Bob Probert, One of a kind

Sad news of the passing of one of the most unique NHL players ever in Bob Probert. Drafted in the third round in 1983 by the Wings, the 6'3", 225lb Probert go on to score 35 goals the following season for Brantford in the OHL, then 72 points in 44 games for Sault Ste. Marie. He had 189 and 172 PIMs each season as well. He then scored almost a point per game and had 152 PIMs in half a season with the Wings AHL farm team in Adirondack.

Probert's breakout season in the NHL was his third one in 1987/88 when he had perhaps one of the most unique seasons in history. He scored 29 goals and collected 398 PIM's and played in the All-Star game. He also led the Red Wings in points in the playoffs (with Yzerman injured) with
8 goals and 21 points in 16 games. He would finish seventh overall playoff scoring, and tops among players who didn't play in the Final. His 51 playoff PIMs were actually 26th overall in the league and only third on the Wings behind Rick Zombo and Gerard Gallant. When he put his mind to it, Probert was a real player.
He would also have seasons of 20,19, 16 and 14 goal seasons.
Bob Probert was one of only seven players in NHL history to have a 20 goal and 300 PIM season. Tiger Williams had two such seasons, topping out with 35 and 343 with Vancouver in 80/81. Paul Holmgren, Chris Nilan and Dave Schulz also turned the trick and in 81/82 Al Secord had 44 goals and 303 PIMs for Chicago.
Bob Probert is however the only man in NHL history to score at least 25 goals and have at least 350 PIMs. One of a kind.

Comments

Geoff_9 said…
Crazy 87/88 season ... Just 1 Yzerman pass and 1 minor roughing penalty away from an unheard of 30 Goal, 400 Penalty Minute season.
July 8, 2010 at 7:51 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ron Hextall and the stolen Conn Smythe Trophy

Image
Ron Hextall did not deserve the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1987....there, I said it. I recently caught game seven of the '87 finals on ESPN Classic, where the Oilers beat the Flyers 3-1. Hextall was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy to the disdain and boos of the Northlands Coliseum. Hextall was (and remains) the fourth player to win the trophy in a losing cause. Even as a teenager following these playoffs as they happened, I thought this was an injustice. Upon further inspection, I believe he only won because he was a rookie, and was the "sexy" pick as opposed to the proper pick. When looking at his numbers, it's hard to figure why he won. Hextall finished with 15 wins, 11 losses and a GAA of 2.77. Oilers, Grant Fuhr went 14 and 5 with an average of 2.46. I realize that stats cannot tell the whole story, but even if we dig further the award doesn't seem justified. His .908 Save Pct was the same as Fuhr's and tied for third behind Ken Wregget and Kelly Hrudey. Also,...
Read more

WHA Ottawa Civics, The Two Week Franchise

Image
Tom Earl, Daryl Maggs, Mark Lomenda, Gary MacGregor, Garry Swain "Please let the fans make up their own minds," Henry Feller told a press gathering. "Let them decide if they want pro hockey here. We have to average 7,000 or 8,000 in the remaining 19 home games for a break-even point." Feller was a director of the Founders Club who had interest in buying the WHA's Denver Spurs club. Ivan Mullinex, owner of the Spurs had brought his team to Ottawa in an attempt to drum up interest and save his investment. The date was January 2, 1976 and Mullinex was in debt to a Denver bank to the tune of $1 million dollars. This same day, the newly christened Civics lost their first game under the new moniker by a score of 2-1 at Cincinnati. Star of the team, Ralph Backstrom said after the game, "Our first official notice of the move hit us when we entered the Cincinnati rink and the names on the big scoreboard read: Stingers and Civics. Until that moment we were un...
Read more

Team Canada 1972, What Might have Been

Image
Guy Lafleur, if he had played in the 72 Summit Series "No way. Can you imagine what our fans would say if we allowed Bobby Orr and Phil Esposito to play for Canada in that series and either...suffered an injury that might prevent them from playing with us for a year or more?" This was the concern of Weston Adams Jr, president of the Boston Bruins as quoted on April 20, 1972. After being speculated and discussed since February 1972 at the Olympics in Sapporo Japan, the series was set to go. Early on however, controversy stirred as to who exactly would be representing Canada. Bruins GM, Milt Schmidt agreed with his boss saying, "My only interest would be to see the Russians play the Bruins for the world championship...or whatever team wins the Stanley Cup." In the Vancouver Sun a few days later, the legendary Jim Coleman responds to the American naysayers suggesting that Team Canada should be made up strictly of players from Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal ...
Read more