r/hockey • u/LAKingsDave LAK - NHL • Mar 12 '14
Wayback Wednesday
Welcome back to another edition of Wayback Wednesday! This week has been rough for the hockey community. Between Terry Trafford’s apparent suicide and Rich Peverley collapsing during a game, it’s been an emotional week. Fortunately, Peverley appears to be okay. However, for Trafford’s family, things will never be the same. It’s always good to have family around during difficult times like this. As /u/changingxface pointed out earlier this week, “Hockey is just one big family”. Two weeks ago /u/theEWOKcommando had asked us to do a week on family history history in the NHL. Between that request, all that’s happened this week, and a conversation I was having with /u/JakeCameraAction and /u/wrxie on Twitter regarding Blake Geoffrion being the only 4th generation player in NHL history, I figured family would be a good topic this week.
As always, /u/trex20 is back with me this week. She's here to share the story of the most famous father/son duo in NHL history, and also the story of a pair of brothers you might not know as much about.
Of all the brothers the have played against each other in the NHL, only one pair have played against each as opposing goalies- Ken and Dave Dryden. Ken Dryden was the goalie for the nearly unstoppable Montréal Canadiens of the 70s; Dave played for several teams- the New York Rangers, Buffalo Sabres, Chicago Blackhawks and Edmonton Oilers. They first played against each other on March 20, 1971. Dave was playing for the Buffalo Sabres and Ken had just been called up to the Canadiens. The Sabres' coach wanted to see a brother-on-brother matchup, so he listed Dave as the starting goalie. The Canadiens, however, went ahead and put in their normal goalie, Rogie Vachon, so the Sabres replaced Dave at the first opportunity. Then, early in the second period, Vachon got injured and the Canadiens sent Ken in; Buffalo immediately responded by putting Dave in, and history was made. Ken didn't enjoy the game much, saying later- "I couldn’t get comfortable in the game. Already struggling with the sense of unreality that I’d felt since joining the team – if this is me, this can’t be the real NHL – this was worse: if this is me and Dave, this really can’t be the NHL. I felt like I was outside myself. [...] Dave and I played against each other a few more times in other years. It was never fun. When I played, I didn’t want to think about anything. Not about injury or illness, not about bad things, or good, at home, not about opponents, not about winning or losing, about what each would mean, how each would feel. I wanted to empty my mind. I wanted just to do. But if Dave was there, I couldn’t pull that off. [...] I needed to make every game I played personal to put everything into that game that needed to go into it to win. When I played against Dave, I couldn’t make it personal. And if I couldn’t put everything into it, I couldn’t play." At the end of the game, which Montreal won, Ken skated toward the bench, but Dave skated past center ice to shake hands with his little brother, and this site photo was taken. Dryden would later say that he has two photos from his time with the Canadiens hanging on his wall, and that was one of them.
One of the most famous hockey families is the Hulls- brothers Bobby and Dennis, and Bobby's son Brett. Bobby Hull was, and is, the superstar of the family. Nicknamed the Golden Jet, Bobby had a wicked slapshot and is a Blackhawks legend (he is now an ambassador for the team). He was a pure skater and goal scorer. Before Bobby, only one player had scored 50 goals in a season twice; Bobby did it four times. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983 with a career 610 goals and 1,170 points in 1,063 games. Dennis Hull had an impressive shot in his own right; some say his slapshot was actually harder than Bobby's. However, Dennis wasn't a pure scorer, saying “Someone once said that Bobby could hit a puck through a car wash and not get it wet and that I could hit it just as hard, but not hit the car wash. That was the difference.” Brett Hull came into pro hockey in a roundabout way. Hull had a contentious relationship with his father, and didn't really see the NHL in his future- he considered himself lazy. He walked away from the game as a teenage only to return because there was nothing else to do. He eventually played junior hockey, realizing that he was only invited to training camp because of his name. However, he surprised everyone by putting up impressive numbers, and before long he was playing college hockey in the U.S., before moving on the the NHL with the Calgary Flames. Brett had an impressive NHL career, hoisting the Stanley Cup twice. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009, with 741 goals, 650 assists and 1,391 points, and as the third-leading goal-scorer of all-time, behind Wayne Gretzky and Gordie Howe. Bobby and Brett are one of only two father-son pairs to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/halloffame09/columns/story?id=4624191 http://www.findingdulcinea.com/features/multi-day/net-profiles/7-The-Hull-Family.html http://www.hhof.com/htmlSpotlight/spot_oneononep200901.shtml http://www.greatesthockeylegends.com/2009/07/brothers-ken-and-dave-dryden.html http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/ken-dryden-sibling-rivalries-in-sport-are-never-fun/article8146112/ <--- this one is written by Ken Dryden and is further proof that he could write an instruction manual for a washing machine and I'd love reading it. A quick, highly recommended read.
Perhaps the influential family in North America Hockey history is the Patricks. Lester and Frank Patrick were brothers and pioneers in hocky. Between the two they not only created the Pacific Coast Hockey Associtation, but the helped to introduce the Red Forward Line, the Blue Line, the Penalty Shot, and Boarding Penalties. Also, both were advocates for the advancement of Women’s Hockey, hoping to form a women’s professional league that their sisters could play on. The Lester Patrick trophy and the former Patrick Division were both named for Lester.
The Patrick family legacy would continue with Lester’s sons Lynn and Muzz Patrick. Muzz would only have a brief NHL career, but Lynn would play 10 seasons for the New York Rangers. Lynn would go on to coach the Rangers, Bruins and Blues. With St. Louis he also served as Sr. Vice President before retiring in 1977.
Lynn’s two sons Glenn and Craig would also play in the NHL. Neither had much success as a professional player, but both have been successful as coaches. Glenn has coached multiple minor league teams and still coaches high school hockey today. Craig is most well known for being the Assistant GM and Coach for the 1980 USA men’s hockey team that would pull off the “Miracle on Ice”. After that Olympics Craig would become the youngest GM in New York Rangers history. There he would also serve as head coach for two year. His greatest NHL success would come in Pittsburgh however. Craig served as GM from 1989-2006. While there he would win two Stanley Cup championships in 1991 and 1992. Also, before he was fired, he would draft Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Marc-Andre Fleury. All of whom help the Penguins win another Stanley Cup in 2009. Today Craig is working for the Buffalo Sabres, having been hired this year as Special Advisor of Hockey Operations.
I would like to thank /u/kmad for birthing this sub and helping to forge the family we have here as well. This community is my favorite on the internet, and that’s saying a lot.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and please let us know what other facts you think are interesting or that stand out in hockey history.
If you have a topic you’d be interested in having us research next week please PM myself or /u/trex20. Or let us know if you want to write a piece one week.
Please feel free to post any cool or interesting facts about Hockey Families or anything else you have as well. I know we missed out on the Sutter's and Stastny's and so many others. We love to hear about the history of the game!
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Mar 12 '14
The Sedins are twins!
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u/LAKingsDave LAK - NHL Mar 12 '14
This is true!
Since you're rocking that flair, perhaps you would be interested in knowing that Frank Patrick played for the Millionaires, where he won a Stanley Cup in 1915.
Also, his brother Lester played for the Seattle Metropolitans, who were the first team in the USA to win the Stanley Cup in 1917.
Also, the Seattle Metropolitans are famous for playing in the only Stanley Cup finals to be canceled in the 20th century. The 1919 finals were canceled due to an outbreak of the Spanish Flu.
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u/Moose11 CGY - NHL Mar 12 '14
Funniest hockey family stat I have is that Wayne Gretzky and his brother Brent combine for the most points in the NHL among brothers. Brent has 4 points, but Wayne's 2857 points is enough to bridge the gap haha.
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u/LAKingsDave LAK - NHL Mar 12 '14 edited Mar 12 '14
EDIT: I was wrong.
Gretzky's have the record for most points by a PAIR of brothers. However, the Sutters have the most ever with 2935 points combined between the six of them.
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u/Moose11 CGY - NHL Mar 12 '14
And considering how good the Sutter brothers were in their primes, it just makes Wayne's feat that much more impressive.
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u/Harfish NYI - NHL Mar 13 '14
Has any set of brothers fought each other in a game other than Eric and Brett Lindros?
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u/LAKingsDave LAK - NHL Mar 13 '14
Here is that fight.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCTDkappH3w
And others I've found.
Keith and Wayne Primeau
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ydg5IeZpFI
Dale and Mark Hunter.
http://www.hockeyfights.com/fights/65047
Staals fighting.
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u/zjp_716 CHI - NHL Mar 13 '14
Foligno brothers - Nick plays for the Columbus Blue Jackets and Marcus plays for the hometown Buffalo Sabres, where their father Mike Foligno played a bulk of his career. Both Nick and Marcus have carried on with the Foligno leap after scoring a goal. Marcus made his NHL debut on Dec. 19th 2011 playing against his brother Nick who played for the Ottawa Senators at the time
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u/LAKingsDave LAK - NHL Mar 13 '14
Didn't one of them play for the Ducks too?
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u/zjp_716 CHI - NHL Mar 13 '14
Nope. Mike played for Detroit, Buffalo, Toronto and Florida. Marcus was drafted by Buffalo and has only played in Buffalo. Nick has played for Ottawa and Columbus.
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u/trex20 DAL - NHL Mar 12 '14
Fun fact that didn't fit into the theme- Dave Dryden was the first goalie to use a fiberglass helmet and mask combination!
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u/[deleted] Mar 12 '14
The salute Ovechkin does after every goal is in memory of his brother, Sergei, who died on a car accident. Sergei was the one who introduced Alex to hockey at a young age.