Bob Whitlock

Bob Whitlock is one of the "one gamers" in the NHL. Players who only played one game in the NHL. He was born in Charlottetown, P.E.I, July 16, 1949. Bob's dad, Roy "Buck" Whitlock was a former star around the Maritime Provinces of Canada

Bob enjoyed a successful junior career in the Nova Scotia junior hockey league and the New Brunswick junior hockey league. Bob was signed by Minnesota North Stars on October 2, 1969 and wound up playing for the farm team Iowa Stars in the CHL. He was called up for his only NHL game that season (1969-70) and played very well in the game, but he was sent down to Iowa again and didn't get any more opportunities in the big league.

Bob's next two seasons as a pro were split between the Cleveland Barons in the AHL and the Phoenix Roadrunners of the WHL. He had a very fine season in the WHL, winning the rookie of the year award in 1971-72 after a productive season that saw him score 79 pts (33+46).

His fine season made the Chicago Cougars of the WHA sign him after they had bought his negotiation rights from Los Angeles Sharks (also of the WHA). He had a surprisingly strong first season getting 51 pts for the Cougars. In the middle of the following season (1973-74) the Sharks got him back. Bob had a couple of more productive seasons with the Indianapolis Racers and scored a total of 179 pts (81+98) in 244 WHA games.

Bob finished his playing career in the North American Hockey League (NAHL) and Western International Hockey League (WIHL). In the NAHL he played for Mohawk Valley Comets, Erie Blades and the Johnstown Jets before playing his last season in 1977-78 for the Trail Smoke Eaters in the WIHL.

Bob's biggest asset was without a doubt his shots that were described as cannon blasts. His slapshot was according to a majority of experts as hard as legendary Bobby Hull's blasts. Nobody unloaded the cannon like Bob. In a pre game warm up during the 1972-73 season one of his powerful slapshots broke the plexiglass that surrounded the ice surface in Chicago's International Amphitheatre Arena.

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Neal Broten

Minnesota is known as "The State of Hockey." With notoriously frigid winters and countless frozen lakes, ponds and streams to play on, hockey was as natural to Minnesotans as it was for Canadians. For the longest time, hockey in the United States was more or less affiliated with Minnesota. The life of smaller towns revolved around the rinks and ponds. High school hockey has as much interest as the pro game. And the college rivalries are as intense as any pro rivalry.

Like many families in Roseau, Minnesota, hockey was a birthright for the Broten family. Neal and his brothers Aaron and Paul would all be state high school and college stars, and go onto the National Hockey League.

But few would argue that Neal was not the best. In fact, in a state that has produced more hockey superstars than virtually every other state in the country, most consider Neal to be the best player the state has ever produced.

Neal had been skating and playing hockey since as long as he could remember. He grew up playing shinny, mastering his puck handling and skating skills. He went on to become a high school sensation in his hometown of Roseau, just minutes away from the Canadian border. After that he embarked upon one of the most successful college careers in hockey history with the University of Minnesota. He scored 38 goals and 104 assists for 142 points in just 76 career games.

Broten started with the U of M in 1978-79 but took the 1979-80 season off to play with the US National Team. As America's up and coming superstar, Olympic coach Herb Brooks included the 20 year old the now-famous 1980 "Miracle on Ice" Olympic team. Brooks, who coached Broten at the University of Minnesota, was not concerned about his lack of experience or size. He knew that his incredible skill package was undeniably impressive. He called Broten the greatest athlete he ever coached at the University.

The fabulous "Miracle on ice" story is well known to even non-hockey fans. A bunch of upstart US college kids knocked off the might Soviet Union national team, considered by many to be the most powerful hockey team of all time. In a showdown of politics, societies and idealogies as much of sport, the Americans pulled off perhaps the biggest upset in athletic history. Broten contributed nicley with 2 goals and 3 points in 7 Olympic contests.

Neal returned to University the following season. Playing on a line with brother Aaron, Neal was considered the best player in all of college hockey, winning the Hobey Baker award.

At the completion of his school year he immediately joined the NHL's Minnesota North Stars, who drafted him 42nd overall back in 1979. Broten scored twice in three games to finish he season, and then played in 19 playoff games as the North Stars surprisingly made a Cinderella run at the Stanley Cup, only to fall short to the New York Islanders. Broten added speed and creativity to the team, as well as 1 goal and 8 points in the playoffs.

Broten started his official NHL rookie season of 1981-82 by representing the United States in the 1981 Canada Cup tournament. He played well, scoring 3 goals in 6 games. He then went on to have a great rookie season, scoring a career high 38 goals as well as 60 assists for 98 points.

Broten would enjoy 11 more productive seasons in Minnesota, including a career high 76 assists and 105 points in 1985-86. By scoring 100 points, he became the first American born player to score 100 points in National Hockey League history. But never managed to take his game to the next level of superstar point scorer like the Gretzkys, Lemieuxs, Hawerchucks and Yzermans of his day. Other than that unexpected run to the Stanley Cup finals in 1981, the North Stars never really accomplished much during Broten's long tenure either. As such the understated Broten was forever in the shadows of other stars, except in Minny where the whole state revered him.

Another highlight in Broten's storied career in Minnesota came in 1991 as the North Stars again went on a Cinderella-like run at the Stanley Cup, this time to once again fall short to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Broten played exceptionally, scoring 22 points in 23 games..

However 1993 would be a bad year for Minnesota hockey and it's favorite son. The North Stars franchise was moved to Dallas. There was much speculation that Neal, coming off of two sub-par years, would retire and remain in Minnesota. However Neal went south with the rest of his team. By this time Broten was no longer the steady point producer that he was best known for. He was a wily veteran who became more a defensive forward/penalty killer. He spent a season and a half in Dallas before being traded to New Jersey for Corey Millen. He spent a little over a season and a half in Jersey, and picked up a Stanley Cup ring in 1995, allowing him to join Ken Morrow as the only 1980 Olympians to win the Stanley Cup. Broten would briefly join the Los Angeles Kings, but 19 games later he was traded back to the Dallas Stars where he finished his career in 1997.

Broten, a super skater and playmaker, played just one game shy of 1100 in the NHL. He scored 289 times while setting up 634 others for a career total of 923 points. He added another 35 goals and 98 points in 135 playoff games. He retired as the franchise's all time record holder (since broken) for career games, points, goals, assists and playoff games. His jersey #7 retired in 1998 by the Stars. Two years later he was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame.

Minnesota's favorite son now lives on a horse farm with his wife Sally in River Falls, Wisconsin.

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Craig Hartsburg

Craig Hartsburg was an elite NHL defenseman who had his career derailed by injuries. His medical chart includes games lost due to a broken leg, multiple knee operations, herniated discs in his back, pulled groins, hernia, separated shoulder and finally an infected ankle that finally forced him to retire.

Before the injuries riddled him, Hartsburg was a wonderful rushing defenseman. He was an excellent skater, extremely mobile laterally in particular. He would often rush the puck out of the zone, sometimes recklessly and leading to injury susceptibility.

As his career progressed he reigned in his rushing game and proved to be a fantastic passing defenseman, clearing the zone with proficiency but starting the transition offense expertly as well. He also knew how to quarterback a power play. His vision and creativity allowed him to move the puck into the slimmest of passing lanes, and he naturally knew when to pinch to keep the zone.

But his low, hard shot was his real weapon. He wasn't the hardest shooting point man, but always got the puck through traffic and on the net. His shot was also always perfect for tipping and rebounds.

Despite what his penalty minutes may suggest, Hartsburg was not known as a physical defenseman. He was strong and big, and used that to his advantage to defend. He was not a big splashy hitter, instead relying more on muscles and angles to steer opponents to the boards where he would pin them.

Hartsburg was very sound defensively, playing his defensive angles well and reading the rush well back into his own zone. His active stick broke up a lot of oncoming breaks.

Despite his skills package, Hartsburg is often forgotten about in discussions revolving around the top defensemen of the 1980s. Lost time due to injury certainly have something to do with that, as does Minnesota's lack of success after 1981. If it wasn't for his extremely successful coaching career, modern fans may never have heard of this great defender from the 1980s.

In 570 games, all with the North Stars, Hartsburg scored 98 goals, 315 assists and 413 points while collecting 818 penalty minutes.

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Bill Goldsworthy

Bill was a hard shooting winger developed in the Boston Bruins junior and minor league system. He played with the Bruins OHA junior team in Niagara Falls and helped the Falls Flyers win the 1965 Memorial Cup.

"Goldy," as he was best known, never really got a chance to play with the Bruins however. He played parts of two injury plagued years with the Bruins but spent most of his time in the minor leagues.

Goldsworthy was the beneficiary of expansion when the NHL grew from 6 to 12 teams. 6 new teams meant approximately 120 news jobs in the NHL, and Goldy wanted to be one of those 120. That process began on June 6, 1967, when he was chosen by the Minnesota North Stars in the expansion draft.

Of all the players, chosen in the expansion draft, it was Goldy who may have had the best career. In Minnesota he developed into a fine goal scorer and became the North Stars first star attraction.

After a modest 14 goal, 33 point season in 68 games, Goldy exploded in the playoffs. In 14 games in the 1968 post season, Goldy led the entire National Hockey League in goals (8) and points (15). He also popularized the "Goldy Shuffle." The Shuffle is a now common routine for celebrating a goal, but it was Goldsworthy who really started it. Bill would lift one leg, and pump the opposite arm in
celebration of goals.

Goldy suffered a setback in 1968-69 season. Critics scoffed that he was a post season fluke and they scoffed more when he struggled through a terrible 1968-69 season. He scored only 14 goals in 68 games, just 6 more than he scored in 14 playoff games the previous spring. He only added 10 assists and was a horrendous -27.

However he silenced his critics in 1969-70 when he rediscovered his touch and scored a whopping 36 goals. And he proved it was no fluke for the next 5 years as he failed to score more than 30 goals only once. He scored a club record of 48 goals in 1973-74 season that stood for eight years before Dino Ciccarelli broke the mark in 1982. He captained the Stars from 1974-1976 and represented the team in 5 different all star games.

While Bill was more of a shooter than a playmaker, he was not a one-trick pony. He could play at both ends of the ice and was known as a solid team player. These all around qualities helped him to be selected on Team Canada's Summit Series roster that defeated the Russians in 1972. Goldy appeared in 3 of the 8 games, scoring 1 goal and 1 assist.

Bill was a very talented player who benefited from lots of playing time with the expansion North Stars. While he never got a chance to play in Boston, one would have to wonder how good Goldy would have been with a team that possessed a more talented supporting cast.

Late in his career the Stars traded their original franchise player to the New York Rangers. By this point in his career Goldy was showing his age and not contributing like he used to. His struggle with alcoholism was also starting to win the battle.

Bill played 68 games with the Rangers before finishing his career with the WHA's Indy Racers and Edmonton Oilers.

With the Stars franchise set to move from Minnesota to Dallas, the North Stars did something nice to remember their past. On February 15th, 1992 Bill's number eight was retired in a memorable ceremony in front of a sell out crowd at Met Center. It was one of the last great memories for North Star fans.

After retiring as a player, Bill moved into coaching. He was coaching the San Antonio Iguanas of the Central Hockey League when he was hospitalized on November 11, 1994. He had been feeling ill for two months, and learned during the stay that he was suffering from AIDS. Bill passed away in a Minneapolis hospital, May 24, 1996 of complications from the disease.

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Pierre Jarry

On November 21st, 1971 rookie left winger Pierre Jarry made quite the impression.

Jarry scored his first career NHL goal at 11:03 of the second period. Eight seconds later his scored his second career goal. In doing so, Jarry tied a New York Rangers team record for the fastest two goals scored.

Classy veteran Jean Ratelle scored 4 times that night, overshadowing Jarry in the 12-1 win over the Oakland Seals. Jarry would score only 1 more goal in 33 other games that season before disappearing from the bright lights of Broadway altogether.

Buy Jarry would resurface, playing in over 300 NHL games in the 1970s with the Leafs, Wings and North Stars. He showed the odd flash of offensive promise, scoring 19 in Toronto and 21 in Minnesota when he teamed with playmaking center Tim Young. In that season with Minny he was voted as the Stars most popular player by the fans.

He was a fairly soft forward, lacking the physical ability to win many battles in the violent 1970s. He was a dangerous one-on-one player and a streaky scorer. But he rarely passed the puck and was also suspect defensively.

Pierre Jarry retired in 1978 with 344 games played. In that time he scored 88 goals, 117 assists for 205 points.

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Ulf Dahlen

Ulf Dahlen was quietly one of the more intelligent players of his generation. He had a number of good skills but every bit as important he really understood the intricacies of the game.

Dahlen was not your typical Swedish important when he arrived in the mid 1980s with the New York Rangers. His game was not based on speed. In fact he was an unusual though deceptive skater. In stead he used great balance and core body strength to protect the puck with his body expertly. He was extremely effective down low and in the corners and on the boards. He would then drive to the net or find an open man with a strong pass. In a different era he would have been the perfect fit to compliment the Sedin Twins.

The Rangers drafted Dahlen 7th overall in 1985, taking him over the likes of Calle Johanson, Joe Nieuwendyk and Sean Burke. And hey why not - Dahlen was being championed as a new breed of European player, combining hockey sense, good hands and a dominating physical game. He dominated at the 1985 European junior championships, captaining Sweden to a gold medal.

After fulfilling his mandatory military training Dahlen came to North America in 1987 after helping his native Umea win the Swedish championship and earning a bronze medal at the World Championships.

After 3 seasons of challenging the 30 goal mark the Rangers moved Dahlen to Minnesota in exchange for star sniper Mike Gartner. It was in Minny that Dahlen is best associated with. He enjoyed his finest seasons there, pushing the 35 goal and 75 point mark.

Yet it was not exactly an easy time for Dahlen. Ownership problems would see the team split into two and the franchise split with half the players moving to Dallas and the other half heading to San Jose. Apparently there was a back room deal between the North Stars and San Jose a full year before the Sharks actually took to the ice. Dahlen would go to San Jose but Minnesota had the right to kill the deal at any point that season. Those close to the situation said it was hard on Dahlen who felt the pressure of auditioning for a job with his own team on a nightly basis. He played well though, and the Stars kept him as they moved to Dallas.

Interestingly, before the end of the first season in Dallas the Sharks did get their wish, and acquired Dahlen in a trade for defensemen Mike Lalor and Doug Zmolek. Dahlen played admirably in 4 seasons in San Jose, but the goals were hard to come by as the expansion Sharks were one of the worst teams in NHL history.

By the time the Sharks were getting better Dahlen was moved along and began the vagabond days that older hockey players often experience near the end of their careers. Dahlen spent half a season in Chicago, 2 seasons back home with HV71 in the Swedish Elite League, 3 seasons in Washington before one final season in Dallas.

All said, Ulf Dahlen played 966 career NHL games over 14 seasons, scoring 301 goals, 354 assists and 655 points. He was a very solid, often under-appreciated NHL player.

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Mario Thyer

Mario Thyer signed with the Minnesota North Stars as a free agent after playing two seasons at the University of Maine. He was a standout in his freshman year, scoring 68 points in 44 games. He went 9-7-16 in 9 games before breaking his leg in his sophomore season.

Despite the injuries and two years of college eligibility remaining, the North Stars signed the talent but diminutive center. Thyer ended up dropping out of college to turn pro immediately, as the Stars felt his development as a hockey player would improve if he took his game to the next level. Thyer joined the Stars IHL affiliate, the Kalamazoo Wings.

Mario showed flashes of brilliance in his first professional season in 1989-90. In 68 games the speedy center netted 19 goals and added 42 assists for 61 points while taking only 6 minor penalties. He also got what proved to be his only shot at the NHL as he went scoreless in 5 games with Minnesota.

Thyer had NHL speed and NHL puck skills, but lacked NHL size. He weighed only 170lbs, and a center ice its rare to find such a puny pivot. His lack of size would be his biggest obstacle to playing in the NHL..

Thyer returned to Kalamazoo for the 1990-91 season and scored 15 goals, 51 assists and 66 points. 1991-92 was an injury plagued season for Thyer, who did scored 17 goals and 45 points in  46 games with Kalamazoo before he was traded on March 10, 1992. The Stars felt they had enough small and soft centers with names like Dave Gagner, Neal Broten and Mike Modano already on the big club and were looking for a hulking centerman for their playoff run. The Stars traded Thyer to the New York Rangers in exchange for big Mark Janssens.

However Thyer's stay with the Rangers was short. He finished the 1991-92 season with the Rangers farm team before he was traded back to Minnesota on July 16, 1992. Thyer was unhappy because he knew there was little chance he could crack the big club in Minnesota. He ended up playing with the IHL's Cincinnati Cyclones that year, but struggled through a 13 goal, 49 point season in 77 games.

Thyer only played in 3 games in 1993-94 before he decided to hang up the blades. He knew he was never likely to make the NHL and decided to get on with his life.

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Shawn Chambers

Pretty much everybody has the same mental image of Shawn Chambers, whether they realize it or not. That's because he was the Minnesota North Stars defenseman Mario Lemieux deked to the ice back in game 2 of the 1991 Stanley Cup final. It is one of the most famous goals in all of hockey history:



Chambers should not feel too bad. Super Mario made quite a few players look silly in his career.

Chambers was actually a pretty solid defenseman over the course of his 625 NHL game career with Minnesota, Washington, Tampa Bay, New Jersey and Dallas. As he matured he learned to play within his limitations, the true sign of valuable depth defender.

He was not a top line defender, but he was pretty under-rated as a depth blue liner. After all, in his time in New Jersey he paired with the great Scott Stevens, and that pairing shouldered the load against the opposition's top lines night after night.

Chambers had a reputation as not much of a physical player, which was unfair. He was average sized for a NHL defenseman at 6'2" and 200lbs but he didn't shy away from throwing clean bodychecks. While his hits may not have rattled the glass spectacularly, he played with enthusiasm, especially when getting lots of ice time.

That said, Chambers was probably best described as intellectual defender. He had great anticipation and sense of positioning. He understood the game and could read on-coming attacks expertly. With little fanfare he would diffuse attacks with a quick stick and short breakout passes.

Offensively Chambers was best described as efficient. His skating would not dazzle anyone. He would rather safely pass the puck out of the zone than lug it. His shot was nothing special though because he could get his soft wrist shots pass shot blockers and to the front of the net, he would often eat up 2nd unit power play minutes.

Chambers played in 645 NHL games, scoring 50 goals, 185 assists for 235 points. Mario Lemieux may have ruined his Stanley Cup dreams back in 1991, but Chambers does have two Stanley Cup championship rings - with New Jersey in 1995 and Dallas in 1999.

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Keith Acton

From his very first NHL game right through to his 1023rd and final contest, Keith Acton played the same way - all out.

Acton was an energetic checking forward. He was hard working and honest, yet aggressive and feisty and almost always yapping his mouth at the opposition. Throughout his career he was often compared to Ken Linseman.

Acton and Linseman played very similar roles, although Acton never had the same offensive contributions as Kenny. Acton did have a great sophomore season in Montreal when he scored a career high 36 goals and 88 points but otherwise he was cast as a third line shit-disturbing center - a role he excelled at.

Acton was small at just 5'8" but he played a physical game. He was very willing to hit and be hit, and never shied away from traffic. He was also very liberal with his stick, often using it to distract opponents more than to score goals. Blessed with great straight-ahead speed, Acton was great at jumping into openings all over the ice. And you can bet that if you tried to hook him back when he did surprisingly jump ahead of you, he'd dive with the perfect touch of embellishment, thus drawing the referees attention and more often than not got his team a power play.

Besides good foot speed, Acton a nice package of finesse skills. He had good hands and was creative enough to set up his wingers, however he lacked a good shot at the NHL level. Thus most of his goals came from banging at loose pucks near the net. Acton did have good hockey sense, particularly in his defensive role. His persistent puck pursuit also made him a mainstay on the penalty killing units.

Acton was originally a late round pick of the Montreal Canadiens. Despite back to back 120+ point seasons with the strong junior organization Peterborough Petes, Acton wasn't selected until 103rd overall in 1978 as questions about his size underrated him. After a couple of years in the Habs farm system, Keith made the big jump to the NHL in 1980-81 in a limited role, playing 61 games with 15 goals and 39 points.

As mentioned earlier, Acton exploded for his 88 point season in year two, but because of the Habs strong depth at center ice he was relegated to third line duty in 1982-83.

After a strong start to the 1983-84 season (10 points in the first 9 games), Acton was traded to Minnesota as a key part of package that landed big center Bobby Smith in Montreal. Smith went on to record several strong seasons in Montreal. Acton failed to put up the offensive numbers that were hoped for, but he was a valuable member of an often weak Stars team. Acton was a strong leader on the team.

The Stars moved the speedster to Edmonton during the 1987-88 season in exchange for Moe Mantha. Acton played with a yeoman's effort as he helped the Oilers capture the 1988 Stanley Cup.

Part way through the 1988-89 season Acton was moved to Philadelphia where he would play for the following 4 years. He spent the 1993-94 season, his last in the NHL, with Washington and NY Islanders.

Keith Acton, always a popular leader in any dressing room he was part of, turned to the world of coaching after his playing days were over.

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Lou Nanne

Lou Nanne grew up in Sault Ste. Marie,Ont. together with the Esposito brothers. He went on to attend and play for University of Minnesota (WCHA) between 1959-63. Lou showed great leadership qualities in his early years and was the captain for the Golden Gophers in his senior year (1962-63). The same season he became the first WCHA defenseman ever to lead the league in scoring and was named the MVP of the WCHA as well as being selected as an All-American All-Star.

After graduating from University of Minnesota he served as an assistant coach for the team. Before signing a pro contract he was a salesman for a chemical firm and became a U.S. Citizen. He played two seasons for the Rochester Mustangs (USHL) between 1965-67 averaging over a point per game. Shortly thereafter he was the captain of the 1968 U.S. Olympic team.

Lou quickly got the reputation of being a good team man, adept at killing penalties. He made his NHL debut shortly after his Olympic adventure and appeared in two games for the Minnesota North Stars, an organization that he would stay in for over 20 years. During the 1968-69 seasons he had brief stints with the Memphis South Stars (CHL) and Cleveland Barons (AHL) before playing in the NHL for good.

During the 1971-72 season, North Stars coach Jack Gordon used Lou as a forward (right wing) for the first time in the NHL and Lou responded with a respectable 21 goals and 49 points. The next two seasons he scored 15 goals respectively 11 goals and developed into a fine checking forward who often was matched against the other teams top lines.

His offensive output was limited the last years until he retired in 1978. Lou played a total of 635 games and scored 225 points (68 goals and 157 assists). He also represented USA during the 1976 and 1977 World Championships.

During the 1977 tournament his play was criticized loudly by team USA coach John Mariucci, who had coached Nanne previously at the University of Minnesota. The usually mild-mannered Nanne charged his coach and the two men were soon trading punches on the bench in the middle of the game. Peace was restored by teammates but the fight erupted again right after the game, necessitating a mass intervention by players and officials.

The incident came as a shocker since both men were North Stars employees and longtime friends. Mariucci had been Nanne's coach at the U. of Minnesota and the two remained close friends when Nanne went on to play for the North Stars and Mariucci became one of the teams scouts.

When Nanne was named the coach and GM of the North Stars in February 1978, who did he name as his assistant GM? Mariucci of course. It was typical Nanne. "Sweet Lou from the Soo" held his GM position with the North Stars until 1988.

For his many contributions to hockey in the United States, Nanne was honored as a recipient of the 1989 Lester Patrick award.

In 2010 Lou Nanne released his autobiography: A Passion To Win

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