Andy Bathgate
|
|
Andrew James Bathgate, (b. August 28, 1932 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada) was a ice hockey player and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Andy Bathgate was a popular star-player of the New York Rangers and also holds the honor of being declared the MVP of both the NHL and WHL. He started his professional career with the Vancouver Canucks of the WHL in the 1952-53 season. He would bounce between the Canucks and the Rangers for two seasons before settling with the Rangers in 1954-55. He would play ten full seasons with the Rangers, where he became a popular player in New York as well as being a top-tiered player in the NHL.
Bathgate's career was frustrated by the mediocre play of the Rangers and a nagging knee problem. He was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in a heartbreaking move, and later to the Detroit Red Wings, where he helped the team reach the Stanley Cup Finals in 1966-67. He was chosen by the Pittsburgh Penguins in their expansion draft the next year, and after that, he returned to the Canucks. His best professional year was with them, where he scored 108 points in 1969-70. That performance gave him the George Leader Cup, the top player award in the WHL. His final NHL year was with the Penguins in 1971; he came briefly out of retirement four seasons later to play for the Vancouver Blazers of the WHA, which he had coached the previous season, but retired for good after eleven games.
He won the Hart Memorial Trophy for the MVP of the NHL in 1958-59. He is famous for contributing to one of the largest innovations in NHL history. During a game against the Montreal Canadiens, Bathgate shot the puck into the face of Jacques Plante, forcing Plante to receive stitches. When Plante returned to the ice, he was wearing a mask. That started a trend that continues to this day.
He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1978.
His career stats are: 1,069 games played, 349 goals, 624 assists, 973 points, and 624 penalty minutes.