Today in the History of Hockey: August 24 – Hockey Writer – Hockey History
On this date, in 1972, the greatest single class in the history of the Hockey Hall of Fame was introduced. Similarly, NHL history was made when a pair of brothers defected from Europe to becoming stars. Let’s hop on Thw Time Machine and relive everything that August 24 has to offer.
Elite level introduced
The Hockey Hall of Fame is filled with the greatest players and legendary figures in the sport. There have been some memorable introductory classes over the past few decades, but it’s hard to say that one of the 1972 was the greatest of them.
On August 24, 1972, the hall opened the doors to Gordie Howe, Jean Beliveau, Bernie Geoffrion, Hooley Smith and longtime Boston Bruins director Weston Adams. The four players combined have scored 1,901 goals, 4,317 points and 22 Stanley Cup titles.
Howe and Beliveau topped the list. Their career was so great that the Hall of Fame gave up on its mandatory waiting period just a few months after its retirement.
At the time of retirement, Howe was the NHL’s all-time leading scorer with 786 goals and 1,809 points. He didn’t stay in retirement for a long time. In 1973, he returned to the ice with Houston Eros of the New World Hockey Association (WHA). When the WHA folded in 1979, the Hartford Whalers were one of the NHL teams, and Howe returned to the league where he became a star. After induction, he was the first of three Hall of Fame to play in the NHL. Guy Lafleur and Mario Lemieux are the other two.
Beliveau spent all 20 seasons in his NHL with the Montreal Canadaens. He scored 507 goals and 1,219 points in 1,125 games. He is the second of three players, scoring 500 goals in the Canadiens. Maurice Richard (544) and Lefrell (518) are the others. He won 10 excellent Stanley Cups, second only to his former teammate Henri Richard, who won 11.
Geoffrion is Beliveau’s teammate, six of which were Stanley Cup winners. In 883 games between 1950 and 1968, he scored 393 goals and 822 points in 883 games. He earned the nickname “Boom Boom” for his thunder shooting shooting, and he is considered his innovator.
Smith played 717 games in 17 NHL seasons between 1924 and 1941. He scored 200 goals and 426 points in the center and right wing. He won the first Stanley Cup with the original Ottawa Senator in 1927 and won the second game against the Montreal Maroon in 1935. He also spent some time with the Bruins and the New York Americans.
In the last interesting novel about this date, this is the first Hall of Fame induction ceremony that women are allowed to attend.
Stastny brothers make history
Brothers Peter and Anton Stastny changed the hockey landscape forever when they traveled to North America on August 24, 1980. The Czechoslovakian national team left the Czechoslovakian national team and violated Canada after losing 4-3 to the Soviet Union Austria, with the Stastny Brothers losing 4-3. With the help of Marcel Aubut, Peter, Anton and Peter’s wife Dariana, owner of Quebec Nordic, he left Vienna and landed in Montreal.
Both brothers signed with Nordic and participated in the opening squad of the 1980-81 season. Peter won the Calder trophy with 39 goals and 109 points, becoming the top rookie in the NHL. Anton matched his brother’s 39 goals, an increase of 85 points in total. Marian was the oldest brother to join Quebec the following season. The trio had a total of 753 goals and 1,346 points during the Nordic period.
(Photo of Bruce Bennett Studio/Getty Pictures)
Peter continued to play for the New Jersey Devils and St. Louis Bruce before retiring in 1995. His two sons. Both Jan and Paul compete in the NHL. Yan competed in 91 games for Edmonton Oilers, Brown Bears and Bruce. Paul enjoyed a very successful NHL career after being selected by the Colorado Avalanche in 2005. He announced his retirement on November 1, 2023 after spending the 2022-23 season with the Carolina Hurricanes.
Odd number and ending
On August 24, 1992, the San Jose Sharks traded Brian Mullen, the younger brother of Hall of Famer Joe to New York Islanders to gain the rights of Marcus Thuresson. MullenTh and the NHL finals. Thuresson has never played in the NHL.
Veteran free agent defensive Gerald Diduck signed with the Whaler on August 25, 1995. This is his fifth different team with the Chicago Blackhawks in the 1994-95 season. He played 135 games for Hartford before being traded by right-wing Chris Murray on March 18, 1997. Diduck has played in 932 professional games, over 17 NHL seasons, and had eight different teams before retiring in 2001.
The Avalanche signed free agent forward Alex Kerfoot on August 24, 2017.Th Overall) in the 2012 NHL entered the draft, but they failed to sign him after his college career at Harvard.
(Amy Irvin / hockey writer)
Kerfoot scored 34 goals and 85 points in two seasons of avalanche. He was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs on July 1, 2019 as part of Tyson Barrie’s Nazem Kadri deal and is now a member of the Utah Mammoth.
Happy birthday to you
A total of 28 current and former NHL players were born on August 24. The first one was Red Spooner, who was born in 1910. He played a game for Pittsburgh Pirates in 1930. Most recently, forward Olle Lycksell, who was born in 1999.
The most successful player born on August 24 is Los Angeles Kings captain Anze Kopitar, who celebrates his 37th birthday today. He has been the king’s main force since he was 11 years oldTh The overall choice for the NHL to enter the draft in 2005. He participated in 1,454 games, scoring 440 goals and 1,278 points. Kopitar also played a major role in the 2012 and 2014 Kings Stanley Cup championships.
(Amy Irvin / hockey writer)
Andrew Brunette was born on August 24, 1973 and played the most games in this group. Between 1996 and 2012, he competed in 1,110 NHL games, the capital of Washington, Nashville Predators, Atlanta Thrashers, Minnesota Wild, Avalanche and Blackhawks. He scored 268 goals and 733 points in his career and was the last player to score on Hall of Fame goalkeeper Patrick Roy. He is now the head coach of the Predators under new general manager Barry Trotz.
Other notable boys on August 24th birthday are Alain Daigle (71), Benoit Brunet (57), Ian Moran (53), Derek Morris (47), Marcel GOC (42), Brad Hunt (37) and the late Murray Balfour and Bill Goldsworthy.
*Originally built by Greg Boysen
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