Peterborough Petes, 1972
January 23, 2022
There have been a lot of memorable Petes over the years, and Roger Neilson would certainly be high on the list. He was an innovator, who came up with a lot of creative ways to interpret the rules. One game he realized that when he was down two men in the last minute of play, he couldn’t end up any more shorthanded, so he just kept putting too many men on the ice. In another game, he put out a defenceman instead of a goaltender to defend a penalty shot and Ron Stackhouse successfully rushed the opposing player. Once when he pulled his goalie, he told him to leave his stick lying on the ice in the crease… it ended up preventing a goal. Every one of these bright ideas resulted in a Roger Neilson-inspired rule change. He went on to coach 8 NHL teams, including the Leafs and Canucks. He was a pioneer in studying of game videos to improve his team’s play and was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame as a builder.
Bob Gainey went on to be a key contributor to the Montreal Canadiens’ championship teams in the 1990s, was one of the best two-way players ever, and was also elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame. He went on to have a successful coaching & management career, with Minnesota/Dallas and Montreal.
Doug Gibson and Rolly Kimble both were drafted to the NHL and went on to play professionally. Doug played with the Boston Bruins and Washington Capitals.
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