The path of Bryan Trottier’s hockey life has come full circle.
The Hall of Fame centre who was the glue that held together the N.Y. Islanders during a run of four Stanley Cups in the early 1980s came from humble beginnings—plying his craft as a young boy on a creek near his home in tiny Val Marie, Sask. (pop. 500).
Now, after playing the likes of the Montreal Forum, Maple Leaf Gardens, and Madison Square Garden, Trottier is back visiting the smaller centres that recall his hockey heritage as part of the NHL Oldtimers’ Hockey Challenge tour.
The travelling road show of hockey greats come to the ’52 Canadians Arena next Tuesday (Jan. 13) at 7:30 p.m. to take on the Fort Frances O.P.P. Hitmen.
Representatives already have been selling tickets by phone, but tickets also will be available at the door, with the cost set at $20 per person or $60 for a family of four.
“The people that come out to these games, many of them remember a game I played in, whether it was against the Leafs or the Flames or whomever,” said Trottier, who finished his 18-year NHL career in New York and Pittsburgh with 524 goals, 1,425 points, and six Stanley Cups.
“It rekindles and recultivates old memories,” he added. “I remember when we played in Prince Albert [Sask.] in front of 2,500 people. Almost every one of them stayed after to say hi.
“It’s very intimate.”
Trottier joined the tour in November after talking to former junior teammate Dave “Tiger” Williams, who will be here as a player this year after refereeing the game last year.
“Tiger asked me if I would be interested in doing some games. Then I ran into [former Islander teammate] Bob Bourne and he said he was having a great time as part of the tour,” he said.
“Then [former Montreal Canadiens and Edmonton Oilers forward] Mark Napier, who’s organizing the tour this year, called me two days later.
“This is the first winter I’ve ever had the time to do this kind of thing, and I’m taking advantage of it,” Trottier added. “I’ve had the chance to see parts of the country I’ve never seen before.”
Indeed, the cold season has kept Trottier hopping ever since the early 1970s, when what could have been an unfortunate situation turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
“I made the Moose Jaw Canucks [Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League], but it was too far away from home for Dad’s liking,” recalled Trottier. “So I ended up playing on three other teams that winter. I was having the time of my life.
“People think the turning point for me was in my second year in Swift Current [112 points with the Western Hockey League’s Swift Current Broncos], but that year I didn’t play with Moose Jaw was.”
The bevy of hockey-playing opportunities meant sacrifices on the part of Trottier’s parent and four siblings. Some of the tougher sacrifices weren’t even made apparent to him until years later.
“One thing I didn’t realize back then was that my younger sister, Mary, would literally get homesick for my mom when I was taken to games out of town, even though mom was the one leaving the house and Mary was staying behind,” Trottier said.
“She ended up going through a deep depression during those days, but I never knew because nobody told me about it,” he added.
“I still feel bad to this day. It wasn’t part of the game plan to have my sisters suffer while I played hockey.”
After collecting 144 points in his final year of junior with the Lethbridge Broncos of the WHL, Trottier was drafted by the Islanders in the 1974 NHL entry draft. But before that, he also was a selection of the Cincinnati Stingers during the World Hockey Association’s amateur draft that same year.
Not even being aware that the Stingers had selected him, he was approached by a representative from the Cincinnati club with what seemed like an amazing deal at the time.
“They were offering $50,000 for 10 years, which was more money than we had ever seen in our lives,” recounted Trottier. “But a lawyer friend of ours in Swift Current told us to hang on and see what came out of the NHL draft.
“When the Islanders picked me, the contract they offered was far superior, financially,” Trottier said. “On the emotional side, this was the elite league in the world to play in.
“But if the WHA had upped the ante on their deal, I might have went that way, too.”
Instead, Trottier went on to win the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year in 1976 and the Hart Trophy (Most Valuable Player) and Art Ross Trophy (scoring champ) in 1979.
But for him, nothing compares with the excitement of hoisting the Holy Grail of hockey.
“I’ve never played for awards, but for championships,” said Trottier. “Team championships supersede any individual award. But, when they tell you you’ve won the Calder, what are you going to do, say no?”
Trottier spent 15 seasons with the Islanders before joining Pittsburgh as a free agent in 1990. He helped a team filled with young stars like Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr, along with veterans like Joe Mullen and Paul Coffey, to two-straight Cups in ’91 and ’92.
After taking a year off to assess his health situation, Trottier was sparked by a call from Penguins’ general manager Craig Patrick to become a player-coach with Pittsburgh.
He did so the following season, and enjoyed the coaching aspect so much, he signed on for three more years as an assistant coach with the Penguins.
A head coaching stint with the Portland Pirates of the American Hockey League and a four-year stretch as an assistant with the Colorado Avalanche (including another Cup win in 2001) led to Trottier becoming head coach of the N.Y. Rangers before the start of the 2002 campaign.
But saddled with a $70-million lineup fraught with injuries and under-achievers, Trottier lasted only 54 games—posting a record of 21-26-6-1 before being fired.
“I don’t think anyone would think 54 games was a fair trial,” said Trottier, who has tried to keep the experience in a positive light.
“I learned as much in 54 games as I did in all those years as an assistant. It was a wonderful opportunity,” he noted. “Without opportunity, there’s no chance to grow. I’m more thankful than miserable about it.
“I’m still under contract to the Rangers, but if the chance to coach comes up again, I’d definitely take a look at it,” he added.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
