A Tale For The Grandchildren, And An NHL Record Too!

By Thom Racine

The best part about a site like this, is that anyone can tell stories that would otherwise be locked away, known only to the people involved.

In the giant scale of NHL history and folklore, this is one of those stories that have to be told because it belongs in those history vaults, just as the best told stories we all have known over the years.

As most Saturday nights go in the NHL, November 18th, 1995 had the usual heavy schedule.

In the original six city of Boston, the Bruins were hosting an original expansion team in the St. Louis Blues. On the Blues bench was a goalie that had been in this position for five years total, 3 in Pittsburgh and 2 in Toronto.

Good enough to be there on that bench, but never called upon, and wondering if he ever would be.

The Blues were his third team. In fact, he had dressed for about 15 games in his NHL career to this point, playing only exhibition games over the years, yet oddly he did have a Stanley Cup ring from his first year in Pittsburgh. He is seated at the right hand of Mario Lemieux in the 1990-91 Stanley Cup photo.

There have been a few interesting moments along the way as well.

One particular exhibition games was in Tampa Bay, played in an open-air stadium in front of 25,000 fans. The Kings and Wayne Gretzky were the opposition and the Penguins showcased their newest star Jaromir Jagr. He would get the win that night, sealed when "JJ" scored into an empty net with six seconds to go.

In his excitement, Jagr never retrieved the puck from his very first NHL goal, and at the final buzzer, the goalie scooped it up - having won his first NHL game. Exhibition game as it was, it made no difference to him.

When Jaromir realized his gaff, he tried to arm-wrestle that biscuit away on the flight home. The goalie would not let go, almost as if he knew "JJ" would score a few more, and he may never win another.

That night in Boston was one in a long string that found him sitting on that bench, still holding on to his dream.

He was now 28 years old, and 8 years earlier had stormed onto the college hockey scene in Boston. An unknown, who would carve out a name for himself at the "Safety School" on Huntington Avenue and lead the Northeastern Husky's to two Beanpot Championships. He'd win the tournament MVP and Eberly award for top goalie twice.

In his senior year, a blocker save made late in the game off current Canucks GM Dave Nonis of Maine, resulted in the first ever Hockey East Championship.

They would vote him an All-American twice, and years later into the Beanpot HOF. He was named to the Hockey East team of the decade and the Husky HOF as well.

He was a surefire prospect and no one thought he would have to toil harder than most for his opportunity.

Ten minutes remained in the Bruins game when they took a three-goal lead. This was the realization of every Canadian kids dream. It is ironic that it would be in the very same city where it all started, when he was set to make his NHL debut - insignificant at the time to all except himself.

Who would have ever thought, that a one in a million chance happening, would be the first of two rather strange incidents in NHL history? The first of the oddities for this career minor league goalie, came a few minutes after entering the game.

Cam Neely took a snap shot from the slot, and there it was - his first save. It was similar to one's he'd made thousands of times on the backyard rink, or house league games back home.

After the ensuing draw, the next whistle stop a few seconds later was for a puck out of play, which happened to land in the Blues bench. Quick thinking by the Blues trainer led to the puck being saved for that goalie.

Now goalies keep momento's of their first wins and other milestones. yet I have to wonder how many goalies have the puck from their first save!

It would be the first game of 11 he would play in for the remainder of the season. A brief playoff appearance would bring the total to 12.

In one of those games, Dino Ciccarelli scored one of his 600 plus NHL goals on him.

Dale Hawerchuk would score his 500th goal in Toronto one night and that goalie would be the last of the Blues to congratulate his teammate on the ice.

The Blues relied heavily on Grant Fuhr who would set a modern day record for consecutive starts in one season, that year. Fuhr recorded his 300th win along the way, and for some reason, gave that goalie the puck as a memory of the season he spent backing him up, spelling him when coach Mike Keenan had seen enough.

At the end of that year he'd had a bird's eye view of Steve Yzerman's double OT winner in game 7 of the playoffs. From his vantage point, he knew before even Stevie Y did, that it was going in.

He traveled to Japan with the Sharks a few years later as the NHL opened the season in the land of the rising sun.

He'd also travel to London, England with the Leafs in 1994, for a couple of pre-season games against the Rangers.

Not a bad journey for 11 regular season games.

Oh, and of those games, he never won any.

He never started any either.

As a result, he currently holds the dubious NHL mark, or record if you wish, of having played in the most NHL games without a start.

For Bruce Racine, the man surely wishes some things had turned out different.

In a recent conversation with him, he admits he has a few regrets, and looks back on all of it with great memories for what the game did for him along the way.

Fifteen years playing the game, the game we all dream of playing.

Bill Masterton Exemplified Perseverence Beating Odds

Many hockey fans have doubtlessly heard the name Bill Masterton from the annual trophy awarded in his honour at season's end. Story of who Masterton was is often singularly associated with his tragic passing as the result of an on ice incident, but Masterton was much more defined by who he was, and the perseverance he displayed on making to the NHL after years of hard work.

Masterton was born August 16, 1938 in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Growing up in hockey, Masterton had a knack for scoring goals and was often among the league leaders in that category.

At 17 he joined the St. Boniface Canadiens and in 22 responded with 23 goals and 49 points in 1955-56. Masterton and the Canadiens played in the Memorial Cup playoffs, where he tallied eight points in six games but it was the OHA's Toronto Marlboros who successfully defended their national junior amateur title.

In the fall of 1957, Masterton enrolled at the University of Denver, where he played hockey while getting an education. In four years with the school team he was one of the club's top offensive weapons, averaging more than two points per game in each of his last three seasons. Masterton helped the school to win an impressive three NCAA national titles, in 1958, 1960 and again in his senior year in 1961, when he was named the most valuable player of the entire NCAA tournament.

Following graduation, Masterton was hopeful of landing a professional job in hockey, but with just six teams in the NHL, cracking a team's lineup was next to impossible. In 1961-62 Masterton joined the Hull-Ottawa Canadiens of the EPHL, a minor pro league. Among some of Masterton's more notable teammates included future NHLers Keith McCreary, Jim Roberts, Barclay Plager, Terry Harper, Dallas Smith and goalies Cesare Maniago and Ernie Wakely.

Masterton retired from the game for a spell, but was encouraged to return after the Montreal canadiens traded his right to the Minnesoata North Stars on June 14,1967. He had toiled patiently in the minors for years, mostly in the USHL before getting a shot when the league expanded to 12 teams for the 1967-68 campaign. The expansion North Stars, after a tryout in which he surprisingly made the team, signed him to a free-agent contract. It was the thrill of a lifetime for Masterton, who had for so long dreamed about one day making it to the best hockey league in the world.


















Masterton scored the first goal in North Stars history on October 11, 1967. After only 38 games in the league, tragedy struck.

During a North Stars' game against another expansion team, the Oakland Seals, on January 13, 1968, Masterton fell awkwardly to the ice, hitting his head. Bill was checked by Larry Cahan and Ron Harris of Oakland, and fell backwards onto the ice. The force of the back of his head hitting this ice caused much bleeding, and he quickly lost blood. He was seriously injured, sustaining much brain damages. Doctors were prevented from doing surgery due to complcations in the area of the brain. Two days later, Bill died. He was the first player in 40 years to die as a result of an on-ice incident in the NHL. His death would result in more intense lobbying for hockey players to wear helmets, which were uncommon in professional hockey at that time.

No other North Star ever wore his No. 19, and it was officially retired in 1987, six years before the North Stars left Minnesota.

Masterton's dedication and perseverence have been forever immortalized by the league, with a trophy named in his memory. It is awarded annually to the NHL player who best personifies perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to the game of hockey as voted upon by the members of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association. Bobby Clarke, Serge Savard, Mario Lemieux, Cam Neely and Saku Koivu are just a few of the big names that have been honoured with the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy in past years.