only 4 games on Long Island. Just weeks later Linden would become president of the National Hockey League Players Association.

Trevor would get into some hot water soon after becoming president of the NHLPA as he signed what many considered to be an undervalued contract of $2.5 million US a season, the same money he made on his previous contract. Linden's unconventional decision was looked upon with pleasant surprise by hockey fans everywhere. In an era when more and more hockey players hold out demanding millions and millions of dollars, Linden was comfortable with what he had and just wanted to play hockey. However because he was president of the NHLPA, it created unrest among union breakers.

Trevor's stay on Long Island was ultimately short, which was a good thing for Trevor. With a joke for ownership, the Islanders were simply dumping salary after salary and it was clear they had no intention of icing a competitive hockey team. Linden was traded to the fabled Montreal Canadiens in exchange for the Habs 1st round pick in 1999, 10th overall.

While Linden endured tumultuous times as a member of the Islanders, having to cope with several off-ice disruptions, including disputes over ownership and problems with the team’s home arena, the forward still has some regrets in leaving the club.

At one time Linden was the NHL's active consecutive games played leader, but injuries continue to haunt Linden in Montreal. A severe ankle injury hindered his play for much of the season. As a result, he had another poor offensive season with another weak team.

Linden, a natural right winger, was shifted to center ice later in his career in Vancouver and has played there ever since. He excelled on face-offs and is usually in sound defensive position, but the move changed his game immensely. He was much more physical on right wing. Moving up and down the wall, Linden excelled by hitting and banging. He was always at his best when he is playing physically. However at center ice, Linden did not get the chance to play the same physical game, as he remained disciplined and rarely strays from the middle of the ice, so that he was not caught out of position should the other team get the puck. This defensive discipline also hurts Trevor's offensive output. He no longer drove to the net as hard as he would if he were on the wing, again sacrificing his offensive output so that someone remains high to help out the defensemen.

Return of the hero

Linden was moved from Montreal to Washington before Brian Burke brought the Canucks' prodigal son back to Vancouver in November 2001. The one-time poster boy returned to Vancouver a hero, but accepted his diminishing status as a role player. Goals and ice time became harder to come by, but fan support only grew.

Even through the tumultuous times as president of the NHLPA, Trevor Linden was always well respected around the NHL. Though his legacy with the NHLPA is somewhat stained by the Ted Saskin hiring, it was Linden who was a driving force to get the two sides to the negotiating table several times during the lost season of 2004-05. History has already overlooked the contributions of Linden during this terrible chapter in the story of hockey.

A Hockey Player's Hockey Player

On the ice he's the kind of player who's true value can never really be measured by any statistic. Rest assured those on the ice, friend and foe, had great respect for Linden's intricate abilities. He's not a great scorer but has always done the small things so extremely well - a big reason for his playoff success. Linden is a big game player. In the big games its those intangible things - faceoffs, defensive excellence, physical but disciplined play, always making the safe if unspectacular play - that make the difference between winning and losing. He was a hockey player's hockey player.

Mike Brophy wrote in The Hockey News a spectacularly wonderful article on Trevor. I'd like to share a small portion of it here:

Linden believes it is attention to detail that has helped him excel.

"People always tell me I'm a great playoff performer," Linden says, "and the only reason I can think that is, is because in the playoffs doing the little things right counts the most."

Watch Linden closely and you won't be blown away by any particular skill; his conviction and determination are his strengths. He doesn't have the hardest shot in the league, yet the puck doesn't flutter when he snaps it towards the gal. He is a deceptively fast skater. In a race for the puck, an opponent might look like he's skating quicker, but Linden often gets there first using a long, fluent stride."

Trevor Linden is a leader. Trevor Linden is a winner. You have to watch his game closely to truly appreciate his excellence.

Kirk McLean

2011-11-21T22:50:00.001-08:00

In less than one season Roberto Luongo has pretty much everyone agreeing he is the greatest Canucks goaltender of all time. There is little doubt that "Bobby Lou" is truly something special, but my favorite Canucks goaltender of all time remains, for a little bit longer anyways, Kirk McLean.

Utilizing his big size, Captain Kirk was one of the last classic stand up goalies to succeed in the National Hockey League. Canucks radio colour commentator Tom Larscheid described him best: "He's like one of those bubble hockey goalies, always standing perfectly straight and just letting the puck hit him."

His stand up style was ideal for his big frame, although in some ways his style made him unappreciated. While other goalies were acrobatically turning away pucks, "Mac" made all saves look routine by just getting in the way of it and making sure the rebound was under control. To the novice fan it looked routine, even boring, but to the hardcore fan it was a pleasure to watch one of the last great stand up goalies.

One of the coolest customers you'll ever meet, McLean seemed unflappable, even in the early years with Vancouver when the team was extremely weak. He had a tremendous glove hand, which made up for vulnerabilities to the low posts. He also loved to handle the puck, usually in the far corner of the rink in what is now part of the restricted zone. He would almost without fail deke out an oncoming forechecker by faking a puck dump behind the net and around to the other corner, but then pull back with a backhanded flip the other way, usually to a waiting Canucks defenseman.

Growing up in Toronto, McLean grew up idolizing Bernie Parent and Jacques Plante, as well as Dave Keon. He began playing in net at age 7, and before you know it he was the number one goalie with the OHL's Oshawa Generals. The New Jersey Devils were impressed, and drafted him 107th overall in the 1984 NHL Entry Draft.

McLean would turn pro and apprentice in the minor leagues in 1986-87. He'd appear in 4 games with the Devils, who were loaded with good young goaltenders at the time. The Devils had always lacked great goaltending and had stockpiled on goaltending prospects. With Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Alain Chevrier and Chris Terreri all emerging as NHLers at relatively the same time, the Devils decided to move McLean in exchange for help up front.

The deal was good for both teams, but especially for Vancouver over the long haul. The Canucks moved creative center Patrik Sundstrom to the Devils in exchange for McLean, and B.C. boy Greg Adams. It was one of the first moves the new Pat Quinn-Brian Burke regime would make, and proved to be a turning point in Canucks history.

McLean quickly proved he was ready for the NHL. After battling in training camp with veterans Steve Weeks, Frank Caprice and most notably long time fan favorite "King Richard" Brodeur, "Mac" emerged as the number one goalie. Adding to the pressure of being counted on game in and game out was the fact that the Canucks ended up trading Brodeur away to make room for McLean. The unproven goaltender replaced the local legend and had to prove his worth before a very watchful fan base and media.

McLean played in 41 games that first year, winning just 11 with a very weak Canucks team. His numbers improved to 20 wins in 42 contests the following year. He extended he is season by representing Canada at the World Hockey Championships. While locals knew McLean was something special, soon the rest of the league would find out for themselves.

In 1989-90, the Canucks were still struggling, but with McLean and a young Trevor Linden leading the way, the future looked bright. McLean played in 63 games that season, winning just 21. But his value to the team was recognized throughout the league when he was named a finalist in league voting for goaltender of the year. He was also invited to his first NHL all star game and was named NHL player of the week in March.

As the Canucks got better, McLean emerged as one of the league's best. In 1991-92 he won a a league high 38 games in 65 contests. His GAA was an impressive 2.74 and he posted 5 shutouts, another league high. He was named to the NHL's second all star team. He would finish second behind Patrick Roy in voting for the Vezina Trophy as the league's top netminder.

Kirk McLean, like most of the Canucks of that era, will always be remembered for his play in the 1994 playoffs. The team struggled through an underachieving regular season, but backed by the brilliance of McLean's puckstopping went all the way to game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals before finally bowing to the New York Rangers.

McLean's signature moment came in round one against Calgary. With the team clawing it's way back from a 3 games to 1 deficit, the Canucks forced overtime in game 7. In the extra frame McLean robbed Flames' sniper Robert Reichal with a sliding, pad-stacked toe save that to this day is considered the single most important save of the Canucks history.

But McLean was never better than in game one of the Stanley Cup finals in New York. The Rangers heavily outplayed the underdog Canucks, but McLean, in his classic stand-up style, committed one of the grandest larcenies in the history of Manhattan. His 52 save performance, including 17 in overtime, remains one of the most impressive games I've ever seen a goaltender play. In a game where the Rangers could have blown out the Canucks, McLean kept the score 2-2 into over time where Greg Adams, McLean's trade accompaniant from New Jersey 7 years prior, scored the game winning goal at 19:26 of the first over time.

As magical as that spring was, the entire Canucks team could not recapture it and would soon fall apart. McLean struggled to adjust to the butterfly goaltending stance that was now seemingly the only acceptable strategy. He was doubly distracted by his divorce.

Despite his all star status and tremendous resume, perhaps history will always remember Kirk McLean as the goalie who gave up Wayne Gretzky's record breaking 802nd NHL goal. On March 23rd, 1994, Gretzky broke Gordie Howe's all time NHL scoring record with a power play marker in a 6-3 loss to the Canucks. McLean had no chance on the play, but will undoubtedly be forever immortalized in hockey trivia games.

Like all members of that Canucks team, McLean was soon moved out in a dismantling process by the new Canucks regime. McLean was moved to Carolina in exchange for, somewhat ironically, Sean Burke, the goalie who ended winning the Devils net job back in the late 1980s. McLean left as the Canucks all time leader in wins, shutouts and games played by a goaltender.

Sadly McLean bounced around the league, landing later in Florida and then the Rangers before retiring in 2001. By the end he may have been a shadow of his old self, his stand up style now a NHL antique. But to Vancouver fans of the early 1990s, Captain Kirk will always be #1.

Pavel Bure

2011-11-21T22:50:00.000-08:00

Pavel Bure was the most electrifying hockey player as the world approached the 21st century. While the likes of Jaromir Jagr, Dominik Hasek, Paul Kariya and Eric Lindros are all extremely great hockey players, Bure had the rare ability to pull the fans out of their seats every time he touches the puck.

No one loves to score as much as Bure. Even in practice he loves to see the twine bulge. In that sense Bure ranks as one of the greatest pure goal scorers in hockey history. Names like Mike Bossy and Rocket Richard are fair comparisons.

Bure is nicknamed the Russian Rocket because of his incredible speed. While some players can match his foot speed, what makes Bure so special is he can carry the puck at top speed. Most players just push the puck in front of them as they break down the wing; Bure is capable of deking through a top defenseman without losing steam. Sometimes he even dropped the puck into his feet and kick it by the blueliner, and then accelerate by him to get in alone. He was truly a magnificent player to watch, and you often watched with your jaw hanging open.

Though small by NHL standards, Bure was built like a rock, with great strength and balance. He had legs like tree trunks that powered his scary speed. He had an arsenal of goal scoring tricks. His wrist shot was lethal, as was his much rarer slap shot. But most of all he loved to deke.

Pavel also had a nasty streak him and would not take anything from bigger players. Just ask Shane Churla. Churla, a noted roughian, was giving Pavel a hard time in one particular game. Pavel took only so much before he caught Churla with a blind hit and a vicious elbow. Pavel played the game with reckless abandon, particularly if the he sensed an opportunity to crash to the net and score a goal. He was seemingly fearless even after injuries began taking their toll on his body.

One area that his coaches would have liked Bure to do more of was use his linemates better. Too often Bure tried to go through the entire opposition by himself. Sometimes he actually did it, and every time it was an event. But Bure was a good passer, underrated even, and the team would be better off if Bure would have been a little less selfish at times. He was also knocked for his defensive play.

"Pasha" was drafted in the sixth round of the 1989 NHL Entry Draft, 113th overall, by the Vancouver Canucks. It would turn out to be a controversial pick at that time because no 18 year old could be drafted after the third round unless he had played more than ten games in 2 seasons in a major league. The NHL Media Guide stated that Pavel had only played 5 games the year before, but Mike Penny (the Canucks' Chief Scout) discovered proof in the form of score sheets which had recorded that Pavel had played 11 games in that previous year.

At the age of 16, Pavel joined the Red Army to play with the best hockey players in Russia at that time, including the popular KLM line (Vladimir Krutov, Igor Larionov, and Sergei Makarov). It was with that team also that he met Sergei Federov and Alexander Mogilny. Together, they formed one of the best lines in the world. They were being groomed to carry on the tradition of the KLM line in the old Soviet regime, prior to the fall of communism and the opening of NHL gates to former Soviet hockey players.

Pavel played in the World Junior Championships for three years where he scored 27 goals and 12 assists for a total of 39 points in just 21 games. In 1989 and 1990 he won the gold medal, and in 1991 just before joining the Canucks, he won the silver medal. In 1989 he was named the Soviet League Rookie of the Year.

In fact, as a kid the thought of a Russian in the NHL was so remote that Bure never dreamed of North American glory. He dreamed of playing with the mighty Soviet national team, like his idols Boris Mikhailov and Valeri Kharlamov.

"I never dreamed about the NHL. Growing up I didn’t hear too many things about it. North America was like a different planet. Kinda like something you read about but a place you never thought you’d go. It was my dream to be a part of the national team and win an Olympic medal because my father went to three Games and didn’t win a gold. My biggest dream was for me and my brother to go to the Olympics and win a gold for the family."

By the early 1990s Soviet players were being allowed to join the NHL, though the Russian federation tried their best to keep young stars like Bure. Tempted by the large contracts of professional hockey, Bure became disenchanted with his contract from the CSKA. Along with his father, an Olympic swimmer and younger brother and future NHLer Valeri he slipped off to North America to start his new life with the National Hockey League’s Vancouver Canucks.

Pavel came to Vancouver 15 games into the 1991-92 season. With his explosive rushes, his first game remains one of the most talked about nights in Vancouver hockey history. Bure instantly became the NHL's most electrifying player, as he would score 34 times while adding 26 helpers en route to winning the Calder Memorial Trophy as the best rookie.

The following season the Russian Rocket lifted off to a new stratosphere, scoring 60 goals while adding 50 assists and being named a NHL First Team All Star.

In 1993-94 he scored 60 goals for the second-straight year, making him the eighth player in NHL history to accomplish that feat (the other players to do that were Phil Esposito, Mike Bossy, Jari Kurri, Wayne Gretzky, Steve Yzerman, Brett Hull, and Mario Lemieux). This time he led the league with his 60 markers. During the unforgettable Stanley Cup run of the 1994 playoffs, Pavel led the team in scoring with 31 points. He also led the entire league in playoff goals with 16, none bigger than the game 7 overtime goal against the Calgary Flames to advance the Canucks to the second round.

The following season was a difficult season for the entire NHL and most of its players as the season was shortened due to a labour dispute. Pavel only managed 20 goals and 43 points in 44 games. Yet it was nowhere as near as difficult as the next two seasons.

1995-96 was supposed to be the great rejoining of perhaps the league's most dangerous duo - Pavel Bure and newly acquired Alexander Mogilny. Unfortunately only 15 games into the season Pavel Bure's ACL ligament was severely damaged while playing against the Chicago Blackhawks when he was taken down behind the net by opponent Steve Smith. Pavel's season was over, and a career long history of knee troubles had begun.

The 1996-97 season saw Pavel return for 63 games but only muster 23 goals and 55 points. During the season people wondered if the Russian Rocket would ever return to his former glory. Following the conclusion of the disappointing season it became known that Pavel had played much of the schedule with a severe case of whiplash, and perhaps should have sat out part of that season as well.

Any doubts about Bure's ability to return to his style of explosive speed, all out recklessness and goal scoring clinics were answered in the 1997-98 season, as Bure teamed up with Mark Messier to score 51 times while tying for 3rd over all in league scoring.

Bure, who had notified the Canucks he wished to be traded as early as the 1995-96 season, finally demanded a trade by sitting out the start of the 1998-99 season. Bure sat out despite being scheduled to make $8 million US citing reasons such as not enough privacy in a small, Canadian market, a variety of disputes with management and a desire to play with a winning team.

The trade finally came on January 17, 1999 as Brian Burke trade him to the Florida Panthers. Bure, Brett Hedican, Brad Ference and a 3rd round pick went to the Sunshine State in exchange for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes and a 1st round pick.

Bure's stay in Florida started out a bit rocky, as he re-injured his damaged knee. However Bure again rehabilitated his knee and by the 1999-2000 season reestablished himself as one of the league's top players. As far as blue line in was concerned, Pavel Bure is the most electrifying goal scorer of the modern era was back. He ranked first in the NHL with 58 goals, capturing the newly minted Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy. He was also selected as a finalist for both the Hart Memorial Trophy and the Lester B. Pearson Award as the NHL's most valuable player. He was also MVP of a memorable All Star game.

His 2000-2001 season was equally as impressive. Again he ranked first in the NHL in goals with 59. He set a NHL record by tallying 29.5% of his team's goals for the season.

Bure slowed in the 2001-02 season, scoring just 22 times in the Panthers first 56 games. The financially strapped Panthers were going nowhere, despite Pavel's best efforts, and the team simply could not afford a $10,000,000 salary. They dumped his contract to the New York Rangers in exchange for prospects and draft picks.

Reunited with Mark Messier, Bure's career was rejuvenated in Manhattan. He ended the season with 12 goals in 12 games, but the Rangers still missed the playoffs.

While Bure with the Rangers promised to be one of the best shows on Broadway in recent years, Bure's knee injuries returned and robbed him of his career. He would play only 39 more games in the NHL. He finished with 437 goals, most of the of the highlight reel variety, and 779 points in 702 games.

Although he lived the good life in North America, Bure's love for Russia never waned. Throughout his playing career he remained a strong supporter of the Russian national team. He represented Russia in two Olympics, capturing silver in 1998 and bronze in 2002. After his playing days were over, he was the surprise choice as manager of the 2006 Olympic team. With his stature in Russia as one of the true legends of hockey, it was hoped Bure's stature could convince the fractured Russian national team to put aside their differences and play for their country. Despite a good showing, Russia finished out of the medals.

Bure was a mysterious character too. A book called The Riddle of the Russian Rocket published in 1999 detailed several oddities about Pavel. Pavel, a very private person, is known for, among other things, a very public dispute with Sergei Fedorov over mutual girlfriend model/tennis player and Anna Kournikova, and for hanging out with some of Russia's top mobsters, most notably Anzor Kikalishvili.

Ken Berry

2011-11-03T21:52:00.000-07:00

Ken Berry was a successful junior star. In 1977-78 he played most of the season with Bellingham of the BCJHL. Ken racked up 130 points (57 goals and 73 assists) in only 65 games and was clearly too good for the league. Late that season he joined the New Westminster Bruins. In the playoffs Ken played 6 games and scored 7 points (3 goals, 4 assists), helping New Westminster win the prestigious Memorial Cup. The team had 7 future NHL'ers. Ken Berry, John Paul Kelly, Larry Lozinski, Larry Melnyk, Brian Young, John Ogrodnick and Stan Smyl.

The following season (78-79) Ken played at University of Denver. His performance there eventually earned him a spot on the Canadian Olympic team in 1980. Ken scored 4 goals in 6 games and was one of Canada's best players. Some other players on that Olympic team included Glenn Anderson, Paul MacLean and Randy Gregg.

Ken was only 5'9" and 175 Ibs which didn't sit well with the majority of scouts and GM's around the NHL. Ken was feisty and fairly aggressive. He also was pretty shifty and was able to play both as a left wing and center. Vancouver eventually drafted Ken in the 6th round,1980 (112th overall). After the Olympics Ken went back to Denver where he played another season tying a 28-year old University record for most penalty minutes in one season (42). In two years of University hockey Ken scored 93 points (39 goals and 54 points) in 79 games.

Ken had the skills to play at the NHL level but when he was traded to the Edmonton Oilers in 1981 for B.J. MacDonald he got stuck behind a talented Edmonton Oilers squad. The franchise was stacked with future superstars and Hall of Famers.

Ken was constantly shuffled between Edmonton and the minor leagues (CHL and AHL). He didn't play more than 28 NHL games during a 4 year span. As Edmonton was in the midst of a dynasty Ken realized that he would never crack the lineup. So in 1985 he accepted an offer from Bayreuth in Germany where he racked up 52 points (27 goals) in 33 games. Following his successful stint in Germany, Ken decided to stay in Europe and travel with the Canadian National team. In little over two years Ken played 119 games for Canada (80 points). And once again he was selected to represent Canada in the Olympics, eight years after his first appearance. He had 6 points (2+4) in 8 games and played sound two-way hockey.

His performance at the Olympic games impressed a few scouts and Vancouver signed him as a free agent. Ken finished the 1987-88 season playing in 14 regular-season games (5 points). Vancouver then signed Ken to a one-year contract. So in 1988-89 Ken played 14 games for the Canucks.

"I'd like to show that I could play more," Ken said. " One of the positive things about me is that I can come in periodically and give them what they need, as opposed to a lot of the other players."

Vancouver decided not to give Ken another contract and released him. Ken once again set his sights on Europe and Germany. The larger ice surface on the European rinks suited Ken very well because he was a good skater with decent mobility. He ended up playing in Munich for ECH München between 1989-93.

During these four seasons Ken took on a defensive role with the team and scored 141 points (71 goals and 70 assists) in 147 regular season games and another 15 points (9 goals and 6 assists) in 13 playoff games.

Ken Berry later started a new career as stock broker with Yorkton Securities.

Mark Kirton

2011-08-18T15:57:00.000-07:00

If you happen to be purchasing real estate in the Oakville, Ontario area, you may want to look up real estate agent Mark Kirton. Not only could he help you find the home of your dreams, but he could tell you about playing against Guy Lafleur, Wayne Gretzky and Mike Bossy.

That's because prior to becoming a realtor, Kirton was a NHL player in his own right. Sure, he would never be confused with the aforementioned names, but he did play in 266 games from 1979 through 1985. A Memorial Cup star with the 1978 Peterborough Petes, Kirton was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs later that year. He found his best success in Detroit between 1980 and 1982 before moving to Vancouver. He scored 57 goals and 113 points in his NHL career.

Lee Sweatt

2011-08-12T19:04:00.000-07:00

Lee Sweatt's retirement announcement probably went unnoticed by most, but for those few interested fans it was quite the surprise. It must have been even more surprising for the Ottawa Senators, who weeks earlier had signed the defenseman to a 2 year contract.

The previous season, 2010-11, Sweatt had finally made his NHL debut after several years quite literally travelling around the hockey world. He made a memorable debut with the Vancouver Canucks, scoring the game winning goal in his first game, and celebrating with a nonchalant smirk:

"It was an amazing moment when I scored. It was absolutely incredible," he said, not long after he signed a two-year, two-way deal with the Ottawa Senators this month.

"I was just thinking, 'Don't screw up defensively' and I end up scoring a goal that became the game winner. Unreal."

The undersized defenseman got his start in hockey with Colorado College he earned a mathematics degree in economics while being named top student athlete in the WCHA in 2007. Despite his success his size scared off every NHL team.

Though he was undrafted and unsigned, Sweatt remained undaunted. He took his game to Europe, where his skillful and speedy style of play fit in perfectly. He played 2 season in Finland (where he was named as top defenseman) and 1 season in each of Russia and Austria. He was able to pursue a high level of hockey while also travelling the world.

His story was remarkably similar to that of Brian Rafalski, another undersized American defender who later blossomed in the NHL. Perhaps that was what the Blackhawks were thinking when they drafted Sweatt, a Chicago native, in 2007.

Sweatt never did join the Blackhawks organization. But he finally gave North America a try, signing with the Vancouver Canucks in 2010-11. The Canucks were deep on the blue line, so Sweatt probably never really expected to play with the NHL team that season. But he jumped at the opportunity to play with his brother Bill on the Canucks farm team in Manitoba.

Then a funny thing happened. Mounting injuries in Vancouver allowed for Sweatt to get his NHL debut. He looked good in limited ice time in 3 games before breaking his foot while blocking a dreaded Shea Weber slap shot. It was good news/bad news for Sweatt. His season was all but done, but since it happened in the NHL he would continue to earn his NHL paycheck for the duration of his rehabilitation. For a player who never really expected a NHL career, the extra money must have been like winning the lottery.

Interestingly, the Canucks did not offer Sweatt a qualifying offer in the summer of 2011, allowing him to become an unrestricted free agent. The Ottawa Senators were very interested, committing a 2 year contract to him. However just weeks later Sweatt announced his retirement as he wished to pursue business interests.

I have a lot of respect for a player like Lee Sweatt. He was a highly talented player (who was also quite the in-line hockey player) who excelled at every level. But he probably knew he would never last long in the NHL. So the 25 year old took his NCAA scholarship, his tour of Europe and his NHL cup of coffee and left the game.

His degree suggests he will be a successful businessman no matter what his venture is.

“He’s extremely bright and has been involved in the finance world for years,” said his agent, Scott Norton.

Thomas Gradin

2011-05-26T14:43:00.001-07:00

Donald Brashear

2011-05-08T19:21:00.000-07:00

Donald Brashear was big, tough, and genuinely mean.

He was one of the league's top penalty minute men (although a lot seemed to be lazy and needless minors that would undoubtedly anger his coach) and a feared and fomidable fighter. With the gloves off he was as good as they come, and found fewer and fewer takers as his reputation spread. He always seemed to be in a bad mood on the ice.

He had some game beyond the fisticuffs. He hit to hurt, which created a lot of room for himself. Too bad he had no offensive game at all beyond a heavy shot to the net. Still, he intimidated with his enthusiastic forechecking, trademarked by his awkward but surprisingly fast skating.

"Brash" played a long time in the NHL, totalling 1025 career games to go with 85 goals, 205 points and 2634 penalty minutes.

But he will always be remembered as a victim of one of hockey's darkest moments.

During the February 21, 2000 Vancouver-Boston game, Bruins enforcer Marty McSorley struck Brashear with a two-handed slash to the temple with his stick. Brashear, who had his helmet knocked off by the slash, collapsed, and his head bounced off the ice. Brashear immediately started convulsing and was diagnosed with a grade 3 concussion.

McSorley was suspended indefinitely and was later charged by the RCMP with assault with a weapon. McSorley was found guilty but did not receive any jail time. He was placed on probation for 18 months. One of the conditions of his sentence was that he was not to play in a hockey game involving Brashear. The NHL meantime set his league suspension to a full year. McSorley never played in the NHL again.

Brashear did come back, and played a long time afterwards. He genuinely was interested in combat fighting. He trained as a boxer and, as a 39 year old retired hockey player, tried his hand at mixed martial arts fighting.

Dale Tallon

2011-04-07T11:22:00.000-07:00

Dale Tallong was a very talented junior player, heralded as a future superstar when he was drafted 2nd overall in the 1970 Amateur draft, only behind Hall of Famer Gilbert Perreault. Although he felt most comfortable as a defenseman he played center as well.

The expectations on him were tremendous. Vancouver thought that they had their franchise player in Tallon, but he never became that franchise player for them.

Dale's dad Stan pushed him when he was 15 to become a top hockey prospect. Dale became the MVP on his home team Noranda Copper Kings, and then under the direction of Gilles Laperriere played for the sister city Rouyn Citadels. Already at that early age Dale starred as both a defenseman and center. His dad recognized the potential in his son and contacted Alan Eagleson to ask him to advise and guide Dale.

Dale went to Oshawa to play for the Generals, but immediately had the pressure on him to follow in the footsteps of the illustrious Bobby Orr, another Eagleson client. A trade was made shortly thereafter, and he went to the Toronto Marlboros, also of the OHA. He enjoyed two good years with the Marlboros before being drafted by the Canucks.

The 6'1" and 200lbs Dale enjoyed a very fine rookie season in the NHL, scoring 56 pts (14 goals, 42 assists). He followed that up with another solid season (44 points - 17 goals and 27 assists), but somehow that never seemed to be enough.

He was added to the Canadian squad in the famous 1972 Summit Series. He never played against the Russians and only appeared in two "friendly" games against Sweden and Czechoslovakia.

When his 1972-73 season saw another drop in his production, the Canucks lost their patience with him and traded him to Chicago for Jerry Korab and goalie Gary Smith on May 14, 1973. Tallon welcomed the trade, and made it known to the Canucks that he wanted out. He did not get along at all with Canucks vocal coach Vic Stasiuk, and threatened to sign with the WHA if he was not granted a trade.

Dale had received a couple of WHA offers but decided to stay in Chicago where he signed a three year deal worth approximately $125,000 per season. Dale was happy to get out from Vancouver and start over again. As soon as he got to the windy city there was some controversy though. The Chicago management planned to give Dale sweater number 9 --- Bobby Hull's old number. At first he accepted, since it was his jersey number at Vancouver, but there was a large public outcry against the move, Bobby Hull was an icon, and you don't give away his number just like that. So in training camp, Dale asked not to have the number, and was promptly given number 19 instead.

Dale began working on a line as the center for Chico Maki and Lynn Powis, they were primarily a checking line. He eventually enjoyed his most productive season in Chicago when he had 62 points (15 goals and 47 assists) in 1975-76.

His production fell considerably the following two seasons and he was traded to Pittsburgh for a future draft choice on October 9,1980. Dale then played two more seasons in Pittsburgh. By that time he hadn't been considered a franchise player for a long time, he was just another NHL player.

After the 1979-80 season he retired, only 29 years old. He finished his career with 642 regular season NHL games (336 points) and 33 playoff games (12 points).

Tallon went on to become a long time Chicago broadcaster and then a successful manager in retirement, not to mention a top amateur golfer.

Dennis Ververgaert

2011-04-06T10:39:00.000-07:00

When the Vancouver Canucks drafted Dennis Ververgaert 3rd overall in the 1973 Entry Draft, much excitement was raised. The London Knights (OHA) right winger was supposed to be a combination of goal scorer and tough guy. He was feared in the junior leagues because of his shot (he had 58 goals in 63 games in his final year of junior) and his rugged play. In addition, he was drafted after the two most talked about juniors - Denis Potvin and Tom Lysiak - and ahead of future Hall of Famers Lanny McDonald and Bob Gainey.

When the Canucks introduced Ververgaert to the local media at a press confidence, Canucks president Coley Hall, a fitness buff, suggested Ververgaert take off his shirt. The two men would show off their physique for the photographers. However Hall made an ass out of himself, as he sucked in his gut, causing his pants to drop to his knees. That was the picture the Vancouver papers used!

Ververgaert's career in Vancouver was disappointing. Although to be fair, it was near impossible for him to achieve the high expectations placed on him. He came in, and put up some decent numbers, though it was never enough for the Canucks or the fans. He was a constant 20 goal man in his 5 full years in Vancouver.

One year, 1975-76, he came close to realizing his potential as he scored 37 times and had 71 points. 11 of his goals were on the power play. However the following year Ververgaert, like his lacklustre Canucks, took a step or two backwards towards mediocrity.

While Ververgaert wasn't achieving expectations on the scoreboard, he was definitely underachieving in the physical game as well. Perhaps the expectations that he'd be a John Ferguson type power forward were unreasonable to begin with. Ververgaert seemed to tame down some in the NHL, and averaged less than 1 PIM per game.

Aside from a couple of legendary battles with the Philadelphia Flyers feared goons Dave Schultz and Bob Kelly, most of Ververgaert's fighting seemed to be coming off of the ice. At least on two occasions he was involved in off ice scandals.

The Canucks traded Ververgaert to Philly in 1978-79 in exchange for minor leaguer Drew Callander and defenseman Kevin McCarty. It was a good trade for Vancouver as McCarthy became one of best defensemen in team history, and was named captain shortly after. Ververgaert had two unnoticeable seasons in the Philadelphia before signing as a free agent with Washington for the 1980-81 season. That proved to be his final year in pro hockey.

In the end Dennis played in 583 NHL games. He scored 176 goals and 216 assists for 392 points. 22 of his goals were game winners, while 42 came on the power play.

Peter Bakovic

2011-04-04T21:22:00.000-07:00

For every hockey player who is naturally talented there are probably 1000 that aren't. And of that 1000, only maybe a couple will ever make it beyond junior hockey. The ones who do graduate only do so because of their desire to play the game. Their heart outweighs all the skill they may lack, and that alone keeps their hopes of a NHL job alive.

Peter Bakovic was such a player. There's no confusing Bakovic with a goal scorer or a smooth skater. He made the minor pro rosters because of his work ethic, and because of that he even got a cup of tea in the National Hockey League.

Bakovic's route to the professional ranks was not a conventional one. He played with Kitchener and then with Windsor of the OHL. Despite scoring 74 points in 58 games while leading the entire OHL in penalty minutes in his final year of junior hockey, Bakovic was never drafted. He would be nothing more than a goon scouts said, as his skating was horrendous by NHL standards.

But the Calgary Flames, one of the better teams in hockey at the time, were impressed enough to offer Bakovic a training camp tryout in September of 1984. His hard hitting, glove dropping, all-out style of play impressed the Flames enough to sign Bakovic to a minor league contract. For the next three years Bakovic would play for the Flames farm team, improving his skills and crashing and banging and doing whatever it took to win in his limited ice time.

The Flames were impressed by his work at the minor league level, but they knew he could never play on the deep Calgary roster. So at the trading deadline of 1988, Bakovic was included as a throw-in in a 3 for 1 deal with the Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks moved NHL tough guy Craig Coxe, who had memorable fights with Bob Probert earlier in his career, to the Flames who were looking to beef up for the playoff race. The Canucks got back three prospects - small but skilled Olympian Brian Bradley, good minor league defenseman Kevan Guy and Bakovic.

"Peter is a great competitor and very good minor league player at the moment," said Canucks GM Pat Quinn, who added Bakovic was an important part of the deal, not just a throw-in. He pointed to Bakovic's 43 points in 36 IHL games in 1987-88 plus his 221 PIM.

"Being 25 years old there is still an opportunity for Peter to become an NHL player," Quinn added.
Quinn gave Bakovic that opportunity late in the 87-88 season. The Canucks were out of the playoff picture, and Quinn was giving his young players a good look.

Bakovic played well as he took Coxe's role as the tough guy for the final 10 games of the year. In that time he picked up 48 penalty minutes. He also scored 2 goals!

The following training camp however Bakovic was sent back to the minor leagues.

"Peter has a lot of courage and a big heart," said Quinn at the time. "However, he does have a problem with the speed of the NHL right now and has to improve his skating."

Bakovic lost a spot on the Canucks roster to another Canucks prospect, Ronnie Stern. Stern was a very similar player to Bakovic, but was a better skater and a little more polished in the finesse game. Stern would go on to a lengthy NHL career as a mucking 4th liner. Bakovic would play 3 more seasons in the minors before retiring in 1991.

Murray Baron

2011-03-31T14:30:00.000-07:00

Prince George, British Columbia's Murray Baron played in 988 NHL regular season games, plus another 73 in the Stanley Cup playoffs. That number surprised me a bit. I got to watch him night in and night out when he played 5 seasons in Vancouver. He was generally a type of defenseman who never really noticed out there.

That's not necessarily a bad thing for a defensive, depth defender. He was intelligent enough to play within his limitations, which meant he rarely contributed much to the offense. He made high percentages outs and showed very little creativity with the puck. About the extent of his offensive game was a meager shot from the point.

For a player of Baron's healthy size (6'3" 210lbs), he was not overly spectacular on the defensive side either. He never really established any physical presence on the ice, preferring to rub players out than crush them. He rarely exhibited much authority in front of his own net either. But he was big and strong, and quietly matured into an efficient depth defender, but nothing more.

"Bear" was a product of the University of North Dakota, where he and goalie Ed Belfour won a NCAA championship in 1987. The Philadelphia Flyers had drafted Baron the year prior, gambling an 8th round pick (167th overall).

Baron left UND in 1988 and turned pro. For the next two years he played in the Flyers organization, slowly earning himself a regular NHL pay check.

The St. Louis Blues were so impressed that they insisted Baron be part of the Dan Quinn for Rod Brind'Amour trade. Baron did go on to serve the St. Louis blue line faithfully for more than 5 seasons, but the Blues sure would have liked to have that trade back.

After short stops in Montreal and Phoenix, Baron returned home to British Columbia in 1998. The Canucks, then not a very good team, relied on his veteran presence in helping out youngsters like Mattias Ohlund, Adrian Aucoin, and Ed Jovanovski.

Baron returned to St. Louis in 2003-04 for one final NHL season.

All told Murray Baron scored 35 goals and 94 assists for 129 points in 988 regular season games as an unspectacular but dependable depth defender.

Ian Kidd

2011-03-30T22:31:00.000-07:00

Despite being passed over in the NHL entry drafts, Ian Kidd signed as a free agent with the Vancouver Canucks in 1987 with much fanfare. The 23 year old had done very little in his whole hockey career up until the 1986-87 season when he blossomed with the University of North Dakota. Playing as a defenseman he was named as a First Team All American and NCAA All Championship Team after compiling 13 goals and 60 points in 47 games. Kidd was a classic latebloomer.

Kidd had played as a forward all his life, and despite his small size was actually an enforcer when he played in Penticton of the BCJHL. He discovered he could play defense almost by accident.

"For most of my career I was pretty well a mucker forward," admitted Kidd. "I'd just go in the corners and try and get the puck to someone else. I got to play defense by accident when the team ran into some injuries and my coach put me back there. Suddenly I could see and read the game much better. I realized this is where I should have been all along."

Kidd finished the year on defense and then reported to the University of North Dakota. He had a so-so freshman year as he was still adjusting to his new position, but when he exploded in year two, he was quick to jump at NHL offers and drop out of school.

Kidd was originally a supplemental draft pick of the Detroit Red Wings, though he was later ruled ineligible because of a maze of rules. Kidd signed with Vancouver, a team he followed as a child as he grew up in the Pacific Northwest.

Since the Canucks were very short on right shooting defensemen, Kidd had a roster spot pencilled in in his first NHL training camp. He performed well enough for the Canucks to give him a look at the start of the year. He played in 19 games and had 4 goals and 11 points. 3 of his goals came on the power play. He appeared to be making decent strides.

"He is extremely promising. His shot is low, hard and accurate. And he moves the puck out of our zone pretty well." advised GM Pat Quinn. But Quinn decided Kidd needed more time to develop, and sent him to the minor leagues for the rest of the year.

"Remember, this kid just started playing defense 3 years ago. He's got some natural talent but we need to bring him along slowly. He's making an awfully big jump and we feel it is in his best future interests to apprentice on the farm some." added Quinn, a former defenseman himself.

Kidd reported to Fredericton of the AHL and concentrated on learning the defensive game. In the process he added 1 goal and 21 assists in 53 games. The Canucks were disappointed that he didn't put up better numbers, but didn't want to give up on their free agent investment just yet.

In the offseason the Canucks went about improving their blueline corps. The biggest addition was Robert Nordmark, who had played the previous season in St. Louis. Nordmark too played the right side, and he put up good numbers in Vancouver - 6 goals and 35 assists. It was a good move for the Canucks, but not for Kidd. If Kidd was going to make the team he would have to be one of the top two offensive rearguards as his defensive game was not yet at a NHL level. As a result, with the exception of one NHL game, he was demoted to the minors. He had his strongest year as a pro - scoring 13 goals and 53 points. But that lone NHL game he played in 1988-89 proved to be his last.

Kidd remained in the minor leagues for several years, enjoying his best years in Milwaukee of the IHL. He also spent time in Cinicinnati and Chicago, but never came close to getting back to the NHL.

Kidd is a good example of one season wonder who cashed in at the right time. There was a reason why he was never drafted by the NHL - he wasn't a good enough prospect. He had a big year at age 22 in US College hockey, and caught the eyes of NHL teams desperate for a young defenseman. Kidd cashed in on the resulting bidding war. Kidd was assured of at least a handful of NHL games because of the fanfare, but ultimately like most undrafted free agents, Kidd did not amount to much in the National Hockey League.

Garry Valk

2011-03-28T12:46:00.000-07:00

I remember exactly the moment when I knew Gary Valk would be a regular NHL player. He surprised Tie Domi and beat him in a fight.

YouTube does not seem to have that fight in it's vast archive, but as you can see in this fight against Rob Ray, Valk definitely could hold his own.

Not that Valk was a goon by an stretch of the imagination. He had less than a penalty minute per game in his 777 game career. He dropped the gloves occasionally and was surprisingly good at it, but he was far more likely to be found efficiently patrolling his wing than in the penalty box.

Valk was a solid third liner. Determined and gritty, he had a strong work ethic and threw his weight around with enthusiasm. He was tough to play against, and an inspiring teammate. Not flashy by any means, he was a really solid third line winger. You could count on him to do his job in blue collar fashion.

Was he a great defensive forward? He did the job adequately and willing, killing penalties and being strong on both the forecheck and backcheck with his knock-kneed skating. He was solid citizen who could find a job in the league somewhere. At the same time he was the type of player that was always being pushed for a job.

The University of North Dakota alum scored 100 career goals in 777 NHL games. He was a bit of a streaky player, going forever without a sniff than popping a few pucks in the same week. His goals were almost always because of net crashing. He added 156 assists for 256 points.

Gary Valk was a reliable NHL role player for parts of 13 NHL seasons.

Glen Hanlon

2011-03-22T19:27:00.000-07:00

There is something about Brandon, Manitoba and goaltenders Bill Ranford, Ron Hextall, Turk Broda and Ken Wregget were all born there. Sugar Jim Henry Trevor Kidd, Rick Knickle, Dave McLelland, and Pokey Reddick all apprenticed there with the WHL Brandon Wheat Kings.

So what happens when a hometown kid plays for the Wheaties? He becomes one of the top goaltending prospects in the world when he is ready to turn professional! That's what happened anyways in the case of red head Glen Hanlon.

Hanlon was taken in the 3rd round by the Vancouver Canucks in the 1977 Entry Draft after a spectacular career in the WHL. For three seasons he was the Wheaties top netminder -twice leading the league in shutouts and once in GAA. He also participated in the 1976 Memorial Cup - but not with Brandon but rather the New Westminster Bruins. There used to be an old rule in junior hockey which would allow a league champion to pick up an extra player - usually a goalie - from another team before meeting other league champions in the Memorial Cup final. The Bruins and Hanlon fell just short that year. .

A season of apprenticing in the minor leagues with CHL Tulsa only confirmed his status as a top prospect as he was a first team all star and Rookie of the Year. He posted a league high 3 shutouts with the Tulsa Oilers.
Hanlon made it to Vancouver and the NHL to stay in 1978-79, but after three seasons he was unable to turn around the Canucks fortune. When the Canucks acquired "King" Richard Brodeur, Hanlon was reduced to backup and became expendable.

Late in the 1981-82 season Vancouver traded the still highly respected Hanlon to the St. Louis Blues for Rick Heinz, Tony Currie, Jim Nill and a draft pick. Many so called experts declared it a steal of a deal for the Blues, but the three players who went to Vancouver helped the Canucks in their Cinderella run to the Stanley Cup finals just weeks later.

Hanlon's stay in St. Louis was short as he was second fiddle to Mike Liut. He was traded to NY Rangers with Vaclav Nedmonasky for Andre Dore early in 1983. He spent the next two years as the number one goalie with an average Rangers team. His best season as a pro probably came in 1983-84 when he recorded 28 wins in 50 games while playing behind an injury riddled Rangers squad.

Hanlon fell out of favor in New York during the 1985-86 and actually spent some time in the minor leagues. The Rangers had a couple of hot goaltending prospects in John Vanbiesbrouck and Mike Richter coming along in their system, so the following year they ended up trading Glen to the Red Wings. For the next 5 years served as a capable keeper who at times was a backup, yet at other times served as the number one guy. He enjoyed a fine 1987-88 season when he recorded 22 wins in 47 games and shared the NHL lead for shutouts with 4.

Hanlon retired at the end of the 1991-92 season. In 1992-93 he returned to Vancouver as a goaltending coach and scout. Before long he was named as a full time assistant coach. This was the start of a long career in coaching, which includes stops on the top of the hockey world (NHL) and the unlikely (national team coach of both Belarus and Slovakia).

Hanlon is of course remembered for one thing more than any other - he is the guy who surrendered Wayne Gretzky's first NHL goal.

Robert Dirk

2011-03-19T19:36:00.000-07:00

Robert Dirk was a one-dimensional hard hitting defensive defenseman, complete with the mean streak every coach dreams of. But you had to take the good with the bad with Robert Dirk.

Dirk was huge at 6'4" and 218 pounds. He was a punishing but clean hitter who specialized in protecting his goalie and the area in front of the net. He was an intimidating presence if there ever was one.

While his job is thankless, that's about all Dirk could do. His skating was, well, bad. He would never dream of winning a foot race, and his agility was not a whole lot better. He compensated this by playing smart positional hockey and slowing down the opposition with his strength and smarts. Dirk wisely played within his limitations, recognizing when to retreat early to not get spurned by speedy forwards

An extremely likeable guy, Dirk definitely wasn't an offensive contributor. In 402 NHL games Dirk scored a lucky 13 career goals and 29 assists for just 42 points. He added one lonely assist in 39 playoff games.

Holding the blue line with a dump to the corner or a less than fearsome shot directed to the front of the net was his only offensive contribution. It was a pretty rare play to ever see him pinch up in the offensive zone.
Dirk was originally drafted by the St. Louis Blues in the 1984 Entry Draft (53rd overall) He played three full seasons with his hometown WHL Regina Pats. In his final season he had an impressive 19 goals and 79 points with 140 PIM.

Dirk spent 5 seasons in the Blues organization, but split his time between St. Louis and their farm team in Peoria (IHL). In total Dirk played in 93 games over 5 years with the Blues. He didn't make with the Blues on a full time basis until 1990-91, which ironically was the year the Blues traded him.

Dirk was a throw-in in a large deal with the Vancouver Canucks. Dirk, who spent a good part of his youth growing up in the British Columbia interior, joined the Canucks with Geoff Courtnall, Cliff Ronning and Sergio Momesso for Dan Quinn and Garth Butcher. The trade still stands as perhaps the best trade in Canucks history.

Dirk's best NHL years came in Vancouver where he played under coach Pat Quinn. Quinn must have saw something of himself in big Dirk. Like Dirk, Quinn was a big, plodding defensive blueliner who struggled to stay in the NHL on a full time basis. Dirk really enjoyed playing for the big Irishman.

Dirk played almost 3 full seasons with the Canucks. In that time he played in almost every game and was rarely a scratch unless it was due to a minor injury. He scored 9 of his 13 career goals in his 217 games with the Canucks. He added 401 of his 786 career PIM with the Canucks.

The Canucks traded Dirk to Chicago for a draft choice at the trading deadline in 1994. As a result, Dirk was moved just prior to the Canucks Cinderella run in the 1994 playoffs, something he would have loved to have been part of. The Canucks felt they had to move Dirk in order to create roster room for equally big Brian

Glynn who they had just picked up. So in essence the Canucks traded Dirk for Glynn. Glynn fulfilled Dirk's role and had much more mobility although lacked Dirk's mean streak.

Dirk finished the '94 season with Chicago but was traded to Anaheim in the summer Dirk patrolled their blue line for a season and a half before flipping him to Montreal for Jim Campbell. Dirk's stay in Montreal was less than memorable. In his first game he suffered a serious knee injury (ironically the Habs were playing the Canucks in Dirk's first game). The injury cost Dirk his place in the Montreal line up. It also cost him his place in the NHL as no team looked to pick up an immobile d-man with a bum knee.

Dirk did play one final pro season split between the IHL's Detroit Vipers and Chicago Wolves before trying his hand in the minor league world of coaching and managing. At one time he also owned a construction company which he started while still playing.

Gerald Diduck

2011-03-18T17:37:00.000-07:00

Gerald Diduck was at his best when he played an aggressive, physical game. Unfortunately Gerald was inconsistent in his application of his toughness. As a result he was a good #4 defenseman who often would play a 5th or 6th d-man role.

Gerald was big at 6'2" and 205lbs, and had great upper body strength. He could dominate in the corners, where he could tie up a guy along the boards with ease. He was also capable of a good open ice hit. He was a good fighter when he did drop the gloves, but that was a rare occurrence.

Gerald also had a good package of skills to compliment his physical game. Gerald had tree trunks for legs, which meant a strong skating stride. He had good quickness and mobility. His most attractive finesse quality was his booming hard shot. Gerald was often used on the latter half of a power play because of his shot which often perplexed goalies. He was able to get the shot from the point off quickly too, although it made his shot erratic and therefore often unthreatening. Otherwise Gerald was fairly average in terms of skills. He wasn't a great puck-handler or playmaker. He was more into dumping the puck out his zone as opposed to creating a transitional breakout play. The way to play against Gerald was to forecheck him hard. When under pressure Gerald would make hurried decisions.

Gerald spent three seasons with Lethbridge of the Western Hockey League, where he was named the Broncos best defenseman and MVP of the playoffs. In 1982, he helped Lethbridge to the league's regular season championship. This impressive resume earned him status as a NHL first round draft pick, 16th overall in 1983 by the New York Islanders.

Gerald was solid in parts of 7 seasons on Long Island, but was never able to put all the pieces together to become a dominant NHL backliner. On September 4, 1990, he was traded to the Montreal Canadiens for an aging but stalwart defenseman in Craig Ludwig.

It was hoped that Diduck could develop into a younger version of Ludwig, but Gerald had his troubles in Montreal. Diduck didn't adapt to the Canadiens style of play easily, as it was foreign compared to the way he had played his whole life. As a result he fell out of favor quickly in Montreal and was traded to Vancouver by midseason.

Gerald parts of 5 seasons on Canada's west coast, and really benefited from playing under coach Pat Quinn. Quinn, a former NHL blue line journeyman, had a way of getting the most out of his defensemen, including Diduck. Gerald played very aggressively upon his arrival in Vancouver, and as a result played a more important role on a team than he had at any other point in his NHL career.

Playing aggressively of course leads to injuries. Injuries would slow Diduck down and by late in 1995 he was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks. He finished the season there before signing as a free agent with the Hartford Whalers.

Gerald played an effective role in Hartford for 2 years and another 3 with the Phoenix Coyotes before joining the Canadian National Team in 1999. He signed on with the Toronto Maple Leafs where Pat Quinn was coaching. Diduck did an admirable job for the Leafs who badly needed an experienced, physical blueliner that season.

Did You Know: Gerald's sister Judy competed Team Canada's women's hockey team in 1998, and is also a member of the Canadian Ringette Hall of Fame.

Ed Dyck

2011-03-18T13:52:00.000-07:00

Ed Dyck was born and raised in Warman which is about 10 miles North of Saskatoon. He started his junior career for the famous Estevan Bruins (WHL) in 1967-68 where he was the backup goalie to Chris Worthy who went on to play for Oakland and California in the NHL. Ed won the WHL championship with Estevan that season, but his stint there was pretty shortlived as he went on to play for the Calgary Centennials (WHL) halfway into the 1968-69 season.

Ed was one of WHL's busiest and best goalies for the next two seasons. His Calgary didn't win the WHL championship but they came close. Ed had the best goal against average in the 1970 playoffs (2.81 GAA). He also had the best average after the 1970-71 regular season (2.53 GAA). During that 70-71 season Ed won the Del Wilson trophy as WHL's outstanding goalie. He also made the WHL All-Star team in 1970 and 71.

After his fine performance in the 1970 WHL playoffs he got drafted by Vancouver (3rd choice - 30th overall) that same summer.

Ed started his pro career in the AHL for the Rochester Americans in 1971-72, and also saw some time with the Seattle Totems. But later that season he was called up by Vancouver where he did well (3.66 GAA) under the barrage of shots he faced.

In 1972-73 he backed up Dunc Wilson admirably and played 25 games for Vancouver. Ed also played 13 games for Seattle. He continued his backup role in Vancouver the following season (12 games), this time to Gary Smith. That 1973-74 season was Ed's last in the NHL.

In April 1974 Ed was the first player signed by the Indianapolis Racers of the WHA. At the time of the signing Dyck said: " It's a kind of special feeling being first, but at the same time, I realize the responsibilities and challenges that go with it." He played 32 games during the 1974-75 season for Indianapolis, finishing with a 4.36 GAA. If Ed played for strong junior teams he certainly didn't in the pros. The teams were very poor defensively which his 21-64-14 record is a good indication of. During this time the soft spoken Ed was considered to have one of the fastest gloves in all pro hockey. His reflexes were lightning fast and he often made spectacular saves with his glove hand. He liked to work a lot with his stick and was always cool under pressure.

After the WHA stint Ed was loaned to the Swedish division 2 club Bodens BK for the 1975-76 season as a compensation for the signing of the Swedish goalie Leif "Honken" Holmqvist, a longtime member of the Swedish National Team.

Jan-Erik "Biffen" Nilsson,the coach of Boden was exstatic at that time to get Ed. " I don't understand how Indianapolis could release Ed and buy "Honken" instead. "Honken" isn't in the same class, " coach Nilsson said.

Ed became an instant hit with the Swedish fans. He trained with Bodens BK for the first time on August 27, 1975, the same day as Boden was to meat local rivals IFK Lulea in a friendly game. To the delight of 2.563 people in the stands, Ed shut out the opponent. They chanted his name over and over. He was an overnight success. The fact that Ed had two fellow Canadians (Ron Smith - ex NY Islanders and Jeff Ablet (ex-Forth Worth - IHL) as his teammates made the transition to a foreign team a lot easier.

At an early stage it became apparent that Ed was too good for the Swedish Division 2. But instead of trying to get back to the WHA or NHL Ed decided to retire, only 26-years of age and not even at the peak of his career. It was really a shame because he had a lot more to give.

Lubomir Vaic

2011-02-23T20:14:00.000-08:00

I remember going to a pre season game in September of 1997 between the Vancouver Canucks and New York Rangers. I remember because it the first time I had ever seen an NHL game.

It was also memorable because it was the first time that Mark Messier faced-off against the Rangers since bolting them for bigger money on the West Coast. It was also memorable because Wayne Gretzky didn't dress for that preseason game. The game was a 4-3 win for the Rangers. Pierre Sevigny scored the winning goal with about 4 minutes left. Pavel Bure played and was far and away the most exciting player on the ice.

But I also remember Lubomir Vaic. This tiny rookie was second only to Bure in terms of exciting the fans on that night. Although you could tell he was the smallest guy on the ice, you could see he was among the most talented. He was a wizardrous puck handler and showed some good heart and desire. He impressed many Canucks fans in that training camp. He reminded many of another small center that had starred in Vancouver for years - Cliff Ronning.

Vaic didn't make the team, nor should have he. He was a 20 year old rookie who was in North America for the first time, leaving his native Slovakia. Vaic was sent to the AHL's Syracuse Crunch to learn the North American game and lifestyle.

But Vaic did make a good impression on the Canucks braintrust. Only a month after he was demoted, he was recalled by the Canucks when LW Gino Odjick had to leave the team for family reasons.

"Lubie" started his first NHL game on the 4th line, but soon was moved up to the second line with Trevor Linden and Alexander Mogilny. Playing against the Penguins on November 1st, 1997. Vaic scored his first NHL goal on an assist from Scotty Walker at the 8:07 mark of the first period. Two minutes and 33 seconds later, he assisted on a Trevor Linden goal. Despite Vaic's two point effort, the Canucks lost the game 7-6 in over time.

Despite an impressive 1st game, Vaic was pretty quiet for the rest of his stay, which lasted a total of only 5 games. Vaic was sent back to Syracuse to continue his training when Gino Odjick returned to the team soon after.

Vaic had a less than impressive season in the AHL however. He failed to consistently show any of the signs of brilliance he displayed in the NHL. He only had 12 goals and 27 points. Part of the reason was he was homesick.

Vaic left North America after that one season. The Canucks also let his contract expire and no other team was interested in picking him up. Why? Good question, because he looked like a good prospect. Obvioiusly his size was his biggest drawback - he was too small and too easy to knock off the puck and neutralize. He also lacked speed, which for a small player is necessary to have in order to survive.

Bobby Lalonde

2011-02-18T20:44:00.000-08:00

Standing just five-foot-five inches tall and weighing in at a puny 155 pounds, Bobby Lalonde was constantly questioned about his size. That's bound to happen when you are the smallest player in the league for his entire 11 year NHL career. But with his speed, his natural hockey instincts and most importantly the size of his heart

Lalonde enjoyed a very successful 11-year NHL career with the Vancouver Canucks, Atlanta Flames, Boston Bruins and Calgary Flames.

Bobby played his junior hockey with the Montreal Junior Canadiens of the Ontario Hockey Association. He played three seasons with the Baby Habs, scoring 59 goals and 127 points in his final year of junior. This great season drew great comments from NHL scouts, but most shyed away because of his lack of size.

However the Vancouver Canucks were all to happy to select him 17th overall in the 1971 Amateur Draft. Any time an expansion team can add a speedy sniper with lots of heart its a great move.

Lalonde made his NHL debut with Vancouver in 1971-72, picking up six points in 27 games, while spending the rest of the year apprenticing in the American Hockey League.

Bobby made the NHL on a full time basis by 1972-73. He spent the next 5 years with the Canucks, scoring 20 goals in 72-73, and reaching 47 or more points in 3 of those 5 years. Bobby loved playing in Vancouver, and the Canucks' fans really appreciated watching him for 5 years, even though he was never able to produce offensively like the Canucks brass had originally hoped. His speed electrified the Pacific Coliseum countless times, while his constant hustle earned him much respect.

Bobby and the Canucks parted ways in the summer of 1978. Bobby signed with another expansion team, the Atlanta Flames. He played two seasons in Georgia. He experienced his best individual season in a Flames jersey. In 1978-79 Bobby set career-highs with 24 goals and 56 points.

Just 3 games into his third season with Atlanta, Bobby found himself traded to Boston in exchange for future considerations. The Flames felt had improved their depth in the offseason and felt that Lalonde was expendable because of his size. Meanwhile in Boston Dwight Foster went down with an injury and they were in the market for a defensive forward. Bobby played two solid years in Boston, mostly in a penalty killing role.

The Bruins released Lalonde after the 1981 season. Bobby thought he had caught back on with his old team the Flames, who had since relocated to Calgary Alberta. However Lalonde only played in one game for the Calgary Flames. It proved to be Bobby's last NHL game. He appeared in 19 games in the minor leagues that season before heading overseas where he played in Switzerland.

Lalonde's career stats consist of 124 goals, 210 assists and 334 points in 641 games.

Sergio Momesso

2011-02-14T15:16:00.000-08:00

Every team wants a big, tough left winger who can hit, fight and score, not necessarily in that order. Big Sergio Momesso filled that description very well - at times.

Sergio's inconsistency at the finesse aspect was frustrating. After scoring 98 goals and 276 points in his final 132 junior games at the QMJHL level, Sergio never really strung together a great offensive season despite having all the tools. A strong straight-ahead skater, Sergio was good at handling the puck while on the fly. He also had great balance which made him hard to knock off of the puck. However he ran into trouble when he had to turn quickly. Like many big men, he turned much like an airplane on the runway. He had an extremely heavy shot, but seemed to take too long to get it off. He also developed into a two way player, at least to the point where he wasn't a defensive liability when he was on the ice.

Sergio's best year was in 1989-90 with St. Louis, his 5th year in the league. He scored 24 goals and 56 points and appeared to finally find his groove in the NHL, but too a step back the following year. He returned to the 20 goal level only one other time in the NHL.

While finesse inconsistency was frustrating, his physical inconsistency was maddening. Sometimes it seemed like he didn't want to play as big as he really was. If he had shown more consistency physically he would have really dominated. When he was hitting people he was really into the game, and his team usually did well that night. But too often it seemed like he was a sleeping giant out there, often unnoticeable. Sergio was huge at 6'3" and 215 lbs, and his good straightaway speed made for thunderous body checks. He was also immoveable in front of the net if he decided he was willing to pay the price that night. To his credit, when their was a big game or a playoff game, Sergio almost always brought his "A" physical game to the rink.

Sergio had a mean and down right nasty streak and the word around the league was not to anger him and he'd play the role of sleeping, and thus ineffective giant. If you awoke him he'd make you pay physically and his whole team seemed to respond favorably. Momesso would stick up for his teammates at any time, but often just placed a big bear hug on the guy as opposed to punishing that player. But if he did decide to punish you, my gosh look out! Just ask Dave "Charlie" Manson, one of the toughest though also physically inconsistent players of the day. Sergio landed a punch directly on a Manson's throat during a melee. Manson's voice was never the same as he was reduced to a raspy whisper from that day forward.

Drafted by his hometown Habs, Sergio was run out of Montreal as he floundered under intense media expectations. Despite one good year in St. Louis, it wasn't until he arrived in Vancouver that Sergio contributed solidly at the NHL level. Often playing as a bookend to fellow giant Trevor Linden with diminutive scoring star Cliffy Ronning in the middle, the line played really solidly for several years. The two giants on Ronning's wings enabled Cliff to emerge as a top center.

Sergio was traded to Toronto in 1995-96 in exchange for injured center Mike Ridley. However Sergio never found his niche in Toronto or in New York where he played with Rangers by season's end. Early in the 1996-97 season he was traded back to St. Louis where he finished the year quietly, scoring 1 goal in 31 games.

An unrestricted free agent after 1997, Sergio opted to leave the NHL and go over to Germany where he was one of the top players in Germany's top league which consisted of many former minor leaguers and fringe NHLers.

John McIntyre

2011-02-13T17:32:00.000-08:00

Arguably the most cherished season in Vancouver Canucks history was the 1994 season when they came within one win - one goal - of winning the Stanley Cup.

There were some great players on that team. Trevor Linden carried the team on his back. Pavel Bure wowed the crowds with incredible goals. Kirk McLean was literally the team's saving grace. Greg Adams scored big goals. Geoff Courtnall, Martin Gelinas, Cliff Ronning . . .

Do you know who was recognized as the team's unsung hero that special season?

John McIntyre, the team's 4th line center. Right from the on-set McIntyre made a career as a perfect 4th line center. In Vancouver that season he often played with Tim Hunter and either Gino Odjick or Shawn Antoski. He only scored 3 goals and 9 points that season, and picked up just 1 assist in the 24 game playoff run. But he was a great glue guy on that team, sacrificing offense for defensive assignments, penalty kills, faceoffs and energy shifts. He was a sturdy, physical presence, seemingly much bigger than his listed stats.

John McIntyre was born in Ravenswood, Ontario on March 9th 1969. He played his minor hockey in Forest and Thedford, dreaming of one day playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Lo and behold, McIntyre was selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the third round, 49th overall, in the 1987 NHL Entry Draft. A member of the OHL's Guelph Platers, he likely would have been a high draft pick if it were not for a broken leg. He was a big part of the Platers Memorial Cup championship the season prior. Scouts still liked something about McIntyre, despite his thin frame, injury history and little offensive production.

John joined the Maple Leafs for the 1989-1990 season, basically stepping directly into the NHL straight from junior. He earned quiet praise for his strong play, but with just 5 goals the Leafs shipped "Johnny Mac" to the Los Angeles Kings early in the following season. They landed veteran Mike Krushelnyski in the trade.

McIntyre put together two and a half solid seasons as the Kings' 4th line center before a late season trade to the NY Rangers for former King defender Mark Hardy.

Mac's career in New York was short lived. After ending the 1993 season with 11 games played, he started the 1993-94 campaign on waivers. The Canucks claimed him, but McIntyre would be back in Manhattan in June of '94, trying to win the Stanley Cup with his new team at the expense of his former team. Unfortunately McIntyre and the Canucks came up one goal short in game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals.

McIntyre more or less disappeared after that. He played in just 28 games in the lock-out shortened 1994-95 season, scoring 0 goals. He was demoted to the minor leagues in 1995-96, playing with Syracuse. But rather than toil away on the busses of the minor leagues, McIntyre opted to retire from the game.

Last I heard McIntyre was living in Plympton Township with his wife and daughter. He had returned to what his family had always done - farming.

Rob Murphy

2011-02-12T15:14:00.000-08:00

The mid 1980s were real bad times for the Vancouver Canucks. Wins were few and far between, and until the arrival of Pat Quinn as general manager, there was little hope.

Quinn set out to change the fortunes of the Vancouver Canucks franchise through the draft. Everyone remembers Quinn selecting Trevor Linden second overall in the 1988 NHL draft, but not every seems to remember that draft was actually Quinn's second with the Canucks.

Quinn's first draft was in 1987. Due to previous management trading away the team's 1st round draft choice, third overall, in the infamous Cam Neely/Barry Pederson swap, Quinn's first draft pick never got the same attention that Linden got.

Quinn finally got a chance to make his first draft choice with the 24th overall pick, early in the second round. Quinn called out the name Rob Murphy, a big workhorse out of the Laval Titans of the QMJHL.

Murphy was not so different from Trevor Linden. He was a big strapping center whose game was defined by hard work. He was a two way center who had blossomed in the second half of the season in his draft year. He was sold to patient Canucks fans as an answer to Calgary's behemoth Joel Otto, who for years ate up Vancouver's tiny centers.

Ultimately, however, Murphy would never make much of an impact in the NHL. His strong finish in his draft year proved to be a high point of his promise. Once he turned pro his plodding skating held him back. He also lacked creativity to be an offensive presence.

Regardless, Murphy did spend 8 seasons in the minor leagues. Over 3 seasons he got into 60 games with the Canucks, but was left exposed in the 1992 Expansion draft. The Ottawa Senators claimed Murphy and used him for 44 games. He the signed a free agent contract with the Los Angeles Kings organization but he spent all but 8 games in the next three years in the minor leagues.

Murphy moved to Germany in 1997 where he played for 6 seasons. He returned to Canada after he hung up his blades, and started doing some TV and radio work for the Ottawa Senators. He later worked for the team as a scout before scouting for the Phoenix Coyotes.

Murphy appeared in 125 NHL games, recording 9 goals and 12 assists for 21 points, along with 152 penalty minutes.

Dan Hodgson

2011-02-05T22:11:00.000-08:00

Dangerous Danny Hodgson was never able to come close to duplicating his junior exploits at the National Hockey League level. But maybe that was unrealistic, as Hodgson had one of the greatest junior hockey careers in history!

Hodgson was an incredible center for the Prince Albert Raiders for three seasons from 1982 through 1985. In his rookie junior season he scored 56 goals and 74 assists, unheard of numbers for a newcomer. He easily won the WHL rookie of the year award. But those numbers were dwarfed by back to back 180 point seasons in the following two years. Both years Dan led the WHL in assists with well over 100, and this despite missing time in both seasons to represent Canada in the World Junior Championships. He also was a key performer in the Raiders 1985 Memorial Cup win, leading all playoff scorers with a 3 point per game average in 13 playoff games! For his efforts he was named as the Memorial Cup MVP and he also won the grand daddy of all junior awards in 1985 - the Canadian Major Junior Player of the Year award.

Hodgson was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 4th round of the 1983 draft, 85th overall. He never fulfilled his promise, largely because of his size, or more so his lack of it. At just 5'10" and 175 pounds, he was always behind the 8 ball and didn't get the breaks a bigger, less talented player often gets.

After being sent to the minor leagues in 1986, the Leafs traded Hodgson to Vancouver .Hodgson finished the year in Vancouver, though did not make a big splash.

Dan got his big break in 1987-88, literally. He got off to a flying start, scoring 3 goals and 10 points in the first 4 games. He was near the top of the league in the early scoring race, thanks to a 5 point game against Pittsburgh, but his success and season came to a sudden end when he broke his leg after colliding with the Calgary Flames aggressive blueliner Brad McCrimmon.

He only played in 23 games after recovering from the injury, though was never able to show what he had early in 87-88. He spent more time in the minor leagues, where he put up some outstanding numbers.

Dan left pro hockey in North America as the 1980s came to a close. He went on to star in Switzerland and Germany throughout the 1990s.

Curt Fraser

2011-02-03T10:23:00.000-08:00

When you think of the best fighters of the 1980s you automatically think of Bob Probert, Dave Semenko, Dave Brown, and Tiger Williams.

One of the most underrated would have to be Curt Fraser. He did not fight as much and was a valuable player more so than a goon, but pound for pound he may have been as good a fighter as there was in his era.

Fraser was born in Cincinnati, Ohio where his dad played some minor pro hockey. As a baby the family relocated to Winnipeg and when Curt was 9 they moved to Vancouver.

Fraser would become a junior hockey legend in British Columbia, for his combined physical play and scoring prowess. He started out with the Kelowna Buckaroos of the BCJHL in 1973 and then moving to Victoria where he starred with the WHL Cougars.

His NHL dreams would come true in BC, too. The Vancouver Canucks drafted him 22nd overall in 1978. Soon he would be starring on the Canucks top line with Thomas Gradin and Stan Smyl and was a solid contributor to the Canucks run to the Stanley Cup finals in 1982.

Fraser showed solid improvement in each of his first four seasons in Vancouver, even scoring 28 goals in 1981-82. Injuries hampered severely in year 5, leading to his famous trade to Chicago. One has to wonder if his 1983 diagnosis of diabetes scared off the Canucks.

At first many Canucks fans lamented the departure of their home town crowd favorite. Those thoughts were quickly forgotten when the player the Canucks received, Tony Tanti, became their best goal scorer in team history. Tanti would register 5 straight seasons of 39 or more goals.

Fraser would recover from injuries and continue to be an underrated power forward in Chicago and later Minnesota. His fists came in handy in the old "Chuck" Norris division, as Fraser had classic battles with the likes of Bob Probert and Willi Plett.

Fraser played 12 seasons of professional hockey as a left wing who combined toughness with the ability to score. He played in a total of 704 NHL contests, collecting 193 goals and 240 assists for 433 points along with 1,306 penalty minutes with Vancouver (1978-83), Chicago (1983-88) and Minnesota (1988-90). He also skated in 65 career playoff outings, registering 15 goals and 18 assists for 33 points along with 198 penalty minutes.

He later went on to become a long time pro coach, including with the NHL's Atlanta Thrashers. He has also continued to be very active in fundraising and awareness in the fight against diabetes.

Here's a couple of my favorite Curt Fraser fights on YouTube:

Patrik Sundstrom

2011-02-01T20:40:00.000-08:00

NHL brother combinations are rich throughout NHL history. Twins brothers are obviously pretty rare. Long before anyone had even heard of the Sedin Twins, Swedish twins Peter and Patrik Sundstrom were starring in the NHL.

Like Daniel and Henrik Sedin, Patrik and Peter Sundstrom were different players. Like Peter, Patrik was an excellent skater, combining deadly speed with excellent balance. Also like Peter, he was a tremendous puckhandler who preferred to pass than shoot, almost to a fault. Also like Peter, Patrik was a strong two way player who worked hard without the puck as well as with it.

Patrik was better than Peter in a number of areas which resulted in the general consensus that Patrik was the better of the two. Patrik was 20lbs heavier than Peter, much of it muscle. While neither player initiated much contact, Patrik's increased size made him harder to knock the puck off of. Combined with his excellent balance, this made Patrik a threat in traffic. Patrik was also more willing to sacrifice his body. A good shot blocker, Patrik regularly took a big hit to make a play, something that Peter generally shied away from. Another major difference between the two was Patrik's shot. While Peter's shot was below average at best, Patrik owned a lazer like wrist shot which he used with great accuracy. However like many Swedish stars of the 1980s, Sundstrom didn't shoot anywhere near enough despite the opportunities he got.

Patrik was drafted by the Vancouver Canucks 175th overall in 1980. It wasn't until the the 1982-83 season that Patrik came to Vancouver, as Patrik remained in Sweden where he starred in the Swedish Elit League. He was also part of two World Junior Championships squads, two World Championships squads, and the 1981 Swedish Canada Cup squad.

Patrik's elite international experience helped ease his transition to the Canucks lineup in 1982. Fresh off of the surprising Stanley Cup Finals run, the Canucks hoped Sundstrom could upgrade their talent level that was necessary to keep competing against Smythe Division rivals like Edmonton and Calgary. While Sundstrom did do just that and became arguably the Canucks best player for much of the 1980s, the Canucks failed to achieve much success in his tenure.

Sundstrom scored 23 goals and 46 points in his rookie season, and backed that up with a 38 goal, 91 point campaign in 1983-84. The 91 points set a Canucks club record for most points in a season that stood until Pavel Bure's spectacular seasons in nearly a decade later.

Sundstrom may have over achieved a bit that season, as he levelled off to the 70 point level for most of the rest of his career. He spent the next three seasons in Vancouver before the arrival of Pat Quinn in the summer of 1987. Though Quinn liked what Sundstrom brought to the table, he liked what the New Jersey Devils brought to the table even more. The Devils were very interested in the two way slick Swede and offered young goal scorer Greg Adams, who was from BC, and promising young goalie Kirk McLean in exchange. Quinn jumped at the deal.

Adams went on to score some huge goals in Canucks franchise history while McLean went on to become one of the top goalies in the NHL for a few seasons in the early 1990s. However it was a deal that benefitted both teams as the Devils were very happy with Sundstrom's effect on their organization as well. Sundstrom played 4 full seasons in New Jersey before retiring in an injury plauged 5th season.

Though he had a disappointing regular season in year one with the Devils, Sundstrom was a big part of the Devil's surprise run into the playoffs. Sundstrom paced the Devils with 20 points in 18 playoff games. Eight of those points came in one game! On April 22, 1988 "Sunny" scored 3 goals and 4 assists in a memorable game against the Washington Capitals!

Sundstrom was a consistent scoring threat, particularly in 1988-89 when he scored 28 goals and 69 points, and in 1989-90 when he scored 27 goals and 76 points. However perhaps his biggest effect was on his linemates Brendan Shanahan and John MacLean. Those two rugged wingers were blessed with a nose for the net and were expected to blossom into power forwards. However it wasn't until the arrival that the two finally achieved their status as stars. To me that is a huge testament of Patrik Sundstrom's ability and importance to the team.

Its too bad that Patrik played with weak teams in Vancouver and New Jersey. Had he had better players to play with, who knows what dizzying heights Patrik could have attained. Much like Thomas Steen in Winnipeg, Patrik helped to dispell the myth that Europeans were soft.

Gary Bromley

2011-02-01T18:05:00.000-08:00

No one could ever accuse Gary Bromley of spinning his wheels or staying in one place too long. From the time this netminder turned pro in the Buffalo Sabres organization in 1972, until the year he retired (1981), he saw action in four different pro leagues and seven North American cities.

After playing three years in the minors, Gary finally got his chance to play with the emerging powerful Sabres in 1974-75. He played really well that year too, with a 26-11-11 record in 50 games. He also posted 4 shutouts and a 3.10 GAA

Despite the success, Bromley got little respect. Many experts and the Sabres themselves felt that Bromley could not be the goalie that could take them to the next level. The Sabres made moves to upgrade the goaltending situation, which left Bromley out of the picture for the 1975-76 season. Playing behind Rogier Crozier, Gerry Desjardins and Al Smith, Bromley only got into one game that season, and gave up seven goals.

Bromley resurfaced in the World Hockey Association, first in Calgary and then in Winnipeg, where he enjoyed a 25-12-1 season.

"I'll never forget that Jets team" recalls Bromley. "We had guys like Bobby Hull, Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nilsson, and we won the Avco Cup (as WHA champions)."

Bromley returned to the NHL with Vancouver in 1978-79, and appeared in 38 contests behind a weak Canucks team. The Canucks, who also had Glen Hanlon, went out and acquired their future "King," Richard Brodeur. Needless to say Gary didn't see much playing time behind those two guys, and was traded to Los Angeles, where he signed a two-way minor league contract.

"I had applied to the Vancouver Fire Department the summer before my last season," he said. "Because when I signed my two-way contract with LA, I pretty well knew which way it would be no matter how well I played. I was a bit disappointed because I did have a good training camp."

"So they sent me down to New Haven for the year. But I still had the idea that I was going to get on with the fire department. When I came back to Vancouver at the end of the season, I applied to the department again and got on. So I took the secure job."

Still living in British Columbia's lower mainland, Bromley has no regrets. "Its been a terrific experience. Like hockey, firefighting is a team game with camaraderie and shift work .... so the transition was easy."

Gary was nicknamed "Bones" right from the start of his career as he weighed only 145 lbs when he first attended professional camps. He eventually tipped the scales at 160 lbs but is forever known as Bones.

Craig Coxe

2011-01-07T16:03:00.000-08:00

Craig Coxe had one memorable fight against big bad Bob Probert which really solidified his reputation as an NHL elite tough guy.

Probert was on his reign of terror as the NHL's heavyweight champion. Only Dave Brown was a serious contender to the unofficial title, but then came along this kid from Chula Vista, California of all places. Right in the appropriately named Joe Louis Arena, Coxe dropped his gloves with Probert and instantly made a name for himself. He didn't win the fight, but he didn't lose it either. The two threw fists of fury, landing a few dozen punches total in a long fight in which the linesmen just left them alone until they were too tired to throw any more. It was one of the few times that Probert didn't destroy a guy, at least in his prime years.

The fight was shown on highlight films for days following the showdown, and everyone was under the impression that the Canucks had a new heavyweight to be reckoned with. In actuality, he wasn't even that great a fighter to be honest. Yes, he had a great tilt with Probert, but he got hit a lot in that fight too. He was all offense and had trouble staying away from blows. With his new reputation as the guy who took Probert the distance, he became an obvious target for other NHL tough guys looking to make a name for themselves. While Coxe would show up for the fight, he could be defeated handily by a quick punch that he probably should have gotten out of the way from.

Unlike Probert and other valuable tough guys, Coxe had no game at all. He was a lanky and very clumsy skater. Thus his skating limited his effectiveness and ice time. Since he couldn't keep up he couldn't be an effective checker. His puck skills were below average, and if he held on to the puck for more than a few seconds, he was in trouble. In short, Coxe played maybe 5 minutes a game, most of that against the other team's slow, lumbering tough guy or just when the coach wanted Coxe to send a message to the other team.

Originally drafted by the Red Wings, he was signed as a free agent with the Canucks in 1984. For years the Canucks were little smurfs on the ice and were desperately looking for someone to protect their small players. After after an impressive year of goonery at the AHL level Coxe was called up for the 1985-86 season. He spent the majority of the 1986-87 season back in the AHL but returned to the Canucks for 1987-88.

He didn't finish the year in a Vancouver uniform however, as on March 6, 1988 he was traded to Calgary for Brian Bradley, Peter Bakovic and Kevin Guy. As a young Canuck fan I remember thinking how GM Pat Quinn fleeced the Flames with that trade - sending the basically useless Coxe away for Bradley - a skilled though small center. And we got depth players in Bakovic and Guy to boot.

Coxe played 9 games in a Calgary uniform, including 2 playoff games. He was brought in strictly for toughness as the Flames were anticipating a tough, fight filled playoff with their arch rivals in Edmonton. Coxe, however, surprisingly added a little offense in his stint in Calgary. He scored 2 goals on 5 shots plus 3 assists in the final 7 regular season games and added a goal in the playoffs!

The Flames GM Cliff Fletcher was no dummy however, and knew that Coxe wasn't as good as his stats suggested. He sent him packing in the summertime as a small part of a large package which also saw Mike Bullard and Tim Corkey go to St. Louis for Doug Gilmour, Mark Hunter, Steve Bozek and Micahel Dark. And I thought Quinn fleeced Fletcher! Man, what a great trade from the Flames standpoint - trading one effective NHLer (Bullard) for three (Gilmour, Hunter and Bozek), one of which (Gilmour) would go onto become a superstar.

Coxe played in 41 games for the Blues, scoring no goals and 7 assists. More often than not he was a healthy scratch as the Blues too found out his limitations as a player.

Traded to Chicago in the summer of 1989, the Canucks reclaimed their former tough guy in the preseason waiver draft. However he spent only 32 games in the Canucks uniform in stint two, spending more time in the minors and even more time as a healthy scratch.

When the expansion San Jose Sharks came along in 1991, Coxe was the last player selected in the expansion draft. The Sharks were stockpiling on tough guys - they knew they'd lose a lot in the first year but they were determined not to get pushed around. But Coxe was also a smart pick from a Sharks marketing department standpoint too. Born in Chula Vista, California, it was a small little tidbit to entice the virgin market to come to games.

Craig Coxe started the 1991-92 season in San Jose, playing in 10 games before he was banished the minor leagues. I remember Coxe's first game in a Sharks game well, as it came ironically enough against the Vancouver Canucks. It was a 3-2 'Nucks win that saw Sharks goalie Jeff Hackett play admirably. And guess who scored the Sharks first goal in team history? The California native himself - Craig Coxe!

As mentioned Coxe was demoted to the minor leagues where he toiled for many years after his NHL years were done. He also became a regular on the summer roller hockey circuit as well.

Lars Molin

2011-01-03T16:56:00.001-08:00

Check out the lid on this guy:

That's Lars Molin, a skilled, Swedish forward from the 1980s, best known to North American audiences as a member of the Vancouver Canucks. The specialty teams specialist played three seasons in the NHL, from 1981 through 1984, registering 33 goals and 98 points in 172 career games. Aside from some strong play in the Canucks unexpected march to the Stanley Cup finals in 1982, Molin's NHL career is mostly forgotten, except maybe for his helmet and those awful Canucks "V" jerseys.

The image above is not a hockey card, but rather a sticker produced by OPC/Topps in the 1982-83 season. We would collect stickers (this particular set had 263 to search for) and post them in an accompanying sticker album, such as the one pictured here to the right.

Hockey stickers of this sort have existed in similar variations since at least the 1960s, and continue to be an interesting and generally cheaper alternative to hockey cards to this very day.

By the way, Molin enjoyed a lengthy and noteworthy career in Sweden when not playing with the Canucks. The native of Ornskoldsvik (a small hockey hotbed that later produced Peter Forsberg, Markus Naslund and the Sedin twins) starred for years with the local club Modo. He also represented Sweden on the national team many times, winning Olympic bronze medals at both the 1980 and 1988 Olympic games, and a gold (1987) and silver (1981) medal at the world championships. He also represented Sweden at the 1981 Canada Cup.

John Gould

2010-08-26T17:30:00.000-07:00

The Buffalo Sabres were correct when they though John Gould could be an NHL player. Unfortunately for them, they never got to reap the rewards of their insight and investment.

John was a 5'11", 200 pound winger who went undrafted by the NHL after a solid career with the London Knights of the Ontario junior leagues. That didn't deter him though. He signed with the lowly Eastern Hockey League and the Charlotte Checkers, where he starred. The Sabres were impressed with what he had to offer at the minor league level, and offered him a contract. Supposedly they were looking to fill out their depth charts and never expected the kid from Beeton, Ontario to play with the Sabres.

John made a successful jump up to the top minor league - the American Hockey League with the Cincinnati Swords. That first year he even earned a 2 game call up, and scored his first NHL goal!

Coming off of an all star season, Gould had a great training camp in 1973 and made the Sabres. He got off to a great start once the season got under way, scoring 4 goals including 2 game-winners in the first 5 games. The he wrenched his knee and although he didn't miss a lot of time with the injury, he somehow lost his spot on a top line and received very little ice time. He never scored another goal in 30 games before he was traded.

Just after Christmas 1973, the Sabres went shopping for a physical defenseman and found one in Vancouver Canuck Jerry Korab. A deal had been arranged that would send Tracy Pratt to Canada's west coast, but the Sabres threw in Gould to seal the trade.

Gould got off to a less-than-impressive start with Vancouver, scoring 9 goals and 19 points in 45 games to finish the season, but he erupted in 1974-75. Seemingly out of nowhere he symbolically announced he had arrived in the National Hockey League when he scored 34 goals and 65 points, and then led the Canucks in playoff scoring.

And to prove that his breakout season was no fluke, he followed that up with a 32 goal and 59 point season in 1975-76.

Gould credited the Canucks coach at the time for his success.

"Phil Maloney was the coach and he was good for the team though we didn't do all that well. He treated everybody the same and was really a players' coach."

Playing in Vancouver always means lots of time on airplanes. It was particularly tough back in the 1970s, as Gould explains:

"It was a tough place to play because we were travelling all the time. The only distant place we had direct flights to was Toronto. Most of the time we had to fly to Seattle, only a 35-minute trip, but then sit around the airport for an hour and a half waiting for a connecting flight."

Twenty-five games into the 1976-77 season the Canucks traded Gould to Atlanta in order to acquire some depth. In two and one-half seasons in Atlanta, John never quite found his goal scoring touch, topping out at 19 in 1977-78, but remained a useful and versatile player.

The Buffalo Sabres reacquired John in 1979-80. He played in 52 games and scored 9 goals and 18 points but ended the year and his career back where his career began - in the Buffalo Sabres minor league system.

John, who had a brother Larry also appeared in the NHL, retired at the end of the 1979-80 season. He overcame long odds to make the NHL. He ended up playing 504 games in the NHL, scoring 131 goals and 269 points.

After hockey Gould returned home to Beeton and started racing standard-bred horses. At the suggestion of former NHLer Ray McKay, he joined Fundementals in Action, an organization started by Pat Stapleton, to help teach hockey to youngsters across Canada.

"I like the program and travelling to communities I've never been before," he said.

Special thanks to Jennifer Conway

Vancouver Canucks Greatest Players

2010-07-04T00:00:00.000-07:00

Greg "Gus" Adams
Jim Agnew
Shawn Antoski
Dave Babych
Jim Benning
Per Olov Brasar
"King" Richard Brodeur
Jiri Bubla
Pavel Bure
Jerry Butler
Geoff Courtnall
Russ Courtnall
Ron Delorme
Eddie Dorohoy
John Garrett
Martin Gelinas
Taylor Hall
Doug Halward
Ed Hatoum
Dennis Kearns
Orland Kurtenbach
Igor Larionov
Don Lever
Doug Lidster
Trevor Linden
Phil Maloney
Cesare Maniago
Jack McIlhargey
Kirk McLean

Larry Melnyk
Garry Monahan
Dana Murzyn
Petr Nedved
Chris Oddleifson
Gerry O'Flaherty
Gino Odjick
Barry Pederson
Pat Quinn
Dave Richter
Paul Reinhart
Cliff Ronning
Jim Sandlak
Petri Skriko
Stan Smyl
Harold Snepsts
Daryl Stanley
Rich Sutter
Steve Tambellini
Tony Tanti
Ryan Walter
Tiger Williams
Dunc Wilson

Doug Halward

2010-06-07T19:36:00.000-07:00

Doug Halward always intrigued me. I'm not sure if it was because he had an interesting skill set that hinted that he could be a more prominent player than he usually was. Or perhaps it was gangly, awkward frame complete with the thin face and bad moustache that reminded me more of a disinterested high school art teacher than a hockey gladiator of over 600 NHL games.

Controversy seemed to plague Halward in his career. Drafted 14th overall by the Bruins in the 1975 Amateur Draft, ahead of the likes of Denis Maruk, Brian Engblom, and Doug Jarvis. Halward, too, would become a long time serviceable NHL player, but not in Boston. Despite apprenticing in the minor leagues for three years, the Bruins gave up on Halward in 1978, sending him to Los Angeles for the proverbial bucket of pucks.

Halward got off to an inauspicious start in 1978-79. He missed several weeks with a throat infection and only played in 27 games. He was even exposed in the summer's expansion draft, although the Kings protected him once they lost fellow d-man Larry Brown.

It turned out to be a good claim for the Kings, as Halward would finally breakthrough in 1979-80. He scored 11 goals as well as 45 assists and 56 points (the latter two stats were then newly established team records) and was named the Kings top defenseman.

The following year Halward slumped miserably. In 51 games that season he scored just 4 goals and 19 points, thanks mainly to a serious knee injury. The relationship between Halward and the Kings deteriorated during this time off the ice, as the team felt he should have been able to recover sooner than he did. The Kings traded him to Smythe division rival Vancouver in 1982.

The Canucks' medical staff agreed with Halward and arranged for the necessary surgery he needed to recover. While it cost him most of the next season and a half, it was a good investment for the Canucks, as he would become a key figure in the team's surprising playoff run in 1982. The following season he was named as the Canucks' best defenseman when he scored 52 points including 19 goals, a new team record.

"Hawk" would never quite duplicate that successful campaign, but he remained a serviceable defenseman for the Canucks for a total of five seasons. On occassional nights he could be spectacular, such as on April 7th, 1984 when he became the first Vancouver player ever, and one of the rare NHL defensemen ever, to score a playoff hat trick.

I had a good look at Halward during his stay in Vancouver. He impressed me with his attributes as a player, even though he often left you wanting more. He was a good skater, not particularly fast but well balanced and strong on his skates. He would rarely rush the puck though, preferring to make safe outlet passes to forwards. He saw the play well, both on offense and defense. He played smart positional defense but was nt a physical player in terms of hitting, although he could lose his temper from time to time. Bottom line - in Vancouver he was a steadying presence on a too-often discombobulated Canucks' blue line.

Yet injuries and controversy would hobble Halward. In Vancouver he suffered a concussion, a badly bruised hand, a fractured ankle and even a throat laceration. He also found himself in trouble for his temper. He drew NHL suspensions for fighting with fans in Quebec City and later for being the first player to leave the bench in a bench clearing brawl against Montreal.

Halward's at-times tumultuous stay in Vancouver came to an late in 1986. In November he was suspended by the team after Halward missed curfew. Halward demanded to be traded and team complied two weeks later, moving him to Detroit.

Halward would only play a few games with the Wings before he was out for the remainder of the season. He sprained his kneed which required surgery. Later he was diagnosed with phlebitis in his leg and spent two weeks in hospital.

Halward returned for a solid 1987-88 campaign, but that would essentially be his last in the NHL. He still played for two more years, filling in spots with both the Wings and with the Edmonton Oilers.

In 653 NHL games Doug Halward scored 69 goals, 224 assists and 293 points. He added 7 goals and 17 points in 44 playoff contests.

Halward was not one of those players who relied on hockey in retirement for income. In his last days in the league he helped to found Consolidated Resource Recovery, Inc., an organic materials recycling company. He joined the firm full time after retirement, serving as company president and Director of Envirowaste, and helping grow the company by purchasing smaller companies throughout the southern United States. He also started up another company - Answer Garden Products Ltd which worked with different types of soil products.

Taylor Hall

2010-06-07T14:13:00.000-07:00

Taylor Hall and Cam Neely were supposed to be a dynamic duo. Unfortunately after a promising start, things didn't materialize.

Hall, a 5'11" 180lb left wing from Regina Saskatchewan, started his career with the Vancouver Canucks after a spectacular final season in junior with his hometown Regina Pats. In 69 games he scored 63 goals and 79 assists for 142 points. He furthered distinguished himself in the Memorial Cup playoffs. He scored 21 goals and 41 points in 23 post season games. He and Dale Derkatch, a legendary but tiny WHL junior who never got a chance in the NHL, were a spectacular duo.

Hall started the 1984-85 season on the Canucks top line with center Peter McNab and right winger Neely. The line caught fire early, scoring 6 goals and 16 points in the first 4 games. Hall scored 1 goal and 4 assists in just his first 3 games. This brought great hope to the Canucks faithful, as Hall had was playing on the left side, a traditional position of weakness for the franchise.

However all three members would fall victim to varying degrees of knee injuries. Peter McNab and Cam Neely then tweaked their knees in minor fashion. Hall was not so lucky. In the 7th game of the season, Hall tore the ligaments in his left knee, ending his season.

The incident would have never of happened nowadays. Back in 1984 the NHL was still using the old, unmovable goal posts. When players crashed the nets back then, there was chance of serious injury. Hall tore all the ligaments in his knee when he and fellow rookie Gerald Diduck of the New York Islanders rammed into the post.

Hall, who was a terrific skater, had his promising career drastically altered by this serious injury. He never quite regained the same confidence in his skating ability which was such a part of his recent successes. Hall would spend most of the next two seasons in the minors, appearing in just 23 NHL games with the Canucks, scoring 5 goals and 5 assists. He was unable to find his game.

The Boston Bruins, remembering Hall's past but brief success with Cam Neely, signed Hall to a two year contract in 1987, hoping to re-ignite anything that may still flicker between the two. However it was wishful thinking for the Bruins. Hall appeared in 7 games in the B's uniform, not scoring a point.

After two years with the Bruins farm team, Hall briefly played with the Canadian National Team, the Mannheim Eagles of the German League, and the San Diego Gulls of the IHL before enjoying 4 seasons with the CHL's Tulsa Oilers.

After retiring as a player Taylor "City" Hall turned to coaching in the low minor leagues in the southern United States. He even was a part owner of the WPHL team in Corpus Christie, Texas and committed to becoming the owner of the Alabama franchise in the upstart WHA2 league that never did get off of the ground.

Ed Hatoum

2010-02-25T10:46:00.000-08:00

Some hockey players have come from some rather unlikely birthplaces, but perhaps nowhere as unusual as Ed Hatoum's "home town." He was born in Beirut, Lebanon!

Hatoum, who grew up in Ontario, was born in Lebanon on December 7th, 1947. His family of ten began emigrating to the Ottawa area in 1954, where one of Ed's uncles lived. It took three years to get the entire family to Canada. Ed was one of the last, aged 10 when he began calling Canada home.

Within a couple of years Ed picked up the Canadian game and to many people's surprise, probably including his own, he quickly discovered he was pretty good at it. He was one of the top youth players in the Ottawa area.

Hatoum played 4 seasons of junior hockey with the Hamilton Red Wings of the OHA before turning professional in the Detroit Red Wings system. Ed spent most of his two seasons with the Wings farm team in Fort Worth of the CHL. Hatoum appered in 21 NHL games in the two years, scoring 2 goals and 3 assists.

Hatoum was one of the original Canucks as the expansion Vancouver NHL team claimed the 5'10" 180lb right winger. A good playmaker, Hatoum played sparingly in 26 games in the Canucks inaugural season of 1970-71. He scored 1 goal (shorthanded) and three assists. A badly injured shoulder early in the season really hampered his opportunity.

The Canucks loaned Hatoum and Jim Wiste on February 9, 1971 to the Seattle Totems of the WHL in exchange for the rights of little Bobby Schmautz, one of the first fan favorites in Canucks NHL history.

Hatoum spent the 1971-72 season in the AHL with the Rochester Americans. The following two seasons he failed to make an impact with Chicago and Vancouver of the WHA. Hatoum finished his career with the Nelson Maple Leafs of the lowly Western International League.

You probably wouldn't expect a player who was born in Lebanon to accomplish much in professional hockey. His best seasons were with Detroit's farm team, otherwise he struggled everywhere else he went. He was nicknamed "Sock." Try saying Sock Hatoum fast, and it sounds like Sock It To 'Em, a great hockey name.

Hatoum wasn't the only player born in an unlikely place. Willi Plett was born in Paraguay, Don Spring was born in Venezuela, Rod Langway's birth certificate says Formosa (Taiwan) on it, while Olaf Kolzig was born in South Africa!!

Jim Agnew

2010-02-01T20:41:00.000-08:00

I remember Jim Agnew quite vividly. No one worked harder than Agnew, who grew up on a cattle farm in Hartney, Manitoba. His skill level was not much, as his single assist in 81 career NHL games can attest, but he sure wasn't afraid to work hard and do the dirty work, just like so many prairie boys.

Drafted 157th overall in 1984 by Vancouver, the former Brandon Wheat King and Portland Winter Hawk (in junior he was traded for John Kordic!) became probably exactly what was expected of him - a tough-as-nails minor leaguer who got called up a few games here and there, whenever a game called for a little extra toughness.

Jim probably should have stuck in the NHL longer than he did. After all in 1990 he was an all star in the IHL, and his toughness and bruising physicality was a welcome rarity amongst the pacifist Canucks of the late 1980s. But a series of serious knee injuries kept Agnew in hospital beds rather than on the ice. The Canucks released him, though former Canuck right hand man Brian Burke was quick to make Agnew one his first additions as general manager of the Hartford Whalers.

After just 16 games with the Whalers in 1992-93 Agnew again reinjured his knee. This time he was forced off the ice for good.

Agnew once shared a couple of his memories of life in the big leagues.

“It’s overwhelming for a 20-year-old kid to walk into a place like the Boston Garden and see a Bruins banner hanging there,” Agnew said. “Or to head into L.A. thinking, ‘I’m going up against Gretzky.’ ” In fact, Agnew remembers the time his coach delivered some startling instructions just before starting him in a game against the Los Angeles Kings.

“The coach says ‘Jimmy, we’re going to start you out. But right off the hop, I want you to run Gretzky,’ So I decide I’m really going to run Gretzky first shift, I’m going to hammer Gretzky, because I wanted to please the coach.

“A few seconds into the game and the puck’s behind the net, and there’s Gretzky. I’m tearing down the ice right at him, and he does one of these between-the-legs spin maneuvers and I go flying by like NASCAR. It was less than a minute into the game and I was sitting down. The coach just leaned over to me and said, ‘Forget about what I told you.’ ”

In 1995 Agnew and his family settled down in Missoula, Montana where he studied exercise science at the University of Montana. He returned to Canada a couple of years later, he would eventually come back to Missoula, pass his citizenship exam and work as a sheriff's deputy.

Jerry Butler

2009-11-03T15:56:00.000-08:00

This is Jerry Butler, the hockey player. He should not be confused with the football player, the soul singer turned politician or the porn star, so I've been told, by the same name.

This Jerry Butler made his name on the ice, as a terrific shadow and agitator. Just ask Wayne Gretzky. When 99 was breaking every record imaginable in the early 1980s, Butler earned a measure of fame by shutting him down for a stretch. It was a short stretch. Gretz scored more goals against the Canucks than anyone else.

Butler, a fine skater, was the 55th overall draft pick in the 1971 Amateur Draft courtesy of the New York Rangers. It would take three years of apprenticing in the minor leagues before Butler caught on with the Blueshirts full time in 1974-75. He scored 17 goals and 33 points that first full season.

Despite his inspiring play, the industrious winger was shipped to St. Louis in the summer of 1975 in exchange for star goaltender John Davidson. It turned out to be a good career move for Butler.

"St. Louis was a very good change for me," he told The Hockey News. "In New York they wanted a young guy who could skate, check and take the body, but the Blues saw me in a different light. It was a good mix of young and old there."

That different light allowed Butler to play more minutes. That first year he played on an effective line with Garry Unger and Bob MacMillan. Butler's own offensive totals stayed relatively the same (17 goals and 41 points), but he brought life and sandpaper to the Blues top line. The Blues even almost upset the heavily favored Buffalo Sabres in the playoffs.

Early in the 1977-78 season Butler found himself on the way home to Southern Ontario when the Toronto Maple Leafs acquired him in exchanged for the tarnished Inge Hammarstrom. Coach Roger Nielson was a big fan of Butler's mixture of speed and defensive play, and quickly Butler would become a big fan of his new coach.

"Roger was very technical in his approach. That team was the best team I played for in terms of everybody knowing their roles."

Butler played in over 2 and 1/2 seasons in Toronto. That was a very tumultuous time in Leafs history, with Punch Imlach and Harold Ballard hell bent on running the team their way, and essentially running it right into the ground.

"Everything under Ballard was strange. He had a good heart but there was so many things that were completely off the wall in Toronto, it was hard to keep track."

One was the Leafs determination to rid themselves of their heart and soul and leader in Darryl Sittler, who had a no-trade clause in his contract. To convince him to waive his no-trade clause, the Leafs began dismissing Sittler's close friends, such as a young Lanny McDonald and the popular Tiger Williams.

Butler was part of the big Tiger Williams trade in February 1980. The pair were sent to Vancouver in exchange for Bill Derlago and Rick Vaive.

"Butts" would play in parts of three seasons with the Canucks, earning temporary fame for keeping Gretzky quiet.

Butler would resurface with the Winnipeg Jets for the 1982-83 season, but retired at season's end. In 641 NHL games Jerry Butler scored 99 goals and 219 points.

One source suggests Jerry Butler went to school after retiring from hockey, and earned a 4 year Engineering degree. He then became an inspector for the city of Winnipeg.

John Garrett

2009-10-06T15:56:00.001-07:00

John Garrett has enjoyed a very successful career as a popular hockey television analyst. But today's generation might not realize that he also enjoyed a lengthy career as a professional goalie.

John was drafted by the St. Louis Blues in 1971 but as a rookie he got caught in a numbers game. John recalled that 13 goalies were at the Blues camp in his rookie season. Needless to say it was quite a glut for goalies, especially since the Blues knew ahead of time that they would go with Ernie Wakely and Jacques Caron as their tandem. (Glenn Hall and Jacques Plante retired in the summer of 1971). John was sent to Kansas City to play his first season of pro hockey. He put up an impressive effort as a rookie in the CHL, including posting a league high 3 shutouts.

The following summer the Blues looked to lighten their load of goalies and shipped John to the Chicago Blackhawks organization in exchange for Christian Bordeleau. Obviously the news wasn't great for John's career as Chicago had Tony Esposito just embarking upon his incredible career and Gary "Suitcase" Smith was a more than capable back up. John was eventually sent to the Richmond Robins of the AHL where again he played solidly before his team was beaten badly in the playoffs.

With his shot at the NHL all but non-existent in the Hawks organization, Garrett signed with the WHA's Minnesota Fighting Saints. It was a great move for John. He not only got a hefty pay increase but also became a workhorse goalie in a league of higher caliber than the usual minor leagues.

"The WHA was good for me. They didn't pay much attention to defence. The good defencemen were well paid to stay in the NHL, so you had the John Arbors and Rick Smiths, guys who would the 5th or 6th defencemen in the NHL, and they were first or second on WHA teams."

Despite the weak defense, Garrett gained respect as a strong goaltender who would often play the bulk of the games. In the WHA he played in 323 career games, playing almost .500 hockey with a record of 148-151-15. He had 14 shutouts (including a league high 4 in 1976-77) and a career 3.52 GAA.

Garrett played 6 strong years in the WHA - almost three full seasons with Minnesota before a stint with the Toronto Toros, 2 years with the Birmingham Bulls and one final season with the New England Whalers. The Whalers claimed Garrett as a priority selection when the team merged with the NHL in 1979.

Garrett went on to help the Whalers for 2 and 1/2 seasons in the NHL. Though his stats are less than impressive, they aren't indicative of his play. Garrett played strongly, especially in the Whalers first NHL season when they made the playoffs.

Garrett was traded to Quebec in 1982. Larry Pleau had taken over the GM's role on the team and wanted to get rid of the Whaler's "old guard" and replace them with Pleau's handpicked men.

Garrett played parts of two seasons in Quebec but was happy to leave as it was tough for his wife and kids to be living in the mostly French town. He was traded to Vancouver which was better from a personal standpoint, but not necessarily a professional one.

"When I got there (Vancouver), I was the back up to Richard Brodeur and played in 50 games in two years. That was tough."

But as John goes on to explain, not as tough as the following years.

"The next year Harry's (GM Harry Neale) contract wasn't renewed. Jack Gordon took over and Tom Watt became the coach. Brodeur was getting to the end of the line and they wanted a younger goalie to be his back up. They didn't want two 33 year olds sharing the job. They had Frank Caprice and Wendel Young coming up."

John was eventually asked to go play in the American Hockey League, which he did for 3 games before he made up his mind to retire.

John retired with 207 NHL games under his belt. 68 of those games resulted in wins, with 91 losses and 37 ties. He had a bloated 4.27 GAA and just one shutout (with Vancouver)

Wayne Gretzky Stole Garrett's Car

One of the most famous stories involving John Garrett came during the 1983 All Star Game. Garrett was acquired by the Canucks less than a week prior to the game. However Richard Brodeur, the Canucks number one goalie and all star representative, suffered a broken eardrum courtesy of a Dan Daoust wild shot. As a last minute replacement, Garrett was asked to fill in for the Campbell Conference All Stars despite playing the whole first half in the Wales Conference.

Garrett had a great game too, and was the favorite to win game MVP honors, which of course earns you a brand new car, except a guy named Gretzky put on a goal scoring clinic in the third period. Gretzky's 4 goals in one period instantly became all star legend.

"I had about 15 saves total up to about the six minute mark of the third period" recalls John in Dick Irvin's great book In The Crease. "I knew Lanny McDonald from playing with him at the World Championships one year and he kept talking to me after I'd make a save: 'Hey Cheech, you got the tires....the glove compartment.....hey, great stop. Now you've got the steering wheel.' Then about the six minute mark Gretz scores and makes 4-2. On his next shift he scores again. 5-2. Lanny comes back to me after each goal, 'Oh oh, There go the tires...Oh oh, there goes the steering wheel.' The very next shift 99 scores again. Now he's got the hat trick. And then he gets another goal on his next shift. I mean, he takes four shifts and scores four goals. Guess what. I didn't win the car."

Surrendering to Mr. Hockey

Garrett is also the answer to a great trivia question as he was the goalie that gave up Gordie Howe's 1000th professional goal.

"We played them in Birmingham and Gordie was standing in front of the net and the pass came to him, a one hopper, and he picked it off about three inches above the ice and nailed it. I got a picture of the play with the puck in the net behind me, and Gordie signed it, 'Thanks for all the help!'"

Eddie Dorohoy

2009-08-05T14:45:00.001-07:00

They called him Pistol not because he was a sharpshooter but rather because of a gun twirling incident in Texas. They called him Brat because he was hard-headed, abrasive and believed in doing things his own way. They called him The Great Gaboo because he would never stop talking. In fact, he liked to talk so much that he took up driving cab in the off-season just to have a chance to talk to a lot of people more so than for the money.

With colorful nicknames such as these, you already know this man was quite the character. But he was also quite the hockey player. True, he only played in 16 goalless and pointless NHL games, but fans of the old 1950s and 1960s WHL, especially in Victoria and Vancouver, called Eddie Dorohoy one of the greatest hockey players they had ever seen.

Dorohoy was an fun if unusual skater to watch. He was said to have danced his way across the ice, using short, choppy, "running" strides to give him a head start on nearly everyone else on the ice. He wasn't a great technical skater by any stretch of the imagination, but he was effective.

The native of Medicine Hat was not over-poweringly big, but he was tenacious and tough. He did not back down from anyone during play, though he rarely got too involved in after the whistle scrums, even if he may have started more than a few.

He was a consistent top ten scorer in the old Western League. In 714 career games he scored 297 goals and 533 assists for 830 points, plus 42 more in the playoffs.

Yet he only had one stint in the NHL, and even then he was used sparingly. In 1948-49 Dorohoy participated in 16 NHL games with the Montreal Canadiens. But he saw very little ice time and never picked up a single point. He would soon be demoted to the minor leagues, never to return.

Legendary BC sports journalist Denny Boyd once explained why Dorohoy never stuck in the NHL:

"When Dorohoy was a brash 19 year old rookie trying out with the Montreal Canadiens, one of the first duties he assigned himself was setting out to correct what he felt were several serious deficiencies in the great Rocket Richard's game. That helped earn him a quick trip to the minors but before he left, he handed his practice sweater to a Canadiens' official and said, "Here, you may want to retire this."

Jon C. Stott, author of the great book Ice Warriors (The Pacific Coast/Western Hockey League 1948-1974) suggests another disruptive account buried him forever.

“Dorohoy saw little ice time in the 16 games he played for Montreal When the team got off to a slow start, coach Dick Irvin called a meeting. Here, Eddie became involved in another legendary incident, one that revealed his verbal rather than athletic dexterity. ‘He was going down the lines asking each player why he wasn’t scoring. When he got to me, I told him that I’d need a very long stick to score from where I was sitting on the bench.’ It wasn’t long after that when Dorohoy found himself with Dallas in the USHL."

Dorohoy never changed though. Once he accused Vancouver Canucks owner Coley Hall as being "so cheap, he wouldn't give you the sleeves off his vest."

Despite his abrassive attitude, he was well liked by his teammates, and by the fans. He played 7 seasons with the Victoria Cougars and parts of another 4 in Vancouver with the original Canucks.

Dorohoy was forced retire as a player in 1965. He was at home recuperating from a broken leg when somehow he fell down the stairs, badly re-breaking the leg and ending his career one the ice.

Dorohoy would try his hand at coaching, guiding junior teams like the Brandon Wheat Kings and Winnipeg Jr. Jets in the late 1960s. After briefly managing the Medicine Hat golf course, he served as an assistant coach with Los Angeles Kings from 1973 through 1976.

Eddie Dorohoy left us earlier in 2009, after a battle with leukemia. He was 80 years old. He had returned to Victoria after hockey and went back to driving cab in his later years.

Phil Maloney

2009-07-26T09:02:00.001-07:00

"Phil Maloney was never a very funny guy. But he made a lot of other guys look funny when he was skating around them and scoring those beautiful goals."

- Walter "Babe" Pratt

While many associate the heart of the Vancouver Canucks with either Stan Smyl or Trevor Linden, another generation will remember another such player. Phil Maloney was the original heart of the Canucks, long before they joined the NHL.

From 1954 through 1970, except for a two year hiatus with the Buffalo Bisons, Maloney starred with the Canucks of the old professional Western Hockey League. In total he skated for a dozen Canucks teams, some of them good, some of them mediocre and some of them down right forgetable. Some things never change in Vancouver.

Yet like Smyl and Linden after him, Phil Maloney's performance never wavered: consistent, conscientious and classy.

The dedicated, self-effacing star was far from a big man on skates. But he was built like a tree trunk, with thick shoulders and incredibly strong legs. It was a difficult task to knock Phil Maloney off of the puck.

The task was made nearly impossible when you added his natural hockey savvy to the mixture. He instinctually could draw defenses towards him as he weaved his way across the ice, the puck sure on his stick. Then at just the right time he would lay out a radar-true pass to a streaking winger for good scoring chance.

It was said Phil Maloney made more wings than aircraft manufacturer Boeing. When asked who were his favorite targets he carefully thought of Buddy Boone on right wing and Jimmy Baird on left wing, but held out special mention for one other player.

"The greatest winger i ever played with, bar none, was Jackie Mcleod. He had an uncanny instinct for positional play, he was smart and all you had to do was lay the puck out when he was trailing on his wing. He'd turn on a burst of speed and he was gone."

McLeod and Maloney clicked together nearly right away upon Maloney's arrival in Vancouver in 1956. Maloney challenged the century mark for points, while McLeod challenged the magical 50 goal plateau.

While he was a great minor league player in Vancouver and Buffalo (AHL), also playing with Pittsburgh (AHL) and hometown Ottawa (QHL), Phil Maloney never really stuck in the NHL. He did get into a total of 158 NHL games, an impressive number in those days of just six major league teams. He only played in one full season, 1949-50 as a 22 year old in Boston, even finishing as runner up to teammate Jack Gelineau as rookie of the year. The following season he would be traded to Toronto and was buried almost immediateley in their system. He would only get a handful of games a couple of seasons later. He would get another chance in the NHL late in the decade with Chicago.

Why did he not make it in the NHL. The dry, to-the-point Maloney once said "We aren't in the minor leagues because we skate too fast or shoot too straight."

Maloney would have no regrets, carving out a great career especially in Vancouver. His 923 points in 818 games is third best in WHL history. He also holds the record for most points in a WHL game - an amazing 8 thanks to 2 goals and 6 helpers. He was twice named as the WHL's most valuable player and in 1958 he led the Canucks to the WHL Championship and the Lester Patrick Trophy. He was also part of the 1969 championship, as well.

The Fox, as he was known to teammates, was a peaceful player, detesting bad penalties as a betrayal of team goals. Three times he was named as the WHL's most gentlemanly player. The opposition tried to physically intimidate Maloney, who once went an entire 70 game season without taking a penalty. Yet he would not shy away from the corners or high traffic areas, and was incredibly durable, only missing time with three injuries, two of them shoulder dislocations.

The third injury was far more serious, one that potentially could have ended his career that night. Maloney needed emergency eye surgery after a vicious assault by Larry Zeidel, a big minor league tough guy/crazy man. Zeidel blindsided Maloney with a cowardly suckerpunch from behind, shattering his cheek bone. With their star player crumpled on the ice, not a single Canucks player stood up to Zeidel.

The incident definitely made an impression on one member of the Canucks team. The team's young stick boy was horrified by this spectacle. A pretty good youth hockey player himself, he vowed that if anyone ever attacked his teammates he'd beat the holy crap out of them. That young stick boy did go onto play in the NHL. His name - John Ferguson, one of the most legendary NHL tough guys ever.

Maloney was forced into retirement earlier than he wanted to. Vancouver had just built the palacial Pacific Coliseum and were about to join the National Hockey League. Maloney would likely have made the inaugural team, but his tired legs told him it was time to retire in 1969.

Maloney would remain very prominent on the hockey scene in Vancouver, serving first as a scout and for parts of four seasons as a NHL coach. He would guid the Canucks to a 95-105-32 record from 1974 through 1977, making the Stanley Cup playoffs in both of Maloney's two full seasons as coach.

He also served as the team's general manager for three seasons.

GM Place Gets It's Soul

2008-12-16T19:22:00.001-08:00

On Wednesday night we get another chance to say goodbye to one of my all time favorite players, Trevor Linden.

In doing so, GM Place finally finds a soul, and finally takes a step towards becoming a grand ol' rink of hockey.

The Canucks have not had a lot to celebrate over their near 40 years, and what they have accomplished, namely the much cherished Stanley Cup runs in 1982 and 1994, came in their old rink, the Pacific Coliseum.

That old barn was a great hockey rink, and still is as fans of the WHL Vancouver Giants can attest. It was far from as legendary as the Montreal Forum or Maple Leaf Gardens, but the old rink on North Renfrew street was the birthplace of towel power and the home of local legends like Stan Smyl, Harold Snepsts, Tiger Williams, Cliff Ronning and Pavel Bure.

The Canucks moved to their downtown digs at GM Place in 1995. In more than a decade the building has had more embarrassing moments than great ones - the Todd Bertuzzi mugging, the Marty McSorley lumber-jack incident, the Mark Messier/Mike Keenan Error and for the most part some pretty weak hockey, especially come playoff time. And that does not even include the failed Grizzlies NBA team or the infamous Guns 'N Roses riot.

Great arenas or stadiums, like the Montreal Forum or the Boston Gardens or Yankee Stadium, are made great by great moments. Tonight, GM Place finally gets one of those moments as the Vancouver Canucks retired jersey #16, the jersey of the greatest Canuck of them all, Trevor Linden.

This moment actually started on April 5th, as the Canucks fans saluted Linden in what everyone knew would be his last game, leaving few eyes dry. But Linden will be eternized tonight.

Tom Larscheid, the legendary long time Vancouver radio colorman, has said that Wednesday will be the greatest moment in Canucks history. Even as great as the 1994 Stanley Cup finals run that Linden will forever be associated with.

I'm not completely sure about that, but no doubt Wednesday will be a magical night. Follow that up with the 2010 Olympics and god willing another long playoff run sometime soon, and GM Place goes from just another heartless, cookie cutter arena to a grand home of hockey.

A note about Linden: Fans from other teams do not and probably can not understand just how important this hockey player, correct that, this man, is to British Columbians.

Trevor Linden is far more than just a hockey player who bled the Canucks many colors over the years. He is far more than just inspirational community leader. He is the epitome of class in all of sport. He is the person we all want to be. He is the person we want our children to be.

To say he is larger than life here in BC is no understatement. He will be revered here forever, both on and off the ice.

And, best of all, he will be forever a Canuck.

Trevor Linden

2008-12-10T10:22:00.000-08:00

Remembering Pit Martin

2008-12-01T15:00:00.000-08:00

Tragic news about a former Vancouver Canucks player. Pit Martin has passed away in a snowmobile accident.

From The Canadian Press:

Quebec provincial police say Hubert (Pit) Martin, a four-time NHL all-star in the 1960s and '70s, has died after his snowmobile plunged into an icy lake.

A small but speedy NHLer for parts of 17 seasons, Pit Martin was a fine player who was overshadowed by the player he was traded for.

On May 15, 1967 Pit, Jack Norris and Gilles Marotte left Boston for Chicago in exchange for Phil Esposito, Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield in one of the most lopsided trades in NHL history. The Bruins went on to become a two-time Stanley Cup championships while the Hawks had quiet glimpses of success. Moreover, the trade was broken down more into Martin for Esposito - one promising center for another. Espo went on to a Hall of Fame career including 4 Art Ross scoring championships. Martin, while an effective player for Chicago for over 10 years, had a quiet career in comparison.

Hubert Martin, nicknamed Pit after a popular French comic strip character, broke into the NHL in 1961 after leading his junior team, the Hamilton Red Wings, to the Memorial Cup championship. He split his first five professional campaigns between the Detroit Red Wings and the Pittsburgh Hornets of the American Hockey League. For a period of time in 1963-64, he found a home on a line with Larry Jeffrey and Bruce MacGregor, replacing Newfoundland's Alex Faulkner.

The powerful and agile skater was traded from the Red Wings to the Boston Bruins midway through the 1965-66 season, where he spent a season and a half. Pit then moved to the Chicago Blackhawks in 1967 where he played another 11 years. He eventually won over Chicago fans with is speedy attack and insistent digging for loose pucks in the corners.

Martin welcomed the trade to Chicago. The Bruins were wallowing in the NHL basement, whereas Chicago had been an underrated league power in the 1960s. History would show that roles would be reversed soon after the trade. Esposito's huge success put a lot of pressure on Martin. Martin didn't make relations with Chicago fans any easier when he held out for the first 17 days of his first Chicago training camp. After missing the playoffs in 1968-69, Martin was quoted in The Hockey News criticizing Hawks players and management.

Martin was able to overcome his rocky reception and become a Hawks fan favorite. He found particular success on the MPH Line with Jim Pappin and Dennis Hull for the better part of six seasons.

"We, as a trio, worked very well together. We all got along. I think the biggest thing was that none of us were selfish. We had the same type of philosophy about the game. We were serious about it and we wanted to be recognized as good hockey players. We didn't care who scored the goals as long as our line produced," said Martin.

Martin enjoyed several good seasons in Chicago. Eight times in his career he scored at least 20 goals, and three times at least 30. His best season came in 1972-73 when he scored 29 goals and 61 assists for a career high 90 points. Later in the playoffs he scored 10 goals and 16 points to help the Chicago Blackhawks advance to the Stanley Cup finals.

The Quebec native finished off his pro career with two seasons in Vancouver. Pit retired from the NHL with 324 goals, 485 assists and 809 points in 1,101 regular season games while adding 27 goals and 58 points in 100 playoff contests.

While his career was not nearly as decorated as the man he was traded for, Martin was fiercely proud of his 1970 Masterton trophy award for dedication to the game of hockey. Martin called it "the most important trophy I'll ever receive."

After retiring, Martin initially did some broadcasting for Hockey Night In Canada before settling in Windsor, Ontario. The avid recreational pilot ventured into several business opportunities, including a restaurant and a swimming pool servicing outfit.

Remembering 1994

2008-11-16T23:31:00.000-08:00

I remember it all too well.

The 1994 Stanley Cup finals. Kirk McLean's unbeatable play in game one. Greg Adams' shocking overtime goal. Ex-Canuck Doug Lidster's game winner in game two. Pavel Bure's high stick in game three. Brian Leetch's amazing play. Mike Richter's acrobatics. Trevor Linden's heart and desire. Geoff Courtnall's big goal in game six. Nathan Lafeyette's goal post in game 7, followed painfully by Mark Messier's hoisting of the Stanley Cup.

But more than anything I remember the penalty shot.

Game four. With goals by Linden and Cliff Ronning, the Canucks are up 2-1 in the second period, badly needing this win to knot the series at 2 games a piece.

Under immense pressure from the attacking Rangers, Vancouver desperately seeks a third goal to cushion their lead. Pavel Bure has a breakaway from his own blue line, except he his hauled down by Brian Leetch. At 6:31 of the second period the whistle blows, and referee Terry Gregson immediately points to center ice, signalling a penalty shot!

Does it get any better than that? Arguably the most exciting Stanley Cup final ever now provides hockey's most dramatic moment. The most electrifying goal scorer of his generation one-on-one with the hottest goalie of the time, Mike Richter.

The Pacific Coliseum crowd absolutely roared as Bure readied for the penalty shot. They knew what was at stake. If Bure could score here, that would take the wind out of the Rangers' sails, greatly increasing the Canucks chances of victory both in game four and in the series. Everyone stood on their feet, ready to celebrate a sure goal. The Russian Rocket always scores on breakaways.

But on this night Mike Richter was his match. Richter charge out to meet the rushin' Russian before retreating back into his net. Richter almost knew Bure was going to use his patented move, cradling the puck far to the left hoping to slide the puck under his right pad. Memorably Bure used the same memorable move against Calgary earlier in the playoffs. Unlike Mike Vernon, Richter would not be taken by surprise, and took away all of the shooter's room.

Richter's gamble worked, and arguably was the defining moment of his career. In my mind, it was the defining moment of the 1994 Stanley Cup finals.

Energized by the dramatic moment of theatre, the Rangers came back and took game 4 and take a stranglehold on the series. Brian Leetch scored one goal and assisted on goals by Steve Larmer, Sergei Zubov and Alexei Kovalev. The Rangers are now up 3 games to 1 on the dejected Canucks. Broadway prematurely plans it's first Stanley Cup party since 1940.

The Canucks would temporarily spoil the party, staving off elimination in games 5 and 6, before narrowly bowing in game 7.

Like many Canucks fans, I will always wonder what would have happened if Bure scored on that penalty shot.

It is a little bit hard to believe that it has already been 14 years since that great series. Time sure has flown by, because the series is still fresh in my usually poor memory. It is especially in my thoughts this week, as the Canucks return to Madison Square Gardens and take on the Rangers on Wednesday night.

Here's the Bure penalty shot courtesy of YouTube:

Jovo Returns To Vancouver

2008-11-05T16:39:00.000-08:00

Who is the greatest defenseman in the history of the Vancouver Canucks?

That's the question on my mind with Ed Jovanovski returning to town as the Phoenix Coyotes take on the Canucks on Thursday night.

I always liked Jovo. He was susceptible to bad giveaways but I always appreciated his skating, his physicality and especially his intensity. Based on ability, he was able to raise his game to a higher level than any defenseman I've seen in Vancouver. He was rewarded with three consecutive Babe Pratt trophies as the Canucks best defenseman, from 2001-2003.

That being said, his whole career picture in the whale jersey pales in comparison to the steadier and less flashy Matthias Ohlund. Ohlund, a 4 time winner of the Pratt trophy, has never taken his game to the highest level, instead quietly being one of the best in the game. His mobility and toughness make him a workhorse and stabilizing force. He is the highest scoring defenseman in terms of goals, and could take the points lead this season. He will need to return next season for the all time games played record.

I tend to gravitate towards these two when I think of the best Canucks blue liner ever. But there are certainly other noteworthy candidates:

Paul Reinhart - The most talented and smartest Canucks defenseman ever, bar none, despite playing with a debilitating back injury. The problem is he only played 2 seasons in Vancouver, finishing off a career torpedoed by the injuries. He won the Pratt Trophy in each of his 2 seasons.
Jyrki Lumme - He played over nine seasons in Vancouver, finishing tied as the all time scoring leader amongst Canucks blue liners. He was sort of a less physical version of Jovanovski, rushing the puck out of the zone, and a riskier version of Reinhart, sometimes looking foolish with high risk plays. His defensive play evolved into an improved defensive contributor, though he had no physical game at all. He also won the Pratt Trophy 4 times.

Dennis Kearns - Lumme shares that record with Dennis Kearns, a long forgotten defender from the 1970s. He was a great puck moving defenseman, with 290 of his 321 points were assists. Fans never really appreciated Kearns. In the rough and tumble 70s, his intellectual approach to the game got him labelled as soft. Despite that he earned two Pratt Trophies.

Doug Lidster - For much of the 1980s and the early 1990s, Doug Lidster was one of the NHL's best kept secrets. The former Olympian toiled on weak Vancouver blue lines. He may have been misplaced as a number one defenseman, but teams around the league coveted him. He would have been recognized as one of the best second pair defensemen in the game if he was on a stronger team. He won four Pratt trophies, including three in a row.

Harold Snepsts - The Canucks all time games played leader amongst rearguards may also be the all time fan favorite. He lacked fluidity and elegance, but he was all heart. He did not offer a lot of tangible finesse skills, but lots of intangible heart and guts and leadership. He is another 4 time winner of the Pratt Trophy. No player has won more than four in a career, although Ohlund remains active with a good shot this year and beyond assuming he resigns in the summer of 2009.

I would be pretty happy to have these seven defensemen on my blue line. But who would rank as the greatest Canucks defenseman of all time? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section.

I'm thinking I will have to lean towards Ohlund.

Vancouver Canucks Greatest Players

2008-11-05T16:38:00.001-08:00

	Greg "Gus" Adams - Gus Adams famous goal against Toronto clinched the Canucks a berth in the 1994 Stanley Cup finals.
	Shawn Antoski - A linebacker on skates, Shawn Antoski was an intimidating enforcer in the mid 1990s.
	Dave Babych - With his trademark moustache and jersey #44, Dave Babych reinvented himself in Vancouver after a career threatening injury.
	Per Olov Brasar - He did not last in the NHL too long, but Peo Brasar was one of the top hockey players in Sweden of his time.
	"King" Richard Brodeur - Few players have endeared themselves to the Canucks faithful the way "King Richard" Brodeur did and continues to do.
	Jiri Bubla - The father of Jiri Slegr, this legend from the 1970s Czechoslovakian powerhouse national teams joined the Canucks in 1981.
	Pavel Bure - The Russian Rocket was the NHL's most exciting player in the 1990s. He was one of the few players in hockey history to get you out of your seat on a nightly basis.

	Geoff Courtnall - With great speed, a nose for the net and clutch scoring touch, the wiry Geoff Courtnall was a popular player in 5 NHL cities.
	Russ Courtnall - With his Hollywood looks and Hollywood wife, it should come as no surprise that Russ Courtnall was a little more fluid and polished than his brother Geoff.
	Ron Delorme - Pound for pound, Ron Delorme was one of the toughest guys in the NHL..
	Martin Gelinas - Martin Gelinas earned a lot of respect for his hard working, honest game. He showed up every night, gave it his all and was a great teammate..
	Dennis Kearns - A classic late boomer, Dennis Kearns was a great puck moving defenseman in the 1970s.
	Orland Kurtenbach - The original Canuck, Kurtenbach lack of finesse was overcome by his desire, heart and leadership, in true Johnny Canuck fashion.

	Igor Larionov - "The Professor," the "Chessmaster of the ice," the "Russian Wayne Gretzky." However you describe Igor Larionov, he is most undoubtedly a hockey legend.
	Don Lever - With a nose for the net, Don Lever was one of the most popular Canucks of the 1970s..
	Doug Lidster - A greatly underrated defender with some weak Canucks teams in the 1980s, Doug Lidster actually played for the New York Rangers in the 1994 Stanley Cup finals.
	Trevor Linden - Captain Canuck, Trevor Linden will always be remembered for his determined play on the ice, and his generosity off of it.
	Cesare Maniago - Post-1967 expansion fans in Minnesota and Vancouver loved to Hail Cesare!

	Jack McIlhargey - Few players were tougher than Wolfman Jack.
	Kirk McLean - For a period of about 3 years in the early 1990s, Kirk McLean was one of the top 3 goaltenders in the entire National Hockey League.

Larry Melnyk - Larry Melnyk was the definition of unheralded journeyman defenseman.

	Garry Monahan - A forgettable utility forward and a popular broadcaster with the Canucks, the Montreal Canadiens once made Garry Monahan the first overall draft choice in 1963.
	Dana Murzyn - Often teamed with Jyrkki Lumme, Dana Murzyn was an honest, hard working defender.
	Petr Nedved - His Wayne Gretzky mimicking was both fascinating and frustrating.
	Chris Oddleifson - Chris Oddleifson came to the Canucks after playing in the shadows of the Boston Bruins. He never left the city..
	Gerry O'Flaherty - Gerry "Flapper" O'Flaherty is the son of John "Peanuts" O'Flaherty.
	Gino Odjick - The Algonquin Assassin was as tough as they come, but he was also known of his unique friendship with Vancouver fans and with Pavel Bure.
	Barry Pederson - Barry Pederson will forever be remembered as the player Vancouver traded Cam Neely for.
	Pat Quinn - A mean-spirited defenseman, Pat Quinn became a very successful coach and manager.
	Dave Richter - Dave Richter was a tough hombre on defense. In 1988 he got suspended for leaving the penalty box to get at the Islanders' Billy Smith.
	Paul Reinhart - A bad back prevented this Calgary and Vancouver legend from emerging as one of the true greats of the 1980s.

	Cliff Ronning - Once a power play specialist, the shifty and creative Cliff Ronning became a post-season specialist with his home town Vancouver Canucks.
	Jim Sandlak - A junior hockey sensation with London and Team Canada, "The House" had great size and a heavy shot. He was a very popular player with both Vancouver teammates and Vancouver fans.
	Petri Skriko - Streaky Petri Skriko, the first Finnish player in the history of the Vancouver Canucks, put together four consecutive 30-plus goal seasons with the Canucks.
	Stan Smyl - The 1980s were lean years for Vancouver Canuck fans. But they always appreciated the heart and soul effort of Captain Canuck Stan Smyl
	Harold Snepsts - The mustachioed and helmetless Harold Snepsts will forever be remembered as the robust though anything but graceful blue liner with the Vancouver Canucks.

	Daryl Stanley - Did you know when Stan Smyl got injured for 20 games in 1987-88 it was Daryl Stanley who wore the captain's C?
	Rich Sutter - Considered by many to be the least skilled of the six Sutter brothers to play in the NHL, Richie relied on the typical Sutter grit for his near 900 game NHL career.
	Steve Tambellini - Trail BC's Steve Tambellini has done it all in hockey - Stanley Cups, Olympics, player and manager.
	Tony Tanti - The Canucks first pure sniper, Tanti had five consecutive seasons of at least 39 goals. The power play expert had a lethal wrist shot.
	Ryan Walter - One of the hockey's nicest guys is also one of hockey's most interesting people. This born leader has had an interesting life both on and off the ice.
	Tiger Williams - NHL bad boy Tiger Williams is the all time penalty minute leader. But what is often forgotten is the fact that he was a pretty good hockey player too.
	Dunc Wilson - "The Rebel" Dunc Wilson definitely helped the old adage that goalies of the 1970s were flakes.

"Haaar-old!"

2008-11-01T16:05:00.000-07:00

This is the mustachioed and helmetless Harold Snepsts. He will forever be remembered as the robust though anything but graceful blue liner with the Vancouver Canucks for a combined 12 NHL seasons.

Harold was a hugely popular player on the west coast, perhaps the most popular ever. He was a cult hero in the old Pacific Coliseum, where fans would boisterously chant "Haaar-Old! .... Haaar-Old!....Haaar-Old!" over and over.

You can read the full Harold Snepsts biography here.

He also played with the Detroit Red Wings. The Canucks play the Red Wings Sunday night to kick off a long home stand. Go Canucks Go!

The 7th Canuck

2008-10-25T19:20:00.000-07:00

Let's take a look at the every Canucks player to wear jersey #7.

The Canucks unveiled their "7th Canuck" feature on Saturday Night. As a big thank you to all of the Canucks fans in the building and around the province, every game one lucky fan will be brought down to center ice to unveil the "7th Canuck" banner.

Let's take a look at every player in Canucks history to wear jersey #7.

Andre Boudrias - a crafty play making center best known for playing with Don Lever and Dennis Vervegaert, Andre Boudrias was a tremendously important offensive cog in the Canucks early days in the 1970s. Boudrias would lead the Canucks in scoring 4 times and later would captain the team.

Dave Fortier - Dave Fortier is a long forgotten rugged defenseman who played four seasons in the NHL. After short stays with Toronto and New York Islanders, he played one season, 1976-77, in Vancouver, scoring just one goal. He jumped to the WHA the next season.

Sid Veysey - A great local star in New Brunswick, Veysey played his only NHL game in Vancouver wearing #7

Pit Martin - The long time Chicago Blackhawk who was once traded for Phil Esposito finished his impressive career with two seasons on the west coast. The Canucks acquired him early in the 1977-78 season for future considerations. The Canucks later sent goaltender Murray Bannerman to complete the trade.

Gerry Minor - He played in parts of 5 seasons with the Canucks, but was only a regular in his rookie season of 1980-81. Minor played on a line with Brent Ashton and Jerry Butler, and was a regular on the penalty kill. Six of his ten goals that season came while shorthanded.

Gary Lupul - The speedy and popular Gary Lupul played over 300 games in Vancouver. The native of Port Alberni was a junior star in Victoria before joining the Canucks. He died of heart attack in 2007.

Tony Currie - Canucks fans must have been excited to learn Currie was joining their line up in the 1982 season. But it wasn't Jari Kurri, rather Tony Currie. Currie, who played some junior hockey in Penticton, came from St. Louis in exchange for Jim Nill. Currie would only play in 38 games over 3 seasons.

Barry Pederson - Poor Barry Pederson. He was a solid player in Vancouver, but he was a) a shadow of his former self after removing a huge chunk of muscle in his right arm due to a tumor and b) he was never able to live down being traded for Cam Neely. The Canucks had the right idea in bringing in the one-time Nanaimo and Victoria junior star, but he was never the same player.

Dan Quinn - Danny Quinn was as talented on the golf course as he was on the ice. Poor defensive play prevented him from ever becoming a top NHL player. After two seasons the Canucks traded Quinn and defenseman Garth Butcher for Geoff Courtnall, Robert Dirk, Sergio Momesso, and Cliff Ronning.

Cliff Ronning - Speaking of Ronning, he came to Vancouver, ripped the Quinn name plate off of the #7 jersey and becoming a fan favorite almost over night. The Burnaby born, New Westminster junior star was as crafty as they come.

David Roberts - A free agent signing in 1996, Roberts played a little bit over a season in Vancouver before disappearing from the league. The University of Michigan star was born in California.

Jamie Huscroft - Born in Creston, BC, Huscroft was a blue line tough guy who previously had played in New Jersey, Boston, Calgary and Tampa Bay. The Canucks traded another rugged rearguard named Enrico Ciccone to the Lightning to get the BC boy Huscroft. It was short lived though, as injuries kept Huscroft to just 33 games in parts of two seasons.

Robb Gordon - The Canucks once had high hopes for the pride of Murrayville, BC. The former Powell River and Kelowna junior superstar was called up for four games in 1998-99. It would be the only 4 games of his NHL career.

Brendan Morrison - The Canucks traded Alexander Mogilny to get a young Pitt Meadows native by the name of Brendan Morrison. The University of Michigan standout (he won the Hobey Baker award in 1997) oozed of potential, and he realized it in 8 fine seasons in Vancouver. The underrated two-way pivot was often overshadow, particularly by his West Coast Express linemates Markus Naslund and Todd Bertuzzi.

Vancouver Canucks Greatest Players

2008-10-15T15:28:00.000-07:00

	Greg "Gus" Adams - Gus Adams famous goal against Toronto clinched the Canucks a berth in the 1994 Stanley Cup finals.
	Shawn Antoski - A linebacker on skates, Shawn Antoski was an intimidating enforcer in the mid 1990s.
	Dave Babych - With his trademark moustache and jersey #44, Dave Babych reinvented himself in Vancouver after a career threatening injury.
	Per Olov Brasar - He did not last in the NHL too long, but Peo Brasar was one of the top hockey players in Sweden of his time.
	"King" Richard Brodeur - Few players have endeared themselves to the Canucks faithful the way "King Richard" Brodeur did and continues to do.
	Jiri Bubla - The father of Jiri Slegr, this legend from the 1970s Czechoslovakian powerhouse national teams joined the Canucks in 1981.
	Pavel Bure - The Russian Rocket was the NHL's most exciting player in the 1990s. He was one of the few players in hockey history to get you out of your seat on a nightly basis.

	Geoff Courtnall - With great speed, a nose for the net and clutch scoring touch, the wiry Geoff Courtnall was a popular player in 5 NHL cities.
	Russ Courtnall - With his Hollywood looks and Hollywood wife, it should come as no surprise that Russ Courtnall was a little more fluid and polished than his brother Geoff.
	Ron Delorme - Pound for pound, Ron Delorme was one of the toughest guys in the NHL..
	Martin Gelinas - Martin Gelinas earned a lot of respect for his hard working, honest game. He showed up every night, gave it his all and was a great teammate..
	Dennis Kearns - A classic late boomer, Dennis Kearns was a great puck moving defenseman in the 1970s.
	Orland Kurtenbach - The original Canuck, Kurtenbach lack of finesse was overcome by his desire, heart and leadership, in true Johnny Canuck fashion.

	Igor Larionov - "The Professor," the "Chessmaster of the ice," the "Russian Wayne Gretzky." However you describe Igor Larionov, he is most undoubtedly a hockey legend.
	Don Lever - With a nose for the net, Don Lever was one of the most popular Canucks of the 1970s..
	Doug Lidster - A greatly underrated defender with some weak Canucks teams in the 1980s, Doug Lidster actually played for the New York Rangers in the 1994 Stanley Cup finals.
	Trevor Linden - Captain Canuck, Trevor Linden will always be remembered for his determined play on the ice, and his generosity off of it.
	Cesare Maniago - Post-1967 expansion fans in Minnesota and Vancouver loved to Hail Cesare!

	Jack McIlhargey - Few players were tougher than Wolfman Jack.
	Kirk McLean - For a period of about 3 years in the early 1990s, Kirk McLean was one of the top 3 goaltenders in the entire National Hockey League.

Larry Melnyk - Larry Melnyk was the definition of unheralded journeyman defenseman.

	Garry Monahan - A forgettable utility forward and a popular broadcaster with the Canucks, the Montreal Canadiens once made Garry Monahan the first overall draft choice in 1963.
	Dana Murzyn - Often teamed with Jyrkki Lumme, Dana Murzyn was an honest, hard working defender.
	Petr Nedved - His Wayne Gretzky mimicking was both fascinating and frustrating.
	Chris Oddleifson - Chris Oddleifson came to the Canucks after playing in the shadows of the Boston Bruins. He never left the city..
	Gerry O'Flaherty - Gerry "Flapper" O'Flaherty is the son of John "Peanuts" O'Flaherty.
	Gino Odjick - The Algonquin Assassin was as tough as they come, but he was also known of his unique friendship with Vancouver fans and with Pavel Bure.
	Barry Pederson - Barry Pederson will forever be remembered as the player Vancouver traded Cam Neely for.
	Pat Quinn - A mean-spirited defenseman, Pat Quinn became a very successful coach and manager.
	Dave Richter - Dave Richter was a tough hombre on defense. In 1988 he got suspended for leaving the penalty box to get at the Islanders' Billy Smith.
	Paul Reinhart - A bad back prevented this Calgary and Vancouver legend from emerging as one of the true greats of the 1980s.

	Cliff Ronning - Once a power play specialist, the shifty and creative Cliff Ronning became a post-season specialist with his home town Vancouver Canucks.
	Jim Sandlak - A junior hockey sensation with London and Team Canada, "The House" had great size and a heavy shot. He was a very popular player with both Vancouver teammates and Vancouver fans.
	Petri Skriko - Streaky Petri Skriko, the first Finnish player in the history of the Vancouver Canucks, put together four consecutive 30-plus goal seasons with the Canucks.
	Stan Smyl - The 1980s were lean years for Vancouver Canuck fans. But they always appreciated the heart and soul effort of Captain Canuck Stan Smyl
	Harold Snepsts - The mustachioed and helmetless Harold Snepsts will forever be remembered as the robust though anything but graceful blue liner with the Vancouver Canucks.

	Daryl Stanley - Did you know when Stan Smyl got injured for 20 games in 1987-88 it was Daryl Stanley who wore the captain's C?
	Rich Sutter - Considered by many to be the least skilled of the six Sutter brothers to play in the NHL, Richie relied on the typical Sutter grit for his near 900 game NHL career.
	Steve Tambellini - Trail BC's Steve Tambellini has done it all in hockey - Stanley Cups, Olympics, player and manager.
	Tony Tanti - The Canucks first pure sniper, Tanti had five consecutive seasons of at least 39 goals. The power play expert had a lethal wrist shot.
	Ryan Walter - One of the hockey's nicest guys is also one of hockey's most interesting people. This born leader has had an interesting life both on and off the ice.
	Tiger Williams - NHL bad boy Tiger Williams is the all time penalty minute leader. But what is often forgotten is the fact that he was a pretty good hockey player too.
	Dunc Wilson - "The Rebel" Dunc Wilson definitely helped the old adage that goalies of the 1970s were flakes.

Dave Richter

2008-10-15T15:23:00.000-07:00

This is Dave Richter.

He looks pretty harmless in this photo. But he was a pretty menacing tough guy in his day.

The University of Michigan grad played throughout the 1980s, riding a lot of minor league buses but also getting the chance to play in 365 NHL games with Minnesota, Philadelphia, Vancouver and St. Louis.

He was a giant at 6'5" and pushing 200lbs. Honestly, he was not much of a hockey player at the NHL level. He played defense, but was at best the number 6 defenseman on any given night, playing only to rest another defender or on the occasional penalty kill. He just did not have the skating ability, neither speed nor mobility, to be an every day defenseman.

Richter was there to fight. Despite his size, he was not a noted fighter of his time. He seemed to accept the role with some reluctance. He never instigated a fight and was not as aggressive as his size-created reputation suggested. When he had to he dropped the gloves and did his job, all in hopes that that would allow him the chance for more playing time.

As you can see, off the ice he was a quiet, unassuming nice guy, well liked by his teammates. In the picture above he almost looks more like a trustworthy high school teacher. Richter did earn his bachelor of education at Michigan. He was the academic athlete of the year at Michigan in 1982, too.

On the ice he played a role. Here's a much more fearsome looking Dave Richter feeding none other than Terry O'Reilly a knuckle sandwich:

Per-Olov Brasar

2008-10-11T12:29:00.000-07:00

For 5 brief seasons, the National Hockey League to got to witness one of the best kept secrets in Swedish hockey. From 1977 through 1982, Per-Olov Brasar played with both Minnesota and Vancouver.

Born September 30, 1950, in Falun Swede, Brasar had lived in Leksand for much of his Swedish hockey career, where he was a star. Considered to be the best two-way player in all of Sweden at the time, Brasar was a regular national team member, representing Sweden in several World Championships and the 1976 Canada Cup.

Good friend Roland Eriksson convinced Brasar to make the jump to the NHL with him in. Eriksson made a good impression with the North Stars in 1976-77, one year before Brasar made the jump to the same Stars team.

Brasar didn't make quite the splash that the Stars had hoped he would. He played solidly in all zones of the ice, and had a reasonable rookie season of 20 goals and 57 points while adjusting to North American life and hockey. However he took steps backwards the following year, scoring only 6 goals and 34 points while quietly doing a commendable job. Perhaps his performance was affected by the loss of Eriksson, who moved on to the Vancouver Canucks.

After scoring just 1 goal in 22 games in 1979-80, Brasar was traded mid-season to the Vancouver Canucks, although Eriksson had already returned to Europe by this point. Brasar brought his pesky and tough style to Canada's west coast, and played really well, although few seemed to notice. In 1980-81 he had his best year, scoring 22 goals, 41 assists and 63 points, all career highs.

Injuries took their toll on Brasar in 1981-82. He chipped in just 6 goals and 18 points in 53 games. That proved to be Brasar's last season in the NHL. He continued to play for several seasons back in Leksand

"Peo" also got involved heavily with another passion of his - horses. He owned and raised trotting horses back in Sweden, and even raced with them himself. He is still in the trotting business nowadays, although his hockey career is long over.

Daryl Stanley

2008-10-07T14:24:00.001-07:00

I remember when the Vancouver Canucks acquired Daryl Stanley quite clearly. The team traded a young goalie named Wendell Young and a draft pick for Stanley and goalie Darren Jensen.

Stanley's role was quickly obvious. He was acquired to be a tough guy, a role he had accepted since his junior hockey days in New Westminster.

Stanley grew up in small town Manitoba, loving the great outdoors as much as hockey. Because he was big and physical, he caught the eye of Punch McLean's New Westminster Bruins. Stanley would play for 2 years in BC's Lower Mainland and finish his junior career with a season in Saskatoon, but he never garnered any attention at the NHL Entry Draft.

Stanley did not give up on his dreams of the NHL. The Philadelphia Flyers invited him to training camp where he impressed the brass enough to earn a contract.

Over the next 4 seasons Stanley shuttled between the NHL and the minor leagues, called up whenever injuries or expected battles warranted his skills. He learned to play competent defense, making up for lack of foot or puck skills by learning to play within his limitations. He also had to overcome serious injuries that occurred in a car accident in the 1984-85 season. He suffered a dislocated vertebra in the neck, a minor concussion, and a bruised kidney. He spent three months in the hospital and some reports even suggested Stanley's career was over.

But he fought his way back and became a regular on the Flyers roster.

"Bob Plager once told me, 'kid, never forget what got you here. Keep playing like that, and then you can work on the other things'" Stanley remembered.

By his final season in Philadelphia, 1987, Stanley, who also took shifts on the wings, was used in 13 playoff games as the Flyers battled the Oilers for the Stanley Cup finals.

Impressed with his improving play and his willingness to drop the gloves, the Canucks made the move for Stanley late in the summer of 1987. It was a move designed to toughen up the smallish Canucks team that was too often pushed around. Stanley, along with the likes of Craig Coxe and Dave Richter, were there to even things out a bit.

But he was also brought in to instill a winning attitude in Vancouver.

"Being on good clubs, right when you become a part of the organization, you learn how to win. It's instilled in your head that you've got to win. Some of the players I've talked to, who've been here awhile, say the attitude is better now than it's been for some time."

Stanley had a successful first season in Vancouver in 1987-88. I remember him taking on all comers, most notably Detroit's daunting Bob Probert and then Calgary's Tim Hunter a few days later. He even filled in for the injured Stan Smyl as team captain for a stretch of about 20 games. This must have been one of Stanley's proudest accomplishments in hockey.

But something happened in the next couple of seasons. Injuries derailed the next two campaigns, as he played in only 20 and 23 games in 1988-89 and 1989-90 respectively.

All the time off, coupled with his car accident a couple of years earlier, gave Stanley lots of time to think. At some point he just decided he had had enough of the life of a NHL enforcer, and returned home to the wilderness of Manitoba where he could find peace and tranquility, and ultimately his new career.

He began guiding hunters on many different types of gaming trips. Eventually he opened up Stanley's Goose Camp, and Stanley Bear Creek Outfitting, where he specializes guiding hunters and hosting them at his lodge.

Just for fun, let's take a look at a classic Daryl Stanley fight courtesy of YouTube. Here is taking on an eager Scott Stevens:

Gus Adams

2008-09-28T18:29:00.000-07:00

Greg "Gus" Adams certainly knew how to make a great first impression.

In the summer of 1987 the Canucks made a big trade which promised great things for the future. The Canucks traded talented center Patrik Sundstrom to the New Jersey Devils for a young goaltending phenom named Kirk McLean, and a lanky, streaky scorer from Nelson, BC named Greg Adams.

Hindsight obviously suggests the Canucks did quite well on that trade. Initially Canucks fans had to be a bit patient with McLean, a wait well worth it. But Adams was the talk of the town after just one game.

That's because in Adams very first game with the team he scored no less than 4 goals in an 8-2 season opening white-washing of the St. Louis Blues. Adams had tied the modern day NHL record for most goals scored on a season's opening night.

Opening night heroics were not new to Adams. In 1985 with New Jersey he set a NHL record (since equaled) with 5 assists on night number 1. Not bad for an undrafted free agent from the University of Northern Arizona, of all places.

For all the early season fireworks Adams was known for, he never really emerged as the dominant scoring hero Canucks fans longed for. Injuries played a role in that, but essentially Adams was a streaky shooter who topped out at 36 goals and 77 points as career highs.

Adams, who forever became known by his nickname "Gus" when the Canucks acquired another player named Greg Adams, was in many ways a puzzling player. He was primarily a finesse player, though his skill set was largely unremarkable. He wasn't exactly a fast skater, though he had exceptional balance. He was primarily a shooter rather than a playmaker and an average defensive player at best. Physically he had no bulk and shied away from physical battles at times. But his long reach combined with his lanky body and great balance on skates allowed him to protect the puck expertly.

Yet despite the seemingly poor endorsement, Adams played nearly 1100 games in the National Hockey League. He totaled an impressive 355 goals in his long career, plus another 20 in the playoffs.

But all Canucks fans know that no goal was bigger than his goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1994 Western Conference clinching game.

Adams backhanded a rebound past sprawling goaltender Felix Potvin in the second overtime of game 5, clinching the series and sending the Canucks to the Stanley Cup finals for the second time in franchise history.

Adams then repeated the heroics in game one of the finals, scoring the overtime goal to give the Canucks the win in game one over the New York Rangers, a game in which the Canucks were greatly outplayed.

Adams and the Canucks came within a goal post of forcing overtime in game 7 of the Finals, but eventually bowed to the Rangers. That playoff run will forever be special for that team of Canucks.

Adams, who was often a regular left winger on Pavel Bure's line, vividly remembers those two goals in particular. He once called the goal against the Leafs as "the biggest one I ever scored."

In 1995 the Canucks traded Adams to Dallas, removing one of the first core pieces of that precious 1994 team. He was increasingly missing games due to injury, salaries were escalating and his production was seemingly waning. The Canucks landed Rusty Courtnall in that swap. Still, it was sad to see Adams go.

Adams would spend three seasons in Dallas before prolonging his career with stops in Phoenix and Florida. He would play a season in Frankfurt as well before hanging up the skates and returning to BC.

All in all, Gus Adams remains a memorable figure in 1990s Canucks hockey memories.

Martin Gelinas

2008-07-30T22:57:00.001-07:00

"I feel so happy. I know it is the biggest trade ever in the sport.''

- Martin Gelinas

As if being a high NHL draft choice is not already more pressure than we should probably expect 18 year olds to handle, weeks later Martin Gelinas had found himself in the unenviable position of being traded for the game's greatest player, Wayne Gretzky.

Gelinas certainly made a name for him in 1987-88 season, playing in the QMJHL with the Hull Olympiques, who, interestingly enough, were owned by none other than Wayne Gretzky.

Gelinas was the Quebec League's prize rookie that year, turning in an impressive 63 goal, 131 point season that earned him CHL rookie of the year honours.

More importantly, he was selected by the Los Angeles Kings 7th overall in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft. He was drafted directly ahead of the likes of Jeremy Roenick, Rod Brind'Amour and Teemu Selanne.

Gelinas must have been fairly excited. After all, he was a top 10 NHL pick and heading to California.

Except the only time he donned a Kings jersey was at the draft in Montreal. Weeks later he was included in the biggest trade in hockey history, perhaps all of sporting history.

Wayne Gretzky, along with Mike Krushelnyski and Marty McSorley, was unthinkably traded to the Los Angeles Kings. Any Edmonton fan will tell you they were sold, as the key to the deal was the $15 million US that Oilers owner Peter Pocklington desperately needed to stop the financial bleeding his empire was suffering. From a hockey stand point, the Oilers were getting a slew of faraway draft picks and two players: Jimmy Carson and the recently drafted Gelinas.

Before he even attended his first NHL training camp, Gelinas found himself traded for the greatest player in the history of the game.

Talk about enormous skates to fill.

Gelinas made a splash in 1987–88 with the Hull Olympiques of the QMJHL with a 63-goal, 131-point campaign. His season made the CHL Rookie of the Year the 7th overall choice by the Los Angeles Kings in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft.

Fortunately for Gelinas, he was able to escape the close scrutiny somewhat. Aside from 6 games, he was returned to junior hockey for the 1988-89 season. In 1989-90 the Oilers had already gone through they're transformation minus 99, and they were still a very strong team, as evidenced by their Stanley Cup win that spring.

Gelinas was able to slide into the revamped Oilers lineup scoring 17 goals in 46 games. He actually led all Oilers gunners in shooting percentage that year, too.

He was joined by Joe Murphy and Adam Graves on the fast skating, hard hitting and extremely popular energy line known as The Kid Line. They would play a significant role in leading the Oilers to their 5th Stanley Cup in 7 years.

He played six games for the Oilers in 1988, before being sent back to the Olympiques. In his first full season in 1989-90, Gelinas had 25 points in 46 games, and won his only Stanley Cup as a member of the Oilers, beating the Boston Bruins. Along with Joe Murphy and Adam Graves, he was made up a popular Oilers' forward line known as 'The Kid Line.'

That is how Martin Gelinas will forever be remembered in Edmonton, despite sputtering after the 1990 championship. He scored 20 goals a year later, but then he showed up for one training camp far too bulked up, thus throwing off his game noticeably.

He went on to Quebec where his play was so poor that the Nordiques put him on waivers. The Vancouver Canucks plucked up Gelinas. It was in Vancouver that Gelinas, along side close friend Trevor Linden, really found his game. He was able to mesh his speed and physical game with a couple of 30 goal seasons.

Though those two were the heart of the Canucks, Mike Keenan and Mark Messier made sure of their exile from BC. Gelinas was off to Carolina where he continued his strong play for 5 seasons. He would round up his career with stints in Calgary, Florida and Nashville.

Though he was never the scorer that many predicted he would be coming out of junior, Martin Gelinas had a real nice career in the NHL, playing nearly 1300 games and scoring over 300 goals and 600 points. Perhaps he will still add to those totals as he had yet to announce plans for the 2008-09 season.

Moreover, Gelinas earned a lot of respect for his hard working, honest game. He showed up every night, gave it his all and was a great teammate. He was no Wayne Gretzky, but he was a player any team would loved to have on their side.

Jack McIlhargey

2008-07-22T18:50:00.000-07:00

Bushy-haired Jack McIlhargey will forever be remembered as one of hockey's toughest players in the 1970s. He will always be associated with one of two teams, too - the Philadelphia Flyers, where he was one of the pack known as the Broad Street Bullies, and the Vancouver Canucks, where he was a bit more of a lone wolf but a true fan favorite. He was actually raised in the nearby suburb of Burnaby.

Ray Scapinello was a long time NHL linesman, and he had to break up a lot of fights over his 33 years in the league. More than a few of those fights undoubtedly involved McIlhargey.

Scapinello wrote in his book Between The Lines that he had a great deal of respect for NHL tough guys, making a point to single out McIlhargey.

"One guy I really admire is Jack McIlhargey," wrote Scampy. "He was with the Flyers around their heyday, he mugged people, beat up people when he was in Philly, and then he got traded to the Canucks."

Scapinello officiated McIlhargey's first game against the Flyers.

"Now we'll see how tough this guy is," tought Scapinello. "He's got nobody to back him up."

"He ran Bob Clarke all night long, and nobody came near him. From that day on, I had a lot of respect for Jack. He was on his own out there, and he was fearless. They either had a lot of respect for him or they were paranoid of him."

Jack McIlhargey played in 393 NHL games, scored 11 goals and 36 assists for 47 points. He spent 1102 minutes sitting in the penalty box. He also appeared in 27 games scoring only 3 assists. During his 8 seasons as an NHL defenseman, Jack McIlhargey's trademark was that of a tough competitor who never backed down from anyone and a player who wore his heart on his sleeve. He was always a vocal leader both on the ice and in the dressing room. The popular McIlhargey had a way to get his teammates to perform at their best every night.

"I wasn't a great skater or a great player," McIlhargey once said. "But I worked hard. I knew, when I came to practice or a game, that I wouldn't be outworked."

With such leadership abilities, its not surprising that Jack became heavily involved in the coaching fraternity following his playing days, accepting several positions within both the Flyers and Canucks organizations.

Gerry O'Flaherty

2008-06-29T22:11:00.000-07:00

Despite being born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Gerry O'Flaherty is a proud Canadian through and through.

Gerry is the son of long time minor league hockey star John "Peanuts" O'Flaherty. John played just 21 games in the NHL, but spent 10 solid years in the AHL, particularly with the Pittsburgh Hornets. Son Gerry, who was nicknamed "Flapper," played 438 games in the NHL, mostly with the Vancouver Canucks.

Gerry played junior hockey with the Kitchener Rangers of the OHA and caught the eyes of Toronto Maple Leaf scouts. The Leafs selected O'Flaherty in the third round of the 1970 Amateur draft after Gerry scored 40 goals in just 54 OHA games.

Gerry spent most of the following two seasons with the Leafs farm team in Tulsa of the CHL. He did receive a fine Christmas gift in 1971 from the Leafs though.

"My biggest thrill in hockey was playing my first NHL game for the Leafs on Christmas night, 1971," recalls Gerry. However Gerry would only play one more game with the Leafs before returning to the minor leagues. Ultimately the Leafs would favor Errol Thompson and Denis Dupere as the future of their left wing.

Gerry's childhood dream of playing for the Leafs ended in the summer of 1972 as he was drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the NHL Intra-League Draft on June 5, 1972.

Gerry was far from disappointed on that day, though, as he would get a chance to play for the young west coast franchise which also employed his father as a scout. In fact, the young left winger would later realize that that day was the most important date in his NHL career. By joining the Canucks the young left winger embarked upon a solid 6 year career in the NHL. Three times Gerry eclipsed the 20 goal mark. The 5'10" 180lb winger scored 98 goals (including 2 in 9 seconds in a 1974 game against Atlanta) and 85 assists for 193 points in 435 games in a Canucks jersey.

In the summer of 1978 O'Flaherty signed with the Minnesota North Stars as a free agent, but he would never play in the state of hockey. Just prior to the 1978-79 season the North Stars traded O'Flaherty to Atlanta. He played in just one game for the Flames, and despite scoring a goal, was demoted to the minor leagues for the rest of the year. That proved to be his final year in pro hockey.

Gerry returned to Vancouver following his playing days. He got into a muffler shop business in 1979 while also doing some NHL scouting work. He remained active with the Vancouver Canucks alumni association for many years after leaving the ice.

Petr Nedved

2008-04-13T13:00:00.000-07:00

My fascination with the National Hockey League Entry Draft more or less began in 1990 with Petr Nedved.

As a young fan of the lowly Vancouver Canucks, the draft represented hope. With Trevor Linden in place as the heart and soul, the team desperately needed a scoring superstar. With the draft in Vancouver and with the Canucks holding three of the first twenty-three picks, including #2 overall pick, these were exciting times.

The draft was said to be, and would prove to be, one of the deepest in history. Mike Ricci entered the previous season as the consensus top pick, but Owen Nolan and Keith Primeau caught up quickly. Jaromir Jagr would have undoubtedly been the top choice but there was still risk because his availability was still in doubt as political reform was still in progress.

But the man I wanted was another Czech player - Petr Nedved.

There was no worries about Nedved's immediate availability. As a 17 year old junior player with Litvinov, he made a daring decision that most of us can not even comprehend. While playing in Calgary at the Mac's Major Midget tournament, Nedved slipped into the night carrying nothing but his hockey bag. He had defected, with dreams of playing in the National Hockey League.

"The defection, that night, is something I'll remember the rest of my life. It was the biggest decision I ever had to make. I thought about staying even before I left for the tournament but I wasn't sure and I didn't know really what to expect. There were a lot of questions I was asking myself.
Am I able to go back home? Will my parents be okay with my brother? I was almost more scared for my family than me. But I knew I wanted to play in the National Hockey League and, other than that, I didn't know much ... there were a lot of unknowns. Looking back now I'm surprised I was able to make that decision," Nedved told the Calgary Herald years later.

The center of an international dispute, Nedved hid out in Calgary for 5 months while he waited for his landed immigrant status.

All eyes were on the spindly Czech kid who did nothing to hide his fascination with Wayne Gretzky. He emulated him in every way. He tucked in his shirt the same, wore the same Jofa helmet, and copied his hunched over skating style. He'd fly down the win, curl at the blue line looking for an amazing pass, although he really should have been more greedy and use his laser of a shot more often.

Nedved tore up the Western Hockey League with 65 goals and 145 points in 71 games. His offense was undeniable. He had the creativity and vision of #99. He was a game breaker through and through. He had already showed more courage than any other player possibly could.

I, like probably most west coast fans, desperately wanted Vancouver to take Nedved. Keith Primeau, with his hulking size, was my other choice, although Philadelphia was supposedly offering Ron Sutter and Scott Mellanby if Vancouver flipped picks and slipped down to #4. They wanted Nedved too.

The Canucks did take Nedved, but did not really not what to do with him. He made the NHL team immediately, but he was too slight to make an impact. But sending him back to junior was not an option either, as he was too good for that league, and he had no other place to play. So the Canucks coddled him on the 4th line. To this day I believe Nedved's development was stagnated by this decision. He probably should have been returned to junior, even if the WHL offered no competition.

Nedved, despite glimpses of brilliance, never really found his way in the NHL until his third season, when he scored 38 goals and 71 points, despite getting next to no prime power play time. You see, by now the Canucks had secured Pavel Bure. With his 60 goals and explosive skating, the Russian Rocket became the offensive dynamo Vancouver was looking for. Nedved was second fiddle. The Canucks were trying to change his game to more of a two way game, as his Gretzky-mirroring did not mesh well with the puck-hogging Bure.

The Canucks were knocked out of the 1993 playoffs by Gretzky's L.A. Kings. At the conclusion of the final game Nedved sheepishly asked The Great One for his stick. That would prove to be Nedved's final act in Vancouver.

Showing the same resolve that he used to defect to Canada as a teenager, the principled Nedved held out in a contract dispute. The two sides were far apart in terms of money, but rumors had Nedved unhappy in Vancouver and demanding to be traded.

Interestingly, Nedved would stay in the news that season. He had gained his Canadian citizenship, and since he never play for the Czech national team, he was allowed to play with the Canadian national team that season. Wearing number 93 for the year he gained citizenship, he and Paul Kariya would lead Canada to a silver medal in the Olympics in the days before full NHL participation.

Following the Olympics his NHL future was finally solved. The St. Louis Blues signed him, which led to a compensation trade that saw Jeff Brown, Bret Hedican and Nathan Lafayette come to Vancouver. The move worked well for Vancouver, as the defensive depth and mobility allowed them to challenge the New York Rangers for the Stanley Cup that spring.

Despite the contract dispute and despite the less-than-great three years in Vancouver, I remained a Petr Nedved fan. He seemed really likeable, and being a Gretzky fan myself, I really wanted Nedved's mimicking game style to work on the west coast.

I didn't get to follow Nedved's career as closely after he left Vancouver. His tenure in St. Louis lasted only a few months as he was moved to the New York Rangers. Because Mark Messier did not take a liking to him, Nedved was then moved on to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Playing with Ron Francis and countryman Jaromir Jagr (not to mention the great Mario Lemieux in power play situations), Nedved posted his best season in 1995-96. Still, his 45 goals and 99 points were a far cry from the promise of Gretzky.

Another principled contract dispute saw Nedved return to New York, this time getting the chance to play with Gretzky. He called it his career highlight, but somehow I always felt Nedved lost his drive to be the next Gretzky. Perhaps all the money and the playboy lifestyle of a NHL star made him complacent to be Petr Nedved instead of being "the next one," which was fully his intention when he defected as a 17 year old.

Nedved would toil with Edmonton, Phoenix and Philadelphia before his NHL career quietly came to an end in 2007. Upon his return to the Czech Republic, he had scored 310 goals, 407 assists and 717 points in 982 games.

Ron Delorme

2008-04-01T17:25:00.000-07:00

Ron Delorme was a honest, unrelenting mucker and grinder with the Colorado Rockies and the Vancouver Canucks.

A popular player with his teammates and the fans, Delorme was a hero to Native Canadians. A proud Cree Indian from North Battleford, Saskatchewan, Delorme became a role model for aspiring native hockey players and athletes. "Chief," his obvious nickname, spent a lot of his spare time visiting reservations and native banquets encouraging Native youths to aspire for great things like he did.

Delorme was drafted by the Kansas City Scouts 56th overall in the 1975 Entry Draft. He split the next season playing with his junior club in Lethbridge, the WHA in Denver and the CHL in Tucson. The following season he made his NHL debut in 1976 with the relocated Scouts, now known as the the Colorado Rockies.

Delorme would play 4 full seasons with the Rockies, becoming one of Don Cherry's favorite players. The 6'2" 185lb right winger scored a career high 20 goals in 1978-79 and a career high 43 points the year later.

Delorme was left exposed in the pre-season waiver draft in 1981 and the Canucks quickly picked up the big winger. Delorme was a tireless worker but failed to produce offensively like he did in Colorado. His best statistical season was his first on the West Coast as he scored 17 points and accumulated a career high 177 penalty minutes. He also was a regular player in the Canucks Cinderella Stanley Cup playoff run of 1982.

Delorme's career came to an end 31 games into the 1984-85 season. Delorme sustained extensive damage to his left knee following a collision with Calgary defenseman Jamie Macoun. Delorme missed the rest of the season and when he still wasn't fully recovered by the time the 1985-86 season started, Delorme decided he obviously couldn't play anymore.

Delorme went on to become a scout for the Vancouver Canucks. Among the players he discovered was another Native Canadian who would achieve even bigger cult-status in Vancouver - Gino Odjick.

Dunc Wilson

2008-03-29T21:12:00.001-07:00

Dunc was as many other goalies considered to be a little odd. He never seemed to be bothered by anything. Defeat not only rested lightly on his shoulders. Often, it didn't rest there at all. He was always loved by the media because he could always be counted on to deliver the mandatory quote from the loser's dressing room with a smile, and usually it was funny. This attitude was of course not very popular among the coaches and might be one of the reasons why he played for 3 junior clubs in 5 seasons and 5 NHL clubs in 10 seasons.

Dunc was born in Toronto and played for Oshawa, Niagara Falls and Peterborough as a junior. He was claimed by Philadelphia from Boston in a special internal amateur draft. He made his NHL debut for Philadelphia during the 1969-70 season appearing in only one game. He spend the rest of the time playing for the Quebec Aces of the AHL.

The Vancouver Canucks claimed Dunc in the 1970 expansion draft. Dunc spend the next three seasons in Vancouver, a place that he really liked. He loved go fishing in the Pacific and mingle around with local celebrities, especially in the music business.

But Dunc could not find a good barber in Vancouver. He had shoulder length hair, which didn't suit Canucks coach Hal Laycoe at all. Dunc later said that the coach didn't rate him by his ability to stop pucks but judged him on the hair and what he was doing off the ice. Several teammates agreed with Dunc.

The writing was on the wall and soon Dunc got traded to Toronto for Larry McIntyre and Murray Heatley on May 29, 1973. In Toronto he had to share the duties with veterans Eddie Johnston and Doug Favell. The three-goalie system didn't give any of the goalies enough ice time, but Dunc played well during the 24 games, recording a 2.79 GAA.

It didn't take long before a rift developed between the coach, Hall of Famer Red Kelly and his goalie. Kelly even bought Dunc a tie to wear on road trips to conform to a club edict. Dunc ditched the Kelly neckwear and wore one of his own - a boot-lace western style model to match his plaid shirt.

The final blow was when Toronto went on a west coast road trip where they were trashed by Los Angeles 8-0 and California 6-1. Some of the guys had a "first-class" team party between the games and when the team were on their way to Vancouver to conclude the road trip, Dunc was asked if he expected a large contingent of fans at the airport to welcome him back.

" I doubt it," he smiled. "But the boys from the North Vancouver booze store undoubtedly will call."

On top of that Dunc missed a curfew, and when Toronto returned from the road trip he was suspended. The NY Rangers eventually claimed him on waivers.

Dunc played a total of 23 games for the Rangers until it was time to move again. Dunc admitted that he hadn't changed that much. "I can't go around being serious all the time and looking down in the dumps at the appropriate times," he said. "I still live the same. I still like rock music, my family, cracking a jar occasionally and having a few laughs."

Dunc was traded to Pittsburgh at the start of the 1976-77 season and had a splendid season, posting a 2.73 GAA in 45 games. It was probably the comeback of the year. Yet, as always, Dunc lasted one more season before Pittsburgh shipped him back to Vancouver where he first had established himself.

Even though Dunc was happy to be back in Vancouver he only played 17 games in the 1978-79 season. It was his last season and he retired 31-years old. Dunc appeared in a total of 287 NHL games, with a career 3.74 GAA.

Dana Murzyn

2008-03-27T22:29:00.000-07:00

Dana Murzyn was a highly touted draft pick who jumped directly from the Western Hockey League to the NHL. He was the 5th overall choice in the 1985 Entry Draft by the Hartford Whalers. Murzyn had just completed a 32 goal, 92 point, 233 PIM season with the Calgary Wranglers and had scouts drooling over him because of his size, toughness and point shot.

However Murzyn would never develop in to that well rounded bruising rearguard with an offensive flare at the NHL level. His major downfall was his skating. Simply put, he lacked the agility and lateral movement of an average NHL defenseman. His skating flaws were definitely highlighted once he reached the pros.

However Murzyn was still able to transform himself into a valuable commodity for 14 NHL seasons. How did he do that? By playing a hard working, hard hitting, honest game. He did much of the dirty work that make or break teams and that many players wouldn't do themselves. "Hank," as he was affectionately known as, was a punishing hitter. And although he rarely won a fight, he always showed up.

The Whalers gave up on young Dana after 2 1/2 seasons and traded him to Calgary, his home town. He was traded with Shane Churla for Neil Sheehy, Carey Wilson and the rights to Lane McDonald. In Calgary he developed into a sound defensive d-man. Unlike in Hartford, he wasn't expected to contribute offensively and was buried among a plethora of defenseman of high NHL quality.

1988-89 proved to be Hank's best season. First he scored 22 points, his best output since his days in Hartford. But more importantly he played an integral part in the Calgary Flames first Stanley Cup championship in the 1989 playoffs. Though he scored only 3 assists, Murzyn was definitely an unsung hero.

"I was a little surprised when I got traded to Calgary but coming home turned out to be great. I got to play on a really good team, we won a Stanley Cup and I had three and a half years of some great hockey and a lot of good memories," Murzyn told NHLPA.com about his memories as a Flame.

Murzyn was traded to the Vancouver Canucks in 1991 in exchange for tough right winger Ronnie Stern and minor league defenseman Kevan Guy. For seven years, he and Jyrki Lumme formed the top defence pair on the Canucks. They were a good unit, complimenting each other wonderfully. Lumme's free skating, offensive style with Hank's stay at home attitude created somewhat of a rarity in today's NHL - a defense pairing that stays together for a long period of time.

Murzyn made a pretty good living by clearing creases and blocking NHL shots. And while the fans may not have noticed or appreciated Hank's efforts, the players certainly did. Wayne Gretzky, for one, is probably happy to see Murzyn go. The Great One admitted on more than one occasion that he doesn't particularly enjoy playing against Murzyn. Murzyn somehow knew how to get under the skin of Gretzky, and wasn't afraid to rough him up a bit either.

Murzyn was a strong contributor in the Canucks 1994 Stanley Cup run as well. He played really well, even scoring 3 big goals. But he was scratched for most of the Stanley Cup Finals against the New York Rangers. It was the beginning of the end for Hank.

As the 1994 Canucks team rapidly depleted, Murzyn was asked to do too much. With the departure of Gerald Diduck and Jeff Brown, and the failed experiments with Leif Rohlin and Frantisek Kucera, Murzyn became perhaps the team's #2 or #3 blueliner, a role in which Murzyn shouldn't have been placed in. He's a perfect #5 or #6 stay at home guy, but once he's put into a role that his outside of his limitations, Murzyn's poor agility was really exposed and he had trouble being the same effective defender.

As a result, many Canucks fans booed Hank. Now the booing calls for an editorial comment! I could never understand this. Sure, he looked like a pylon out there to some of the league's better skaters, but Hank worked his butt off. No one, and I mean no one, gave more of himself to the team. He showed emotion and heart and always played that physical style that so few Canucks after 1994 wanted to play. Yet the fans booed him? They complained that the Canucks didn't work hard enough and didn't show enough heart, yet they booed the one player who definitely did do that? Hank, if you ever read this, on behalf of the intelligent Canuck fans, thank you for your work.

Murzyn suffered a serious knee injury in the 1997-98 season. He tore his ACL ligament and that ended his season. A bad knee on a bad skater is a bad omen for a player. Murzyn would return in 1998-99 and only play a handful of NHL games before he was waived.

"The way I look back over it, I've had a pretty good career," Murzyn said "I played on a lot of winning teams. I won a Stanley Cup [with the Calgary Flames]. I made a lot of friends and had a really good time doing something I love to do. If this is it, it's been a pretty good career."

Yes you did Hank. By the way, how did you get that nickname?

“That’s a pretty good story," said Murzyn, again to NHLPA.com "In Hartford, I think we played three games in four nights. Actually, it was three and a half nights as we had an afternoon game in Philly that we traveled in for. And they had a rather large team at the time and were doing extremely well throughout the league. So the guys were a little bit concerned with how the game was going to go that day and a little tense in the room. Then one of the guys started asking everybody what their parents’ names were and every one was getting a chuckle out of some of the names. And it came around to me and my dad’s name is Hank and my mom’s name is Celine. And they had just met my dad a few weeks before and they said I look way more like a Hank than my dad. They were talking about the little house on the prairie at the time and I’d have cowboy boots and chewing tobacco. So that just kind of stuck from there and everybody kept calling me Hank.”

Now, after 838 NHL games, 52 goals and 204 points, Murzyn has returned home to Calgary. He is in the butcher business, which is another serious interest of Dana's.

“I find it very interesting just how you can take an animal in it’s kind of raw form and break it down into something that looks good, tastes good and has been aged properly. And I definitely enjoy sausage making. It’s pretty creative when you take some ground beef or some game meat or pork or whatever you’re going to use and apply a recipe and somehow you end up with a great finished product. And I just find that intriguing.”

Larry Melnyk

2008-02-17T12:13:00.000-08:00

If you were a NHL general manager in the 1980s and you were looking for a no-nonsense, no frills journeyman defenseman, then you did not need to look much further than Larry "Bud" Melnyk.

Described as "a Ken Morrow type of defenseman," Melnyk was pretty unheralded in his day. He quietly went about blocking shots, clearing the front of the net and sacrificing his body in anyway it took to get his job done. For his efforts he was rewarded with a 432 NHL game career and two Stanley Cup rings.

Melnyk was born and raised in New Westminister, BC, which is essentially a suburb of Vancouver. He played for his hometown New West Bruins for three seasons. The Boston Bruins liked what they saw, and drafted him 78th overall in the 1979 NHL Entry Draft.

Melnyk's story from there is one of perseverance and dedication. He was a poor skater, with no speed and little mobility. That kept him out of a regular NHL job until 1985 when he joined the New York Rangers. He road the buses in the minor leagues, constantly working on playing his position while understanding his limitations. He grew to learn to read the oncoming play and master the angles of defending and anticipative positioning. He would force the opposition wide until they ran out of room. He would then eliminate his check, though he was not a devastating hitter. Melnyk also became one of the league's best shot blockers, making him a regular on the penalty kill. He would fearlessly drop in front of a speeding bullet.

Before arriving in New York Melnyk spent parts of two post seasons with the Edmonton Oilers. That seems like an odd fit given that Melnyk was a poor skater and had no offensive game whatsoever. Though he did not play regularly he would earn two Stanley Cup championships.

He joined the Rangers in 1985-86 and finally proved what he was adamant about all along - he was a NHL defenseman. For the next 2 and 1/2 seasons he patrolled the Rangers blue line with vigor.

Melnyk enjoyed a home coming in the 1987-88 season, coming back to Vancouver to play out his career. Though he helped solidify a traditionally porous blue line. He was a very popular teammate, and, judging by the injuries suffered, may have been the toughest man on the team.

Shortly after arriving in Vancouver Melnyk took a Randy Carlyle slap shot to the face, giving him a concussion and fracturing his left orbital bone. In another incident he severed a tendon his right arm. And most of his time in Vancouver he played with chronic back pains, which eventually forced him to retire just before the 1990-91 season.

I liked Larry Melnyk. He was an honest, hard working guy, who believed in himself and was a great teammate.

Shawn Antoski

2007-12-13T21:03:00.000-08:00

People look back now and wonder how the Vancouver Canucks could have wasted the 18th pick in the 1990 Entry draft on Shawn Antoski. Keith Tkachuk, Martin Brodeur and Bryan Smolinski went directly after Antoski. Later in the draft names like Doug Weight, Felix Potvin, Slava Kozlov, Sergei Zubov and Petr Bondra were all selected.

But teams really liked Antoski's fundamentals. He was a monstrous boy who was bigger than most of the men in the NHL. He stood at 6'4" and 220lbs and would play in the league at 235lbs. He was as tough as they come, a top tough guy. But he also had blazing speed. Its hard to imagine that a man that big could skate faster than most smaller guys. He was like a runaway freight train.

The Canucks weren't the only team interested in "Anton." Earlier in the draft the Canucks selected super skilled center Petr Nedved and they wanted Antoski's speed and toughness as part of their future plans as well. The Canucks also held the 23 selection, but felt that Antoski almost certainly would have been selected before then. The Canucks snatched him up with the 18th pick.

Obviously Antoski never panned out, and perhaps that isn't surprising in hindsight. Though his gifts were intriguing diamonds in the rough, he never really developed that necessary "hockey sense" at the NHL level. Perhaps this is because he took up the game on ice relatively late in life, at the age of 12.

He stuck in the league as a tough guy but never developed into anything else. He only scored 3 goals and 5 assists in 183 career games. He did pick up his play in the playoffs though, scoring 1 goal and 4 points in 36 playoff games. During his stay in Vancouver Antoski rarely played on any line other than the 4th line, usually with linemates Jack McIntyre and Tim Hunter.

An extremely well-liked player by teammates and the media, Antoski was a fun player to watch nonetheless. He dished out some of the most punishing body checks I personally have ever seen. I would have hated to be a defenseman going back into my zone chasing the puck with Antoski right behind me. When he plastered a guy at top speed and with all that body mass, boy it must have hurt!

Antoski was traded to the Philly Flyers in exchange for Josef Berenak. He played 1 and a half seasons in Philly before signing as a free agent with Pittsburgh. His stay in Pittsburgh was short as after only 13 games he was traded to Anaheim with Dmitri Mironov in exchange for Alex Hicks and Frederik Olausson.

Shawn had a rough time in Anaheim. He played in only two games as he badly sprained his left hip. The injury was so bad that he was forced to undergo season ending hernia surgery.

Shawn returned the following season and appeared in 9 games with the Ducks before tragedy struck. Antoski suffered a depressed skull fracture which required surgery after being involved in a one vehicle accident. Antoski's cousin Shawn Hall wrapped a 1996 Ford Mustang onto a freeway concrete center divider. Hall was later arrested on suspicion of felony drunken driving and drug possession. The accident almost cost these two their lives.

"The lesson is to not take things for granted," Antoski said. "This puts things in perspective. I hope other people learn from this. Be happy with what you've got. To have visited sick kids in the hospital like I have, then to be the guy in the ward sends a powerful message."

Antoski was well on his way to a full recovery and was expected to return to the NHL. However he suffered a freak mishap which reinjured his skull. Antoski had a large pet dog, who got himself into some sort of trouble. As he was helping out his dog, the dog's head came up, smashed into Shawn's head, and caused the reinjury.

So much for man's best friend.

Antoski made a full recovery though the incident showed just how brittle his injury left him. There was no way he could return to the wars on the ice. How long would it take before a punch to the head or a body check would cause another skull injury?

Here's a classic Antoski moment from the minor leagues:

Dave Babych

2007-09-21T15:34:00.000-07:00

There were two stages to Dave Babych's career.

There was early Dave Babych, the junior superstar, the 2nd overall draft pick and the offensive defenseman. And then there was the later Dave Babych, a really solid defensive rearguard who quietly but effectively remained an solid defender.

Babych, whose jersey #44 was every bit his trademark as his bushy moustache, was the top rated defenseman in the 1980 NHL Entry Draft. He was also the consensus #2 overall prospect, trailing only Canadian Major Junior Hockey League player of the year, Doug Wickenheiser.

History might suggest that Denis Savard should have been the first overall pick, or that Larry Murphy and Paul Coffey were the better defensemen. After all, all three made it to the Hockey Hall of Fame. But the Winnipeg Jets were convinced that the 6'3" 215 complete package was the best player in the draft.

Babych grew up in Edmonton, dreaming of playing in the NHL alongside his brother Wayne. Dave would dominate with Portland of the WHL, combining size and skating and puck movement. He was a gifted offensive blueliner, but also a very good positional defender.

Babych joined the Jets in 1980. It was not easy for the 19 year old rookie, as the Jets were the league's worst team and too much pressure was placed upon the young Babych. Still, he was Winnipeg's best player, posting 44 points and representing the Jets in the NHL all star game. He would post 4 consecutive successive seasons of at least 57 points, including a career high 74 (13 goals and 61 assists) in 1982-83.

Despite his personal successes in Winnipeg, he remained a league secret. The Jets improved, but were never serious contenders in the old Smythe Division. Babych's scoring exploits were also dwarfed by the likes of Ray Bourque, Mark Howe, Murphy and especially Paul Coffey. The Jets grew impatient, and traded their defensive kingpin to Hartford in November, 1985, receiving rugged winger Ray Neufeld in return.

Babych played 5 and 1/2 seasons in Hartford, suffering from the same anonymity and lack of team success. His scoring prowess also went down in the lower scoring Adams Division, but he was probably the best defenseman the NHL Whalers ever had.

In 1990 it looked as though his career may have been over. Having been able to escape the injury troubles that plague his brother, the 10 year veteran had his wrist fused. It was doubtful if he'd ever be able to shoot a hockey puck again.

The Whalers dropped him, but Pat Quinn and the Vancouver Canucks gave Babych a chance to reclaim his NHL career. He was able to bounce back very nicely, playing 7 seasons in Vancouver. Babych supplied veteran leadership and a steadying influence in the back end, though he never scored more than 32 points.

The 32 points came in the 1993-94 season, which also hosted Babych's career highlight. Forming a reliable pairing with Gerald Diduck, Babych helped the Canucks reach his only Stanley Cup finals. The Canucks came within a goal post in game 7 of winning the Stanley Cup, but the chalice would escape Babych's grasp.

Babych is eternally grateful to Pat Quinn for giving him a chance to get his career back on track and to play for 10 more years during the big money era.

"Luckily Pat Quinn took a chance on me," Babych told Jeff Rud in the book Canucks Legends.

"(After the wrist surgery) you couldn't stickhandle the same way, you couldn't move the puck the same way, you couldn't shoot the same way. So you knew if you didn't change your game you were kind of hooped.

"Pat basically told me: 'Babs, I don't care if you get a point or score a goal. I really don't car. I just want you to play solid hockey."

Babych lasted seven years in Vancouver before he was exiled, like Quinn and so many members of that 1994 team before him, by new owners John McCaw and coach Mike Keenan.

Babych would play parts of two more seasons in Philadelphia, but a broken foot proved to be mighty cumbersome to Babych. As it turned out, the Flyers medical staff misdiagnosed the injury and rushed him back to service. Arguing successfully that the misdiagnoses prematurely ended his career, Babych was awarded $1.37 million in a civil lawsuit against the Flyers.

Dave Babych will likely go down in hockey history as a forgotten man. That is unfortunate as Babych was an upper echelon defender in the 1980s and very solid NHL citizen. It total he played 1195 NHL games, scoring 142 goals and 723 points.

Jiri Bubla

2007-07-30T16:26:00.001-07:00

Jiri Bubla was a legendary defenseman in his native Czechoslovakia during the 1970's and 80's. Bubla, whose name literally translates into "Bubble," represented his country 230 times, scoring 37 goals. He won three world championships and an Olympic silver medal was voted as the best defenseman in the world championships 1979.

He's one of only a few Czechs to have won the world championship title three times (1972, 1976, and 1977). Jiri played most of his career in CHZ Litvinov where he played between 1959-69 and 19 71-79. His other stints were in Dukla Jihlava (1969-71), Sparta Praha (1979-81) and, as North American fans likely remember him, with the NHL Vancouver Canucks (1981-86).

When Jiri played in Litvinov much of the attention was on him and forward Ivan Hlinka. They were the stars of their club team and had a remarkably similar playing career. They were born one day apart. They both became world champions on three occasions. They both started playing in the Litvinov system in 1959. They both played in two Olympics. They both played in the 1976 Canada Cup. And they both played for Vancouver Canucks in the early 1980's. Even in the 1982-83 O-Pee-Chee cards they were inseparable as Ivan Hlinka's card has Bubla's photo on it.

In addition, they were also both drafted in a special Czechoslovakian NHL entry draft. Jiri Bubla was drafted by Colorado and Ivan Hlinka by Winnipeg. This draft however was nullified due to the fact that there was no formal agreement between the Czechoslovakian Ice Hockey federation and NHL. So Vancouver obtained the rights to these two Czechoslovakian stars by sending Brent Ashton and a 4th round draft pick in 1982 to Winnipeg. Winnipeg then traded Ashton to Colorado and their 3rd round draft pick in 1982 for Lucien Deblois.

Bubla was an excellent soccer player as a youngster and some say he could have made it all the way to the national team if he had pursued that sport. Ultimately he chose hockey though, another sport that came naturally to him. On the European stage he was known as a tough, strong and a hard hitter who handled the puck very well. Blessed with mobility and hockey sense, he was extremely good at quick transitions from defense to offense. His sharp outlet passes created many scoring opportunities for streaking forwards that caught opposition defenders a step behind.

In 1977-78 he scored 50 points, including 21 goals, for Litvinov in 44 games. It was best year in league play, finishing 6th overall in the scoring race. In his brilliant career in the Czechoslovakian league Jiri scored 93 goals and 187 assists for 280 points in 470 games.

Bubla was a mainstay on the Czechoslovakian national team throughout the 1970s. He represented his country at nine World Championships, none more monumental than in 1972. With the games hosted by the city of Prague, the Czechoslovaks upset the hated but mighty Soviet Union team to capture the gold medal. The team would repeat as world champions in 1976 and 1977, as well as win 5 silver medals and one bronze. The team also captured a silver medal at the 1976 Winter Olympic Games in Innsbruck, Austria, and second place at the inaugural Canada Cup.

Bubla was really standing out with the national team by the end of the decade. He was named to world championship all star teams in 1978 and 1979, and was named as the tournament's top defenseman in 1979.

In 1981 Bubla was granted permission to pursue a career in the West. When Jiri came to Vancouver he was 31 years old and didn't play as offensively as he had back home. At first the transition to a new lifestyle was tough, but not as tough as playing for a weak team. Injuries also limited Jiri's effectiveness but he showed flashes of brilliance and on many nights was Vancouver's steadiest defenseman.

His best offensive output while in Vancouver was in 1983-84. He had 39 pts (6 goals and 33 assists) in 62 games. During his last NHL season in 1985-86 Jiri played some of the best hockey of his North American stint. He scored 30 points in only 43 games.

In 1985 Jiri should have returned back to Czechoslovakia but he didn't. By not returning home he had left Czechoslovakia illegally according to the Czech authorities. His hockey career was over but not his story.

What do Jiri Bubla have in common with former NHL'ers like Greg Carroll, Jacques Richard, Steve Durbano or Kevin McCarthy ? Well if your guess is drug smuggling then you're correct. In 1986 Jiri Bubla was arrested in Vienna, Austria. He was part of an international drug cartel that smuggled large quantities of Heroin. He got away fairly easy and only got a 5 year sentence. He was released from the Graz jail (Austria) after four years.

The Griffiths family and manager Pat Quinn helped Bubla return to Canada following his release from prison, and helped him get his life back in order. At first he and his wife were given a contract to clean the Pacific Coliseum, the home of the Canucks in those days. Later he would have his own cafe and trucking company. He has always been eternally grateful for the help the Canucks have given him. Still in the Vancouver area, he is very active in the Canucks Alumni endeavors.

Bubla and his second wife raised two sons in Vancouver, but Bubla had a son from his first marriage back in Czechoslovakia. Jiri Jr. changed his name to his step-father's name, partly because he had no contact with his father and partly because of his father's prison sentence. His name was changed to Jiri Slegr - the same Jiri Slegr who would one day too make it to the Vancouver Canucks and the NHL.

Bubla and Slegr were able to get to know each other during Slegr's early days in the NHL, and now maintain a healthy relationship that was lacking during Slegr's upbringing.

Igor Larionov

2007-06-21T20:10:00.000-07:00

Today NHL fans get to see the greatest players in the world, including the Russians. We are in awe of the Sergei Fedorovs and Pavel Bures, Ilya Kovalchuks and Alexander Ovechkins. And the fans and current players all it all to players like Igor Larionov.

Igor Larionov was, very subtly, one of the most highly skilled hockey players we have ever seen. In some ways his best days were left behind in the old Soviet Union, but he still has excelled at the NHL level more so than any other of the veteran former Red Army teammates.

He battled and communist regime of the Soviet Union for the right to play pro hockey in North America. A member of the Central Red Army Team in Russia for eight seasons, Larionov centered the famous KLM line with Vladimir Krutov and Sergei Makarov during the 1980s. He earned Soviet Player of the Year honours in 1987-88 and was named to five all-star teams with Central Red Army. He also starred in many international competitions with the Soviet National Team, including capturing gold medals at the 1979 and 1980 World Junior Championships, gold medals at both the 1984 and 1988 Winter Olympics and the World Championship in 1982, 1983, 1986, and 1989. In 1981 Igor helped the Soviet Union beat Canada for the Canada Cup.

But Larionov never wanted to play for the Red Army. He wanted to serve his mandatory 2 year term in the Army and return home and play with the local team Khimik, in industrial town of Voskresensk not far from Moscow. Russian Hockey dictator Viktor Tikhonov wouldn't allow the skilled center to leave, and pulled his communist strings to force Larionov to stay against his will. Larionov was too good to let go. He had been playing with Khimik since the age of 17, already displaying the cerebral game that would one day rival that of Wayne Gretzky.

Larionov, along with Slava Fetisov, were particularly outspoken and wanted to be able to leave Russia as a reward for their years of service and pursue a career in the National Hockey League. While Fetisov gets the majority of credit in that incredible battle, Larionov, too, faced tremendous hardships to get what was right. Tikhonov's retaliation went as far as kicking Larionov off of the national team after Larionov wrote a scathing letter about Tikhonov's treatment of player to a Moscow newspaper. The move backfired on Tikhonov, as it led to a player revolt.

It should come as no surprise that Larionov was a leader of the revolution. Well educated of the English language and western world, Larionov was often outspoken of the communist system. When he was 14, he found himself in trouble with school authorities for writing a positive essay about exiled Nobel Prize winner Andrei Sakharov, a political dissident.

Eventually won Larionov won his battle and was allowed to play in the NHL. He made his NHL debut with the Vancouver Canucks in 1989-90 and played three seasons. It was a period of adjustment both on the ice and off it, Larionov's obvious skill and puck sense captivated the league. Only Wayne Gretzky is in the same class when it comes to hockey sense, and puck creativity. Larionov, a chess addict, earned his nickname "The Professor."

The great beneficiary of Larionov's presence in Vancouver was the young star Pavel Bure. The aging Larionov's role in the NHL almost immediately became one of mentor. He would go on to tutor some the NHL's best Russian players, and won over fans on this side of the Atlantic too. Like one of his highly prized fine wines, Larionov was only getting better, though slower, with age.

"I signed a three-year contract with the Canucks [in 1989] and I thought I would be done at the end of it," Larionov recalled. "I was almost 31. In Russia, a hockey player at age 32 is considered an old man. Then (head coach Pat Quinn) put me between Trevor Linden and Geoff Courtnall and I suddenly got hot. I became the player of the month in November. Pavel [Bure] arrived and Pat put me with him and Greg Adams. Pavel was easy to play with. I understood his style immediately. He brought joy and excitement back to my game."

Although he never wanted to leave Vancouver, he refused to sign in 1991 because of the Russian interference in negotiations. He wouldn't allow any transfer payments to be sent to the powers-that-be in his old country. He played that year in Switzerland before being acquired by the San Jose Sharks in the 1992 Waiver Draft. With the Sharks the intellectual Larionov was briefly reunited with dazzling Makarov.

Larionov soon found himself trade to Detroit where he was reunited with Slava Fetisov. Along with Sergei Fedorov, Slava Kozlov and Vladimir Konstantinov, the 36-year-old Larionov played a large role in helping the Detroit Red Wings win the Stanley Cup for the first time in 42 years in 1997. He had 12 goals and 42 assists in 64 games, and four goals and eight assists in 20 postseason contests.

Detroit became the utopia Larionov was looking for when he left Moscow in 1989.

"I finally found my harmony. In my years with the Red Army and national teams I had success, but not much fun. But in Detroit, I found what I was looking for when I came over in 1989 -- good teammates and freedom for what I wanted to do on the ice and off the ice."

"Igor was a very important part of our hockey club, a very important part of our winning the Stanley Cup last year. He's a very creative, playmaking center-ice man. Not only is he important on the ice, but as well (for) what he brings off the ice, in the dressing room," said team captain Steve Yzerman.

Detroit's first Stanley Cup victory celebrations since 1955 came to sudden stop a week after hoisting the Stanley Cup at center ice. A limousine accident nearly killed teammates Fetisov, Konstantinov and team masseur Sergei Mnatsakanov. Konstantinov and Mnatsakanov suffered severe brain injuries. Fetisov escaped with non-life threatening injuries.

Larionov felt great pain for his teammates and close friends. He was supposed to be in that limousine with them, but decided to stay home with his family instead.

With a great sense of purpose, it was Larionov as much as anyone who led Detroit's emotional Stanley Cup defense to a successful championship in 1998. The entire season was dedicated to Konstantinov and Mnatsakanov.

Larionov and the Red Wings won a third Stanley Cup in 2002, and returned to the Olympics in 2002, winning bronze, making Larionov as one of the most decorated hockey players in the history of hockey.

Larionov, who briefly played with Florida and New Jersey, retired in 2004 to concentrate on his many business endeavors, including his own line of wines. He retired with 921 NHL games played, 169 goals, 644 points and millions of admirers.

Doug Lidster

2007-06-16T19:53:00.000-07:00

Defenceman Doug Lidster retired in the summer of 1998 to join the Canadian national hockey team as a playing coach.

"Its a great way to give back to the program that gave so much to me," said Lidster.

However his NHL retirement was short lived as it turned out. Once the national team's season was over, Doug signed with the Dallas Stars to finish the 1998-99 season with them. Doug played in 17 regular season games and was part of the Stars Stanley Cup championship!

Lidster was a member of the 1983-84 Canadian National team that finished 4th in the Sarajevo Olympics. For Lidster, a standout the 4 previous years with Colorado College of the WCHA, it was a dream come true to play in the Olympic games.

Following the Olympics, Lidster joined the Vancouver Canucks who made him their 133rd overall pick in the 1980 Entry Draft. The Kamloops British Columbia native went on to become arguably the best blue liner in Canuck history to that point.

An exceptional skater and good puck handler, Lidster lacked a good point shot to establish himself as a top NHL defenseman. A hard worker, he relied more on his finesse and skating game than his non-existent physical game, despite his good size (6'1" 200lbs")

Lidster played 9 strong seasons with the Canucks, setting team records with 63 points by a defenseman in 1986-87. Lidster, who would have been a perfect #2 or #3 defenseman on almost any other club at the time, was the Canucks #1 man. He did an outstanding job but got little recognition from the NHL media as his team was so bad.

The NHL community always was impressed by Lidster's play. Twice he was asked to represent Canada at the World Championships, both times winning silver medals. He was also invited to but eventually cut from the 1991 Canada Cup squad.

The summer of 1993 saw Lidster move to New York in a bizarre move that saw the Canucks acquire John Vanbiesbrouck, who was then in turn left exposed in the expansion draft to protect goalies Kirk McLean and Kay Whitmore. Oddly enough, Lidster, who for so many years fought so many battles for the Canucks, found himself fighting his biggest hockey battle against the Canucks in the spring of 1994. In a classic 7 game showdown, Lidster's Rangers narrowly edged out Lidster's former teammates.

Lidster, who became a Mike Keenan favorite while in New York, was traded to St. Louis in the summer of 1994 along with Esa Tikkanen in exchange for Petr Nedved. The deal was used to compensate the Rangers who suspiciously lost coach Keenan to the Blues just days after winning the Cup. The Rangers cried fowl and the league ordered the Blues to compensate the Rangers.

Lidster played only 37 games with St. Louis that season, and the following summer was back on his way to New York where he rounded out his NHL career with three more seasons on the Rangers blue line. "Liddy" then jumped to the national team program before joining the Dallas Stars.

He would retire at the end of the 1998-99 season, and turned to coaching in the junior leagues.

Steve Tambellini

2007-06-14T22:11:00.000-07:00

Steve Tambellini is from Trail British Columbia, one of Canada's legendary small hockey towns. It was the famous Trail Smoke Eaters that represented Canada at the 1961 World Championships. The Smoke Eaters, featuring Steve's father Adolph as a speedy forward, were the last Canadian team to win gold at the Worlds until the mid 1990s.

Steve left Trail at the age of 17 to play junior hockey with the WHL's Lethbridge Broncos. Tambellini was as ferocious as a hurricane in his years in the Alberta city. He stepped right in and scored 97 points as a rookie. In his second year he scored 84 points in just 55 games but exploded in his draft year of 1977-78. In that season the lanky center exploded for 75 goals and 155 points in 66 games! Those incredible numbers earned Tambellini a first class ticket to the NHL - as a 1st round draft pick (15th overall) by the New York Islanders.

Actually, Tambellini had to wait a year. He was placed in the CHL with the Isle's farm team for some seasoning. The Islanders of course were on the verge of their dynastic Stanley Cup reign, and already boasted some top talent at center. Bryan Trottier, Bob Bourne, Wayne Merrick and the following year Butch Goring were all playing up the middle on Long Island, making playing time for Steve tough to come by.

After a solid first year as a pro, Steve got promoted to the Isles in 1979-80, the first year of the Isles Cup reign. Steve appeared in limited ice time in just 45 games. He scored just 5 goals and 13 points as he apprenticed on the 4th line and from the press box. By late in the season he was a regular scratch with Goring's arrival from Los Angeles. In fact although Tambellini got his name on the Stanley Cup for the only time in that rookie season, he never played in one post season game that spring!

Steve got a better chance to play in his second year, 1980-81. He played fairly regularly in 61 games with the Isles, scoring 19 goals and 17 assists. However a late season trade saw him and back up goalie Chico Resch traded to Colorado for Mike McEwan and Jari Kaarela.

While Steve went from the Stanley Cup champs to one of the worst teams in the league, it was a good move for the swift skating pivot. Steve got a genuine chance to fulfill his potential with lots of playing time and prime power play time. He enjoyed his most successful seasons with the Rockies/New Jersey Devils organization. Scoring 18 points in the final 13 games after the trade, Steve posted career highs in goals (29), assists (30) and points (59) in 1981-82. He added 25 more goals and 43 points in 1982-83, the franchise's first year in New Jersey.

Tambellini was traded to Calgary in the summer of 1983. He and Joel Quenneville went west in exchange for Mel Bridgman and Phil Russell. The Flames of course were developing into a powerhouse of their own, much like the Islanders. Tambellini became a victim of the Flames strong depth. In fact 1984-85 Tambellini exploded for 9 goals and 2 assists in his first 9 games of the year, but soon dried up and ran into injury problems. Despite his incredible start Tambellini fell out of favour in Calgary and actually finished the year in the minors, playing 7 games with the Flames AHL affiliate.

After those two years in Calgary, Tambellini returned "home" sort of. He signed as a free agent with BC's Vancouver Canucks where he would play the final three seasons of his career. In Vancouver it was hoped that he could bring some experience and leadership to the struggling franchise.

In the 1987-88 season, Tambellini found himself as a spare part in Vancouver, only playing in 41 games all year long. The 1988 Olympics were being in Calgary and the IIHF earlier announced that professionals would be allowed to play in the Olympics. While the NHL didn't shut down its season, it gave teams the option to let a player free for the Olympic tournament. Needless to say very few NHLers played for Canada, and none of the superstars. However teams were loaning some veteran spare players so they could represent their country. Calgary loaned Jim Peplinski and Brian Bradley (and Paul Reinhart, who would have been the biggest named released, but a back injury kept him out of action), Winnipeg did the same for Tim Watters as did Toronto with Ken Yaremchuk. Pat Quinn, the Canucks boss, loaned Tambellini to the team that also boasted former Edmonton Oilers Andy Moog (sitting out the NHL season due to a contract dispute) and Randy Gregg (retired from the NHL to pursue his medical career).

Steve played strongly in the Olympic tournament, scoring 1 goal and 3 assists as a veteran on the Olympic team that would finish just out of the medals in 4th place.

Tambellini returned to the Canucks shortly after the Olympics but retired just a few weeks later.

Following his retirement Tambellini became involved in the Vancouver Canucks front office, working his way up to the point where he is considered to be one of the most promising general manager prospects around. His stature was enhanced by his inclusion by Wayne Gretzky and company as a key component of the Team Canada 2002 Olympic management team.

Garry Monahan

2007-06-10T23:21:00.000-07:00

A first overall draft pick should be, in theory anyways, the best player available in that year's draft. At the very least, you should be guaranteed of a NHL player for some time to come.

There have been some true greats drafted first overall - Guy Lafleur in 1971, Denis Potvin in 1973, Dale Hawerchuk in 1981, Mario Lemieux in 1984, Joe Thornton in 1997, Vincent Lecavalier in 1998, Alexander Ovechkin in 2004 and Sidney Crosby in 2005.

So who was the first first overall selection?

The NHL Amateur Draft was created in 1963 as a means of phasing out the sponsorship of amateur teams by NHL clubs. Previously NHL teams would sign pre-junior players to C-Forms on a first come, first served basis. This committed the player to that particular organization from their mid-teens. The NHL wanted to abolish this program in order to level the playing field.

Because most of hockey's top junior players were already assigned to NHL teams, there were only a handful of top prospects available from 1963 through 1968. It wasn't until 1969 that all C-Form signed junior players were phased out. Drafts until 1969 proved to be very thin and often very dry.

The Montreal Canadiens had the 1st overall selection back in the first draft of 1963. They were eyeing one of two forwards from the famed St. Michael's junior program in Toronto: LW Peter Mahovlich and C Garry Monahan.

While Mahovlich would go on to star in Montreal for several seasons, the Habs actually passed on the hulking center in that draft, allowing Detroit to pick him up. The Canadiens took Garry Monahan first overall.

Graduating to the Peterborough Petes of the OHA, Monahan was a scoring sensation, once finishing 4th in the entire league in scoring. He would go onto join the Montreal Canadiens farm system, but he would only play in 14 NHL games in a Montreal uniform. The Montreal team was too stacked even after thinning due to NHL expansion.

Ironically, In June 1969, Montreal traded Monahan and Doug Piper to Detroit in exchange for Bart Crashley and none other than Pete Mahovlich.

Monahan may have played in the NHL in 1969-70, but had a terrible year. In 51 games with the Wings he scored just 3 goals and 7 points. He would finish the season in Los Angeles after a trade took him to the Kings. Things wouldn't get any better for the Barrie Ontario native there, going goalless in 21 contests.

Monahan finally got his career on track after being traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs. In 1970-71 he found a home one a line with Dave Keon and Billy MacMillan. Once a junior and minor league scoring star, Monahan reinvented himself as a hard working defensive forward who would chip in with 12-15 goals and 30-plus points for the next 4 seasons.

1974 saw Monahan move to Canada's west coast, performing his workmanlike duties for the Vancouver Canucks until 1978. In 1978-79 he returned to Toronto for one final season in the NHL. He would finish his career with a very respectable 748 contests competed in. He scored 116 times while setting up 169 others for 285 points.

"Mondo's" career was hardly that of legend. But his post NHL playing days are quite interesting. From 1979 through 1982 Monahan took his family to Tokyo. He played hockey for the Saibu Corporation team, while his wife taught at an English school.

Monahan also had an inkling to become a teacher. He had done his first year of university while in Peterborough, and finished his degree through correspondence courses and summer classes while playing with the Leafs. He began his teaching certification in Tokyo at Sofia University, later finishing his requirements at the University of Toronto.

Monahan would never find himself in the classroom setting though. He returned his family to Vancouver where he fell into a job as the popular radio and television colour analyst for the Canucks broadcasts.

Monahan would curtail his broadcasting duties as he tried his hands in the world of finance as a stockbroker, and later in the world of real estate as real estate agent in the always red-hot Vancouver marketplace.

Chris Oddleifson

2007-03-29T14:35:00.000-07:00

Chris Oddleifson's career is summed up pretty nicely on the night of Dec 30, 1973. That was the night that the underrated and often overlooked Manitoban played the California Seals for the first time.

Oddleifson was the Seal's first round pick (10th overall) in the 1970 amateur draft. He never played for the Seals as he was quickly traded off to the Boston Bruins. He had been basically unnoticable in Boston but on this night he exploded. Oddleifson scored 4 goals in leading the Bruins to an 8-1 thumping of the Oakland based team.

"You know what really bugged me though?" remembers Oddleifson years later. "In the paper the next morning the headline read 'Esposito Held Off Scoresheet!'" Talk about injustice! Chris Oddleifson's best game and it was nothing more than a footnote and largely overlooked.

"Those were the years of course that Esposito was winning scoring titles. So when he failed to tally in an 8-1 game, that was big news" explained Chris.

The Vancouver Canucks noticed however, and they traded for Chris on February 7, 1974, sending Bobby Schmautz the other way. Oddleifson only played 55 games in Boston, and scored only 6 other times in addition to his 4 goal game. He finished the year quietly in Vancouver, scoring 3 goals and 8 points in 21 games.

"Oddy" enjoyed a fine career once he arrived on Canada's west coast. He played 6 solid years in Vancouver, his finest being in 1974-75 and 1975-76. He scored a career high 16 goals in each year, and had 51 points and 62 points respectively. The lanky center was a good playmaker and skater with a touch of a mean streak.

That 1974-75 season was especially special for Oddy and Canuck fans as they captured their first division championship.

"That championship year, everything just went so smoothly. Smitty (Goalie Gary Smith) had six shutouts and we ended up with 86 points."

As the decade progressed, Oddleifson's point production steadily declined but his popularity in Vancouver remained high. By the dawn of the new decade he would spend most of the 1980-81 season in the minor leagues with the CHL's Dallas Black Hawks before heading to Sweden where he played for 2 seasons in the second division.

Oddleifson played in 524 NHL games, scoring 85 times and aiding 191 others, for a total of 286 points.

After retiring, Chris returned to Vancouver and became a prominent real estate agent in British Columbia's Lower Mainland. He also remained active with the Canuck Oldtimers and can often be seen skiing the slopes at Whistler.