Vic Stasiuk

Victor John Stasiuk (born May 23, 1929) is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey left winger and a former NHL head coach.

Vic Stasiuk
Born	May 23, 1929 Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada
Height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight	185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb)
Position	Left Wing
Shot	Left
Played for	Chicago Black Hawks Detroit Red Wings Boston Bruins
Playing career	1950–1966

Biography

Stasiuk played junior hockey in his native Lethbridge, Alberta before signing with the Chicago Black Hawks. He played sparingly in Chicago, and was traded to the Detroit Red Wings in 1951. He spent time in the minors with the Indianapolis Capitals and the Edmonton Flyers. He was part of three Stanley Cup teams in 1952, 1954, and 1955. In 1954, however, although Stasiuk played 42 regular season games for Detroit, because he spent the playoffs in the minors, his name was left off the Stanley Cup after the Wings captured the league crown.[1]

In 1955, Stasiuk was traded to the Boston Bruins and found chemistry with Johnny Bucyk and Bronco Horvath, a grouping dubbed "The Uke line" because of the Ukrainian ancestry of the three players. In 1957-58, this line became the first in NHL history to have all three participants reach the 20 goal mark. In 1960, Stasiuk scored a career high 68 points, and he was selected to play in the NHL All-Star Game. In 1961, he was traded back to Detroit, playing with this club until 1963, before finishing his career in the minors. He played for the Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Red Wings, and Boston Bruins, He recorded 183 goals and 254 assists in 745 NHL games.[2]

After retiring, Stasiuk moved to coaching. He took over the Pittsburgh Hornets of the American Hockey League for two seasons and later led the same league's Quebec Aces to back-to-back losses in the Calder Cup finals. Immediately after coaching the EHL Jersey Devils from 1966-68,[3] Stasiuk earned a job with the Philadelphia Flyers. His team finished out of the playoffs by a single point in 1969-70, and then were eliminated in the first round of the postseason the next year. Stasiuk was fired after the 1970-71 season; the Flyers offered him a scouting position, but he took a head coaching job three games into the NHL season with the California Golden Seals.[4] Stasiuk was fired after the season due to a stylistic conflict with management, and he then spent one year behind the bench of the Vancouver Canucks before settling into a career in junior hockey coaching.[5]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1946–47	Lethbridge Native Sons	AJHL		9	0	6	6	11		1	1	1	2	0
1947–48	Wetaskiwin Canadians	EJrHL		—	—	—	—	—		—	—	—	—	—
1948–49	Kansas City Pla-Mors	USHL		66	7	13	20	52		2	0	0	0	0
1949–50	Chicago Black Hawks	NHL		17	1	1	2	2		—	—	—	—	—
1949–50	Kansas City Pla-Mors	USHL		39	10	13	23	27		—	—	—	—	—
1950–51	Chicago Black Hawks	NHL		20	5	3	8	6		—	—	—	—	—
1950–51	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		50	3	10	13	12		—	—	—	—	—
1951–52	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		58	5	9	14	19		7	0	2	2	0
1951–52	Indianapolis Capitals	AHL		8	7	1	8	6		—	—	—	—	—
1952–53	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		3	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
1952–53	Edmonton Flyers	WHL		48	37	43	80	71		—	—	—	—	—
1953–54	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		42	5	2	7	4		—	—	—	—	—
1953–54	Edmonton Flyers	WHL		21	6	12	18	37		13	2	6	8	23
1954–55	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		59	8	11	19	67		11	5	3	8	6
1954–55	Edmonton Flyers	WHL		11	7	6	13	32		—	—	—	—	—
1955–56	Boston Bruins	NHL		59	19	18	37	118		—	—	—	—	—
1956–57	Boston Bruins	NHL		64	24	16	40	69		10	2	1	3	2
1957–58	Boston Bruins	NHL		70	21	35	56	55		12	0	5	5	13
1958–59	Boston Bruins	NHL		70	27	33	60	63		7	4	2	6	11
1959–60	Boston Bruins	NHL		60	29	39	68	121		—	—	—	—	—
1960–61	Boston Bruins	NHL		46	5	25	30	35		—	—	—	—	—
1960–61	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		23	10	13	23	16		11	2	5	7	4
1961–62	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		59	15	28	43	45		—	—	—	—	—
1962–63	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		36	6	11	17	37		11	3	0	3	4
1962–63	Pittsburgh Hornets	AHL		22	9	20	29	24		—	—	—	—	—
1963–64	Pittsburgh Hornets	AHL		42	10	10	20	32		5	0	0	0	4
1964–65	Pittsburgh Hornets	AHL		63	14	21	35	58		3	0	0	0	0
1965–66	Memphis Wings	CHL		25	9	3	12	14		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals				745	183	254	437	669		69	16	18	34	40

Coaching record

Team	Year	Regular season						Post season
		G	W	L	T	Pts	Division rank	Result
Philadelphia Flyers	1969–70	76	17	35	24	58	5th in West	Missed playoffs
Philadelphia Flyers	1970–71	78	28	33	17	73	3rd in West	Lost in Quarter Finals
California Golden Seals	1971–72	75	21	38	16	58	6th in West	Missed playoffs
Vancouver Canucks	1972–73	78	22	47	9	53	7th in West	Missed playoffs
NHL Total		307	88	153	66

See also

• List of ice hockey line nicknames

References

1. Vic Stasiuk at hockeyDB.com
2. Vic Stasiuk at Legends of Hockey
3. The EHL
4. "Philadelphia Fires Stasiuk", The Leader Post, May 28, 1971
5. "Vic Stasiuk, Canucks not talking - yet", The Sun, April 27, 1972

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or Legends of Hockey, or The Internet Hockey Database