Only 2 To Win Both The Hart Trophy And George Leader Cup

The Hart Memorial Trophy has been awarded to the Most Valuable Player in the National Hockey League since the 1923-24 season. The George Leader Cup was awarded to the MVP of the Western Hockey League from 1948-49 to 1972-73. Of course, Wayne Gretzky has won the Hart Trophy more times than any other player. The George Leader Cup was dominated by Guyle Fielder who won the award five times. Just two players in the history of professional hockey have won both awards.

Walter ‘Babe’ Pratt

Babe Pratt played pro hockey from 1935-36 to 1951-52, in the NHL to 1946-47. In the NHL, he appeared with the New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins. Pratt also played in the CAHL, AHL and PCHL. Over his NHL career, he played 517 regular season games, scoring 83 goals and assisting on 209 for 292 points. In 63 Stanley Cup playoff games, he scored 12 goals and assisted on 17 for 29 points.

In 1939-40, Babe helped the New York Rangers to a Stanley Cup championship with a four games to two victory over the Maple Leafs. In 1944-45, he won his second and last Stanley Cup, this time with Toronto. The Maple Leafs took the full seven games to defeat the Detroit Red Wings. In 1966, Pratt was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

In 1943-44, Pratt was awarded the Hart Trophy in his first full year with the Maple Leafs. Playing the full 50 game schedule, Babe scored 17 goals and assisted on 40 for 57 points. It was his NHL career high for assists and points. The assist total tied him for seventh in the league. Toronto finished third with an even 50 points in 50 games. The Maple Leafs met their cruel demise in the opening round of the playoffs as the Montreal Canadiens easily won the series 4-1. The Habs outscored Toronto 23-6, including a game five 11-0 trouncing.

Pratt was awarded the George Leader Cup in two consecutive seasons, 1948-49 and 1949-50, the first two years the trophy was handed out. Both years, he was a member of the New Westminster Royals of the PCHL. After 1951-52, the PCHL would become the WHL.

In 1948-49, he scored 18 and assisted on 48 for 66 points in 63 regular season games. He tied for fifth in the league for assists. The Royals placed first in the five team North Division and first overall in the ten team league with 83 points in 70 games. New Westminster reached the finals before losing to the San Diego Skyhawks, four games to two.

The following season, Pratt played just 59 of the team’s 71 games, scoring eight goals and adding 29 assists for 37 points. Babe also acted as the team’s head coach. The Royals placed first overall in the PCHL, which had shrunk to just six teams. In a closely fought final series, New Westminster captured the championship with a 4-3 victory over the Los Angeles Monarchs. Each team scored 26 goals in the series. Two games were decided in overtime, including game seven.

Andy Bathgate

Bathgate won his Hart Trophy in 1958-59 as a member of the New York Rangers. He played the full 70 games, scoring 40 goals and totalling 88 points. He placed third in the NHL for goals, five behind the leader, Jean Beliveau of the Montreal Canadiens. He also placed third in points, eight behind leader Dickie Moore of the Canadiens. The Rangers finished fifth out of six and did not qualify for the post season.

In 1969-70, he was awarded the George Leader Cup as a member of the Vancouver Canucks of the WHL. Bathgate finished the regular season playing the full 72 game schedule. He scored 40 and added 68 assists for 108 points. Andy was fourth in goals and second in points, 19 behind Art Jones of the Portland Buckaroos. For Jones, a minor hockey legend, it was his fourth of six scoring titles in the WHL. The Canucks finished first in the seven team league with 102 points in 72 games. Vancouver won the championship with a four games to one victory over the Portland Buckaroos.

Andy Bathgate played in the NHL from 1952-53 to 1967-68 and returned for a year in 1970-71. Andy appeared with the New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins. His only Stanley Cup victory came in 1963-64 as the Maple Leafs downed the Red Wings in seven games. In 1961-62, Bathgate tied Bobby Hull for the NHL lead with 84 points. However, Hull was awarded the Art Ross Trophy with more goals. Andy was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1978.

5 to Score 7 Goals in a Single WHL Game

On five occasions in the history of the Western Hockey League a player has scored seven goals in a single game. Two of the five went on to lengthy NHL careers. One scored all seven of his team’s goals in a 7-4 victory. The last time the feat was accomplished was on October 2, 1990.

Brian Propp – Brandon Wheat Kings

Brian Propp of the Brandon Wheat Kings was the first WHL player to score seven in a game. On January 25, 1977 Propp scored just over half of his team’s goals as they defeated the Portland Winter Hawks 12-6.

Brian was in his first of three seasons with the Wheat Kings. He scored 55 goals that season, then went on to have seasons of 70 and 94 goals. Propp was the fourteenth overall pick of the Philadelphia Flyers in 1979. His NHL career consisted of over 1,000 regular season games between 1979-80 and 1993-94 with the Flyers, Boston Bruins, Minnesota North Stars and Hartford Whalers.

Ray Ferraro – Brandon Wheat Kings

Ray Ferraro was the next to score seven in a game. Ferraro also played for the Brandon Wheat Kings and scored his seven on January 5, 1984 as the Wheat Kings downed the Prince Albert Raiders 15-4. That year, Ray set the current WHL record for most points in a single season with an incredible 108. Despite the performance in the that 1983-84 season, Ray was denied the CHL Player of the Year honours because of a guy called Mario Lemieux playing in the QMJHL.

Ferraro was a fifth round pick of the Hartford Whalers in 1982, before he’d played a game in the WHL. He proceeded to play 1,258 regular season games in the NHL between 1984-85 and 2001-02 with the Whalers, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Los Angeles Kings, Atlanta Thrashers and St. Louis Blues.

Mark Mackay – Moose Jaw Warriors

The following season, Mark Mackay of the Moose Jaw Warriors scored seven on December 19, 1984 as the Warriors downed the Wheat Kings 12-3. 1984-85 was Mackay’s only year in the WHL. He scored 66 goals and assisted on 74 for 140 points in 71 games. Mark was awarded the Jim Piggott Trophy as WHL rookie of the year. The following season, Mackay was in Germany where he played out his professional hockey career.

Dennis Holland – Portland Winterhawks

Dennis Holland of the Portland Winterhawks scored seven on November 23, 1988 as the Winterhawks downed the Kamloops Blazers 10-5. 1988-89 was the fourth of four seasons Holland spent with Portland. He finished the season with 82 goals and 167 points in 69 games and led the WHL in goal scoring and points, earning the Bob Clarke Trophy. He averaged over two points per game during his WHL career with 429 in 209.

Dennis was a third round pick of the Detroit Red Wings in 1987 but never played in the NHL. He wrapped up his pro hockey career after the 1997-98 season after stints in the AHL, IHL, ECHL and three seasons in Germany.

Kimbi Daniels – Swift Current Broncos

Kimbi Daniels was the last, and most impressive, of the seven goal club. Daniels scored all seven goals for the Swift Current Broncos on October 2, 1990 as the Broncos beat the Medicine Hat Tigers 7-4. It was the third of five seasons in the WHL for Kimbi and he totalled 54 goals on the year.

The Philadelphia Flyers picked up Daniels in the third round of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft. He played 27 games with the Flyers, all while he was still a junior in the WHL. He never caught on in the NHL but did play 500 games in the ECHL, contributing 504 points.

3 WHL Players With 500 Or More PIM In A Season

The Western Hockey League (originally the WCHL) was formed in 1966-67 and is one of three major junior hockey leagues in Canada. Currently, there are 22 teams in the WHL, 17 in Canada and 5 in the United States. The trademark of the league is big players, toughness and defensive play. In the league’s history, three players have topped the 500 penalty minutes mark in a single season.

Brent Gogol – Billings Bighorns, Victoria Cougars

Gogol holds the WHL record for most PIM in a single season with 511 in 1977-78. It was Brent’s only full season in the WHL and he split it between the Billings Bighorns and Victoria Cougars. In the playoffs that year, Gogol played 20 games and added 95 more PIM as the Bighorns reached the finals before being swept by the New Westminster Bruins. The Bighorns are the current Tri-City Americans and the Cougars are now the Prince George Cougars. Gogol played 36 games in the league in 1976-77 with the Calgary Centennials and Victoria.

Although he was drafted by the Minnesota North Stars in the ninth round of the 1978 NHL Amateur Draft, Brent never reached the big league. In 1978-79, he played just two games with Billings before going pro in the IHL with the Flint Generals and Milwaukee Admirals. Gogol finished second in the IHL with 441 penalty minutes, behind Mark Toffolo who sat 557 in 78 games with the Saginaw Gears.

Mel Hewitt – Saskatoon Blades, Calgary Wranglers

That same year, 1977-78, Mel Hewitt sat 508 minutes in the sin bin while splitting his season between the Saskatoon Blades and Calgary Wranglers. The Blades are hosting the 2013 MasterCard Memorial Cup and the Wranglers are the present day Lethbridge Hurricanes. It was Hewitt’s fourth of four years in the WHL.

Mel was selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the sixth round of the 1978 NHL Amateur Draft, 92^nd overall. Hewitt never saw action in the NHL but was leader of the bad boys in the minors for a few years out of junior. In 1979-80, he led the IHL with 504 PIM in 68 games with the Saginaw Gears.

The following season, he moved to the AHL and led that league with 304 penalty minutes over 68 games with the New Brunswick Hawks. 1981-82 would mark the last year the Hawks played in the AHL before moving to St. Catherines to become the Saints. Hewitt played the full season with the club but his time spent in the box was drastically reduced to 119 minutes. The Orval Tessier coached Hawks won the Calder Cup championship with a four games to one victory over the Binghamton Whalers in the final series.

Kerry Toporowski – Spokane Chiefs

The last WHL player to top 500 penalty minutes, Toporowski sat 505 in 1990-91 with the Spokane Chiefs. It was his second of two years with the Chiefs and he led the WHL both seasons.

Kerry was a fourth round pick of the San Jose Sharks at the 1991 NHL Entry Draft, 67^th overall. He never played in the NHL but was a part of deal that sent Doug Wilson to San Jose from the Chicago Blackhawks in 1991. Toporowski played minor pro from 1991-92 to 2003-04 in the IHL, AHL, ECHL, UHL and Russia’s Super League. In 2000-01, he led the UHL in penalty minutes with 413 as a member of the Quad City Mallards.

6 From 1982-83 Portland Winterhawks With 100+ Points

For the Portland Winterhawks, it was business as usual in the 1982-83 Western Hockey League. The franchise had been dominant in the WHL since relocating from Edmonton, Alberta for the 1976-77 season. The Winterhawks are descendants of the original Edmonton Oil Kings team.

In 1982-83, Portland finished first in the West Division and second overall in the WHL with 50 wins and 100 points over the 72 game regular season schedule. The only team with a better record was the East Division leading Saskatoon Blades with 105 points. The Winterhawks led the WHL with 495 goals.

In the playoffs, Portland plowed through the Seattle Thunderbirds and Victoria Cougars before meeting up with the Lethbridge Broncos in the finals. Despite finishing the regular season with 21 points less than Portland, the Broncos took the series in five games. However, because Portland was hosting the Memorial Cup, both teams advanced. The Winterhawks got their revenge by winning the national title with an 8-3 victory over the Oshawa Generals in the final game.

On that 1982-83 Portland Winterhawks team were six players with 100 points or more. Just short of 100 was rookie Ray Ferraro. The following season, Ferraro would set the as yet unbroken record of 108 goals in a single WHL season while playing for the Brandon Wheat Kings.

Ken Yaremchuk – 160

It was third full season and final full season with Portland over a WHL career where Yaremchuk produced 424 points in just 210 games. In the high offense WHL, Ken’s 160 points placed him just sixth in the league.

Yaremchuk was the seventh overall pick by the Chicago Blackhawks at the 1982 NHL Entry Draft. He went on to play 235 regular season games in the National Hockey League between 1983-84 and 1988-89 with Chicago and the Toronto Maple Leafs. Ken rounded out his professional hockey career playing in Switzerland from 1990-91 to 1998-99.

Randy Heath – 151

Heath was in his second of three years with Portland in 1982-83. His 82 goals placed him second in the WHL, behind Dale Derkatch of the Regina Pats with 84. Randy was a second round pick of the New York Rangers in 1983 and went on to play a total of 13 games with the club in 1984-85 and 1985-86. Like Ken Yaremchuk, Heath finished his pro career in Europe, playing in Sweden’s Elitserien.

Cam Neely – 120

Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2005, Cam Neely was in his rookie WHL season in 1982-83 and his only full season in the league. The following year, Neely played just 19 games with the Winterhawks before being called up to the Vancouver Canucks to finish the season. The Canucks had chosen him ninth overall at the 1983 NHL Entry Draft.

Cam played 726 regular season games in an injury shortened NHL career. He played for the Canucks and the Boston Bruins but, of course, the bulk of success came while wearing a Bruins jersey. He scored 395 goals over his career with two seasons with 50 or more. In 1989-90, he scored 55 for Boston. In 1993-94, in perhaps one of the most underrated performances in hockey history, he scored 50 goals while playing just 49 games for the Bruins.

Grant Sasser – 119

1982-83 was Grant’s second of three seasons with the Winterhawks. He was a fifth round pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins after just his first year of WHL hockey. His only three NHL games came in 1983-84 with the Penguins before being sent back down to Portland. Sasser played one year of pro hockey after junior. In 1984-85, he split the year between the Baltimore Skipjacks of the American Hockey League and the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the IHL.

Richard Kromm – 103

Kromm was in his second of three seasons with Portland but would play just ten games in 1983-84 before being called up to the Calgary Flames. Richard was a second round pick of the mighty New York Islanders in 1982. He would get his chance to play for the Islanders but started his NHL career in Calgary with the Flames. He played 372 regular season NHL games between 1983-84 and 1992-93 with the Flames and Islanders.

Richard immediately moved on to a life of coaching after the 1992-93 season. He has since coached in the IHL, AHL, UHL, WHL, CHL and ECHL. Kromm was head coach of the Winterhawks for the 2007-08 and 2008-09 season. The past three years, he has coached the Evansville Icemen. For the first two years, the team was in the Central Hockey League. This past season, 2012-13, the Icemen were members of the ECHL.

Brad Duggan – 100

Between 1980-81 and 1983-84, Duggan roamed the Western Hockey League, playing for the Billings Longhorns, Saskatoon Blades, Portland and the Brandon Wheat Kings. Of his 100 points in 1982-83, just 16 were goals. The soft handed defenseman recorded 84 assists. Brad did not continue on to play professional hockey.

4 Two-Time Winners of the WHL's Bobby Clarke Trophy

The Bobby Clarke Trophy is presented each season to the WHL player with the highest point total. Originally dubbed the Brownridge Trophy, it was re-named in 1987 to honour Clarke, one of the best to play in the league. The trophy was introduced for the 1966-67 season and Clarke won the scoring title the next season. Four players have won the Bobby Clarke / Brownridge Trophy on more than one occasion.

Bobby Clarke - Flin Flon Bombers

Bobby Clarke, himself, was the first to take the WHL (WCHL at the time) scoring title in consecutive seasons. As a member of the Flin Flon Bombers, Clarke totaled 168 points in 1967-68, 37 points ahead of teammate Reg Leach. Clarke and Leach would, of course, reunite with the Philadelphia Flyers team that won consecutive Stanley Cups in 1973-74 and 1974-75. Clarke led the league the following season with 137 points.

Bobby was a second round pick of the Flyers at the 1969 NHL Amateur Draft. He played 1,144 regular seasons NHL games between 1969-70 and 1983-84, all with Philadelphia. Three times, Clarke surpassed the 100 point plateau in a season. Three times he was a Hart Trophy recipient as the NHL’s most valuable player. He finished his career with 1,210 points and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1987.

Tom Lysiak - Medicine Hat Tigers

Tom Lysiak was the next WHL player to win the scoring title in consecutive seasons. With the Medicine Hat Tigers, Lysiak led the league in 1971-72 with 143 points, ten more than teammate Stan Weir. The following season, Lysiak led again with 154 points, seven points ahead of Dennis Sobchuk of the Regina Pats.

Tom was the second overall pick at the 1973 NHL Amateur Draft, going to the Atlanta Flames and behind just Denis Potvin who went to the New York Islanders. The Houston Aeros also picked Lysiak in the second round of the WHA Amateur Draft, 23rd overall. Tom played 919 regular season NHL games between 1973-74 and 1985-86 with the Flames and Chicago Black Hawks.

Brian Propp - Brandon Wheat Kings

Brian Propp put up serious numbers in winning the Brownridge Trophy in 1977-78 and 1978-79. In the first season, Propp finished 22 points ahead of teammate Ray Allison with 182 points. The following year, on 94 goals and 100 assists, Propp led the league with an incredible 194 points, 41 ahead of Allison in the WHL scoring race. The two were part of one of the greatest Canadian junior teams of all-time in 1978-79, as the Brandon Wheat Kings finished with 58 wins, five losses and nine ties for 125 points.

Propp was the fourteenth overall pick at the 1979 NHL Entry Draft, going to the Bobby Clarke led Philadelphia Flyers. By then, the Broad Street Bullies era had pretty much come to an end but the Flyers were still a great team. Propp played 1,016 regular season games over his NHL career that lasted from 1979-80 to 1993-94. Brian played for the Flyers, Boston Bruins, Minnesota North Stars and Hartford Whalers.

Brian is known for his hard luck with Stanley Cup finals. Five times over his career, Propp went to the final series without a single victory to show for it. Three times, he played for the Cup with the Flyers and he played once each with the Boston Bruins and Minnesota North Stars.

Rob Brown - Kamloops Blazers

Rob Brown won the scoring race in 1985-86 and 1986-87 in record setting fashion. With the Kamloops Blazers, Brown led the league with 173 points the first season. In 1986-87, Rob set the present day record with 212 points, 66 points ahead of the next closer contender in capturing the Bobby Clarke Trophy.

Despite the numbers, Brown was drafted way down in the fourth round of the 1986 NHL Entry Draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins. He played a total of 543 NHL regular season games from 1987-88 to 1999-00 with the Penguins, Hartford Whalers, Chicago Blackhawks, Dallas Stars and Los Angeles Kings. Playing on a line with Mario Lemieux in 1988-89, Brown enjoyed his best NHL season with 115 points in just 68 games.

Brown was a standout in the now defunct IHL, where he played in between NHL stints. On three occasions, he won the Leo Lamoureux Memorial Trophy as the league’s scoring leader. In 1993-94, he led with 155 points as a member of the Kalamazoo Wings. In 1995-96 and 1996-97, he led with the Chicago Wolves, totalling 143 and 117 points.

U.S. Invasion At The Memorial Cup

Canadian Hockey League teams have been based in the United States of America as early as 1976-77 when the Portland Winterhawks were relocated to Portland, Oregon from Edmonton, Alberta. Three times since, American teams have won the Memorial Cup as CHL champions. On four occasions, U.S. cities have hosted the tournament. Portland hosted in 1983 and 1986 while Seattle, Washington hosted in 1992 and Spokane, Washington hosted in 1998.

It might be called the Canadian Hockey League but teams based in the United States have participated since the Edmonton Oil Kings became the Portland Winter Hawks at the start of the 1976-77 WHL season. The CHL is made up of three leagues across Canada, the WHL, OHL and QMJHL).

Currently, there are three teams from the Ontario Hockey League based in the U.S. (Erie Otters, Plymouth Whalers, Saginaw Spirit) and five teams from the Western Hockey League (Everett Silvertips, Portland Winterhawks, Seattle Thunderbirds, Spokane Chiefs, Tri-City Americans). The Lewiston Maineiacs were the only U.S. team in the QMJHL and they were relocated back to Canada for the 2011-12 season.

Since Portland entered the league in 1976, on just three occasions have American teams been crowned Memorial Cup champions. Only twice has an American team has made an unsuccessful appearance in the final game and six U.S. franchises have gone to the tournament. The Winterhawks reached the final in 2013 before falling to the Halifax Mooseheads of the QMJHL.

In 1983, the Portland Winterhawks beat the Oshawa Generals 8-3 on home ice in the Memorial Cup final to win their first. The Stafford Smythe Memorial Trophy as tournament MVP was handed out to Alfie Turcotte of the Winterhawks. Turcotte went on to play 112 games in the National Hockey League with the Montreal Canadiens, Winnipeg Jets and Washington Capitals. Future NHLers Ray Ferraro and Cam Neely led Portland offensively. In fact, the two were part of a group of six players on the team to reach the 100 point plateau. Read more about that excitingly offensive team here: 1982-83 Portland Winterhawks.

In 1991, the tournament was held in Quebec City and the Spokane Chiefs were the victor with a 5-1 win over the Drummondville Voltigeurs in the final. The Stafford Smythe Trophy went to Pat Falloon of Spokane. Falloon was the second overall pick of the San Jose Sharks at the 1991 NHL Entry Draft and played 575 NHL regular season games with the Sharks, Philadelphia Flyers, Ottawa Senators, Edmonton Oilers and Pittsburgh Penguins. Falloon holds a bit of San Jose Sharks trivia as the player with the most points in a rookie season for the National Hockey League club. Trevor Kidd and Ray Whitney were team leaders for Spokane while NHL veteran Bryan Maxwell was the bench boss.

Portland returned to championship form in 1998 as the Winterhawks edged the OHL’s Guelph Storm 4-3 in overtime in the final that was hosted by the Spokane Chiefs in Spokane, Washington. The Smythe Trophy went to the goaltender on the losing team, Chris Madden. Portland was led by NHLers Marian Hossa and Brenden Morrow. The team was coached by Brent Peterson, another NHL veteran.

The latest U.S. teams to qualify for the Memorial Cup tournament before Portland’s 2013 loss to Halifax were the Lewiston Maineiacs and Plymouth Whalers in 2007. Despite the 50/50 odds, neither team made it to the final. The 1995 Detroit Junior Red Wings are the only other American team to make it to the final and lose. The Erie Otters and Seattle Thunderbirds are the only other U.S. based teams to qualify for the tournament. Erie went in 2002, while Seattle participated back in 1992 as the host city.

Saskatoon Blades Individual Scoring Records

The Saskatoon Blades of the Western Hockey League are a charter member of the league with the origins of the franchise dating back to 1964. The Blades are infamously known for never winning an Ed Chynoweth Cup as playoff champions, despite putting together some great teams. The individual single season scoring records are impressive, with one record even held by a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Goals – Frank Banham

Banham exploded for 83 goals in 1995-96, his fourth of four years with the Blades. Frank finished the season 152 points in 72 games. He led the league in goals with twenty more than the runner-up, Jarome Iginla of the Kamloops Blazers. His point total placed him second to teammate Mark Deyell. Deyell recorded 159 points on a Saskatoon team with the fourth worst record in the WHL with just 59 points.

Frank was drafted into the National Hockey League after just his first year in the WHL. He was taken in the sixth round of the 1993 NHL Entry Draft by the Washington Capitals, 147^th overall. In total, Banham played 32 games in the NHL between 1996-97 and 2002-03 with the Anaheim Ducks and Phoenix Coyotes.

Banham has been in Europe since 2004-05, playing in Russia, Finland, Switzerland, Austria and Sweden. He played the 2012-13 season with Szekesfehervar of Austria’s Erste Bank Eishockey Liga (EBEL) and will play with the club again in 2013-14.

Assists – Bruce Eakin

Soft handed Eakin assisted on 125 goals in 1981-82. He also scored 42 goals of his own to total 167 points in 66 games with the Blades. Bruce was responsible for two of his teammates, Marc Habscheid and Todd Strueby, both scoring over 60 goals that year. It was his second of two years with Saskatoon and Eakin led the WHL in assists while finishing third in the league for points.

Bruce went into the 1981-82 season a prospect of the Calgary Flames. He was selected in the tenth round of the 1981 NHL Entry Draft by Calgary, 204^th overall. He ended up playing 13 games in the National Hockey League with the Flames and Detroit Red Wings. Eakin played in Europe from 1987-88 until retiring after the 1998-99 season. He appeared on teams in Finland, Germany and England.

Points – Bernie Federko

In his third of three seasons with Saskatoon, 1975-76, Bernie scored 72 goals and assisted on 115 for a team record 187 points in 72 games. He led the league in points and was awarded the Brownridge Trophy for his efforts. The Brownridge was renamed the Bob Clarke Trophy in 1987, in honour of the Flin Flon Bombers and Philadelphia Flyers legend.

Federko was popular at hockey drafts following his 1975-76 offensive outburst. The St. Louis Blues chose him seventh overall at the 1976 NHL Amateur Draft and the Edmonton Oilers chose him sixth overall at the 1976 WHA Amateur Draft. Of course, he took the NHL route.

After playing half of his first year of pro hockey with the Kansas City Blues of the Central Hockey League, earning rookie of the year honours, Federko became a regular star with the St. Louis Blues and never looked back. He played exactly 1,000 NHL regular season games in a career that spanned from 1976-77 to 1989-90.

His entire career was spent with the Blues, with exception of his last, which was in a Detroit Red Wings jersey. You couldn’t fault the Blues for trading him. Federko and Tony McKegney went to Michigan for Paul MacLean and Adam Oates. MacLean was in the twilight of his career but Oates became a superstar for the Blues, forming a dynamic duo with Brett Hull. Oates is now in the Hockey Hall of Fame with Federko. Both Oates and MacLean were head coaches in the NHL in 2012-13.

Bernie was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2002. His jersey number 15 is retired by the Saskatoon Blades. His number 24 is retired by the St. Louis Blues.

1986-87 WHL Scoring Leaders

Despite finishing first overall with 55 wins and 113 points, having five players with more than 100 points and a superstar coaching staff with Ken Hitchcock as head coach and Don Hay as assistant, the Kamloops Blazers could not get past the WHL semi-finals in 1986-87. Kamloops fell to the Portland Winterhawks, who in turn would fall to the Medicine Hat Tigers in the finals.

That disappointment has been all but forgotten after the Blazers marched to three Memorial Cup victories in the 1990’s. What does remain in the Western Hockey League history books is the scoring records etched by Blazers star Rob Brown.

Rob Brown – Kamloops Blazers

Brown totalled 212 points on 76 goals and 136 assists. The points and assists remain as WHL single season records today. Just three years before, Ray Ferraro of the Brandon Wheat Kings set an unreachable record for goals in a season with 108.

It was Brown’s last of four seasons in the WHL. The Pittsburgh Penguins drafted him in the fourth round of the 1986 NHL Entry Draft, 67^th overall. In just his second season in the NHL, 1988-89, Brown reached the pinnacle of his NHL career playing alongside Mario Lemieux. Rob scored 49 goals and totalled 115 points playing just 68 games.

Craig Endean – Seattle Thunderbirds/Regina Pats

Craig Endean finished second to Brown with 146 points. He split his season between the Seattle Thunderbirds and the Regina Pats. Endean’s season was a bit of cheat, appearing in 76 games when the league played a 72 game schedule. 1986-87 was his fourth of five seasons in the WHL. The Winnipeg Jets drafted him in the fifth round of the 1986 NHL Entry Draft. The only two NHL games he would play were with Winnipeg at the start of the 1986-87 season while still a junior.

Len Nielson – Regina Pats

Len Nielson capped his five year WHL career finishing third with 136 points as a member of the Regina Pats. Undrafted, Nielson played just two years of pro hockey, split between minor pro in North America and Finland.

Joe Sakic – Swift Current Broncos

In his first full season in the WHL, Joe Sakic finished fourth with 133 points on 60 goals and 73 assists over 72 games with the Swift Current Broncos. The following year, his last in the league, Sakic led the WHL with 160 points while only appearing in 64 games.

Sakic was the 15^th overall pick at the 1987 NHL Entry Draft by the Quebec Nordiques. Of course, Joe went on to a Hockey Hall of Fame NHL career spanning from 1988-89 to 2008-09. He played for solely for the Nordiques/Colorado Avalanche franchise, appearing in 1,378 regular season games and contributing 1,641 points.

Theo Fleury – Moose Jaw Warriors

Another very familiar name in the hockey world followed Sakic in fifth place. Theoren Fleury was in his third of four seasons with the Moose Jaw Warriors. He scored 61 goals and assisted on 68 more for 129 points. The following season, he also totalled 160 points but had two few goals than Sakic.

Despite being 5’6” and a lowly eighth round pick of the Calgary Flames in 1987, Fleury went on to a stellar NHL career. Between 1988-89 and 2002-03, Theo played 1,084 regular season games and totalled 1,088 points. He scored 455 goals over that period and was a 51 goal scorer with the Flames in 1990-91. Along with Calgary, Fleury also played for the Colorado Avalanche, New York Rangers and Chicago Blackhawks.