Post by JETStender on Mar 11, 2008 18:51:47 GMT -5
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Posted By Russell, Don
Posted 2 days ago
When Dale Hawerchuk was drafted by the Cornwall Royals in the summer of 1979, it was not by accident.
In his mid-teens Dale was favourably compared to the game's greatest star at the time, Wayne Gretzky. The Oshawa Generals had offered him a tryout, but no agreement is completed with the Ontario major junior team.
His signing with the Royals is the beginning of an exceptional career in junior and professional hockey. Hawerchuk earns 103 points and is chosen Rookie-of-the-Year by the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
Dale also wins the QMJHL MVP award for the playoffs. For the Royals first Memorial Cup championship he is selected the most sportsmanlike player as well as an all-star team left winger. The following year is his last with Royals but his star is rising as the Royals take their second straight national title.
With two years remaining of junior eligibility, Winnipeg Jets manager John Ferguson makes no bones about it and Dale is chosen first at the '81 entry draft. Thus begins an eventful 16 year career in the National Hockey League.
In many situations Dale is an impact player both in the NHL and other international playoffs. At 18 he is the youngest NHL player to reach the 100-point plateau, participates in his first All-Star Game and earns the Calder Memorial Trophy.
His teammates create a nickname for Dale - "Ducky." The Jets set a league record for a season turnaround by one team - a 48 point improvement. Dale is a hockey hero in Winnipeg and over time establishes 17 team records.
In five of eight Jets seasons he reaches 100-points or more and in his best year ('84-85) totals 130 points. A few writers refer to him as mini-Gretzky and he is regularly just behind #99 in annual NHL awards.
However, the Winnipeg Jets trade Hawerchuk to the Buffalo Sabres in 1990. He paces Sabres marksmen three out of five years in Buffalo. But a number of various injuries make life on the ice a bit more difficult.
He signs with the St. Louis Blues and before season's end is traded to the Philadelphia Flyers. At the end of his second season with the Flyers he retires from the game, at age 34. Never on a Stanley Cup winner, but Hawerchuk had many other career highlights.
Of course the two Memorial Cups with the Royals is an early honour. The 1987 Canada Cup is a series he'll never forget. As Dale notes it is the era of democracy versus communism. He plays in the tournament on a line with Brent Sutter and Rick Tocchet, producing nine goals. The final series pits Canada against the Soviets in a best-of-three playoff. The visitors win 6-5 in Montreal. Superstar Mario Lemieux scores on a Wayne Gretzky pass to tie the series in Hamilton. In Game 3 Lemieux scores the winner, Gretzky the assist. The Cup is ours in a tourney rated one of the best in international hockey
Posted By Russell, Don
Posted 2 days ago
When Dale Hawerchuk was drafted by the Cornwall Royals in the summer of 1979, it was not by accident.
In his mid-teens Dale was favourably compared to the game's greatest star at the time, Wayne Gretzky. The Oshawa Generals had offered him a tryout, but no agreement is completed with the Ontario major junior team.
His signing with the Royals is the beginning of an exceptional career in junior and professional hockey. Hawerchuk earns 103 points and is chosen Rookie-of-the-Year by the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
Dale also wins the QMJHL MVP award for the playoffs. For the Royals first Memorial Cup championship he is selected the most sportsmanlike player as well as an all-star team left winger. The following year is his last with Royals but his star is rising as the Royals take their second straight national title.
With two years remaining of junior eligibility, Winnipeg Jets manager John Ferguson makes no bones about it and Dale is chosen first at the '81 entry draft. Thus begins an eventful 16 year career in the National Hockey League.
In many situations Dale is an impact player both in the NHL and other international playoffs. At 18 he is the youngest NHL player to reach the 100-point plateau, participates in his first All-Star Game and earns the Calder Memorial Trophy.
His teammates create a nickname for Dale - "Ducky." The Jets set a league record for a season turnaround by one team - a 48 point improvement. Dale is a hockey hero in Winnipeg and over time establishes 17 team records.
In five of eight Jets seasons he reaches 100-points or more and in his best year ('84-85) totals 130 points. A few writers refer to him as mini-Gretzky and he is regularly just behind #99 in annual NHL awards.
However, the Winnipeg Jets trade Hawerchuk to the Buffalo Sabres in 1990. He paces Sabres marksmen three out of five years in Buffalo. But a number of various injuries make life on the ice a bit more difficult.
He signs with the St. Louis Blues and before season's end is traded to the Philadelphia Flyers. At the end of his second season with the Flyers he retires from the game, at age 34. Never on a Stanley Cup winner, but Hawerchuk had many other career highlights.
Of course the two Memorial Cups with the Royals is an early honour. The 1987 Canada Cup is a series he'll never forget. As Dale notes it is the era of democracy versus communism. He plays in the tournament on a line with Brent Sutter and Rick Tocchet, producing nine goals. The final series pits Canada against the Soviets in a best-of-three playoff. The visitors win 6-5 in Montreal. Superstar Mario Lemieux scores on a Wayne Gretzky pass to tie the series in Hamilton. In Game 3 Lemieux scores the winner, Gretzky the assist. The Cup is ours in a tourney rated one of the best in international hockey
