One of many legends of the NHL introduced his retirement on this date, however he wasn’t in a position to keep off the ice very lengthy. This date additionally noticed two Hockey Corridor of Fame induction ceremonies and a memorable postgame speech after a troublesome worldwide loss. It’s time for our day by day journey by the a long time to revisit all the perfect moments Sept. 8 has given us.
Mr. Hockey Retires….For the First Time
Gordie Howe introduced his retirement on Sept. 8, 1971, after 25 seasons with the Detroit Purple Wings. On the time, he was the NHL’s all-time chief, with 1,687 video games performed, 786 objectives, 1,023 assists, and 1,809 factors. He helped lead the Purple Wings to 4 Stanley Cups whereas profitable the Hart (league MVP) and Artwork Ross Trophies (main scorer) six occasions every. The Hockey Corridor of Fame waived its necessary three-year ready interval and inducted Howe in 1972.
Howe’s retirement was not everlasting as he joined his sons, Mark and Marty, on the Houston Aeros of the World Hockey Affiliation (WHA) in 1973. He performed in all six seasons of the WHA’s transient historical past and scored 174 objectives and 508 factors in 419 video games.
When the WHA merged with the NHL earlier than the 1979-80 season, Howe was again within the league the place he grew to become a legend of the game. He performed in 80 video games for the Hartford Whalers that season, on the age of 51, scoring 15 objectives and 41 factors. He retired for good following the Whalers’ first-round exit from the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Soviets Take Final Recreation in Canada
The fourth sport of the Summit Collection was performed on Sept. 8, 1972, in Vancouver, BC, and it was the ultimate contest held in Canada. After every crew earned a win and tie over the primary three video games, the Soviet Union gained Recreation 4, 5-3, on the Pacific Coliseum.
Workforce Canada, lacking two of their prime defensemen in Man Lapointe and Serge Savard, received into early penalty bother. Boris Mikhailov scored a pair of power-play objectives to provide the USSR a 2-0 lead earlier than the sport was even eight minutes previous. Invoice Goldsworthy, who was put into the lineup for his vitality, was within the penalty field for each objectives towards.
Gilbert Perreault received Canada on the board early within the second interval, however Yuri Blinov scored on a 2-on-1 rush lower than a minute later to revive the Soviet Union’s two-goal benefit. Vladimir Vikulov added one other objective to take a 4-1 lead into the second intermission.
Goldsworthy redeemed himself with an early third-period objective, however the Soviets had one other reply, this time, it was Vladimir Shadrin who scored. Within the remaining minute of play, Dennis Hull added a 3rd Canadian objective, but it surely was too little too late. Goaltender Vladislav Tretiak made 38 saves within the win, together with 19 within the third interval.
Because the crew was skating off the ice, most of the almost 16,000 in attendance confirmed their displeasure by booing them. This precipitated Boston Bruins star, Phil Esposito, to make an impassioned postgame speech. The sequence took a two-week break earlier than it picked up once more with 4 video games in Moscow, Russia.
Two Corridor of Fame Lessons Inducted
The Hockey Corridor of Fame held two induction ceremonies on this date, two years aside, the place they enshrined a complete of six gamers and two builders.
On Sept. 8, 1980, a pair of goaltenders, Harry Lumley and Gump Worsley headlined the Corridor of Fame class. Lumley, a two-time All-Star who performed in 803 video games, over 16 NHL seasons, for the Purple Wings, New York Rangers, Chicago Blackhawks, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Bruins. He went 330-329-142 with a 2.74 goals-against common (GAA) and 71 shutouts. He gained the Stanley Cup with the Purple Wings in 1950.
Worsley’s profession spanned 21 seasons with 860 video games performed for the Rangers, Montreal Canadiens, and Minnesota North Stars. He posted a document of 333-348-149 with 2.87 GAA and 43 shutouts. He gained the Calder Trophy for being voted as the perfect rookie of the 1952-53 season. He was a member of 4 Stanley Cup championship-winning groups in 5 seasons with the Canadiens.
Ahead Lynn Patrick was the third participant inducted in 1980. He scored 135 objectives and 336 factors in 455 video games for the Rangers, the place he gained a Stanley Cup in 1940. Jack Butterfield, the longtime president of the American Hockey League (AHL), was the lone builder of the category.
Two years later, on Sept. 8, 1982, Yvan Cournoyer, Rod Gilbert, Norm Ullman, and Emile Francis had been inducted into the Corridor of Fame. Cournoyer scored 428 objectives and 863 factors in 968 video games and gained eight Stanley Cups with the Canadiens. Gilbert spent his total 18-season profession with the Rangers and remains to be the franchise’s all-time chief with 406 objectives and third in video games performed with 1,065; behind solely Brian Leetch (1,119) and Harry Howell (1,160). Ullman scored 490 objectives and 1,229 factors in 1,410 video games with the Purple Wings and Maple Leafs. Francis was put in as a builder for his work as head coach and common supervisor of the Rangers.
Odds & Ends
The Rangers signed Finnish hockey champion Mikko Leinonen on Sept. 8, 1981. He performed 162 NHL video games over three seasons in New York and one with the Washington Capitals. He scored a complete of 31 objectives and 109 factors. The spotlight of his profession got here on April 4, 1982, when he picked up a document six assists in a 7-3 playoff victory over the Philadelphia Flyers. Wayne Gretzky tied his document in 1987.
On this identical day, the Rangers despatched goaltender Doug Soetaert to the Winnipeg Jets for a third-round choose within the 1983 NHL Entry Draft. Soetaert performed in 130 video games for the Jets over the following three seasons. He went 50-48-21 with a .869 save share (SV%) and 4.24 GAA to associate with a pair of shutouts. The Rangers finally drafted defenseman Vesa Salo, who by no means performed within the NHL.
The St. Louis Blues introduced that Roger Neilson had been added as an assistant coach on Sept. 9, 1995. This transfer got here a few months after Neilson was fired by the Florida Panthers. He remained with the Blues for 2 seasons earlier than being employed as the pinnacle coach of the Flyers in 1997.
On Sept. 8, 2003, the Mighty Geese of Anaheim named Steve Rucchin as their crew captain, who had been with the franchise since their first season. He was the fifth captain in franchise historical past after Troy Loney, Randy Ladouceur, Paul Kariya, and Teemu Selanne.
Cory Stillman introduced his retirement on Sept. 8, 2011. The left winger was initially drafted by the Calgary Flames with the sixth general choose of the 1992 NHL Entry Draft. He performed in 1,025 video games, over 16 seasons, with the Flames, Blues, Tampa Bay Lightning, Carolina Hurricanes, Ottawa Senators, and Panthers. He scored 278 objectives and 727 factors. Stillman gained two Stanley Cups throughout his profession; in 2004 with the Lightning and 2006 with the Hurricanes.
Completely satisfied Birthday to You
Sept. 8 has been the delivery date of 18 present and former NHL gamers through the years. The primary to play within the league was Bud Maracle, who was born on Sept. 8, 1904. He performed in 11 video games for the Rangers in 1931, scoring one objective and 4 factors. The most recent to make his NHL debut was 23-year-old defenseman Jayden Struble, who was born on Sept. 8, 2001. He performed 56 video games for the Canadiens final season, scoring three objectives and 10 factors.
Goaltender Rogie Vachon is the lone Hockey Corridor of Famer of this lot. Born on Sept. 8, 1945, Vachon gained 353 over 16 seasons with the Canadiens, Los Angeles Kings, Purple Wings, and Bruins. He gained back-to-back Stanley Cups with Montreal in 1968 and 1969.
Marco Sturm, born on this date in 1978, had essentially the most profitable profession among the many skaters. He performed 938 video games for six totally different groups, scoring 242 objectives and 487 factors.
Different notable gamers born on this date embody Jay McKee (47), Teddy Purcell (39), Michal Kempny (34), Nino Niederreiter (32), and the late Jack McIntyre.
*Initially constructed by Greg Boysen
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