This Week in Chicago Blackhawks History: Hull & Mikita elected to Hall of Fame

While training camp opens today for the 2022-23 Chicago Blackhawks, we can still take some time for our weekly history lesson. This upcoming week marks the 50^th anniversary of the infamous Summit Series. Plus, the Blackhawks had their most iconic duo elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame and named a new general manager.

Sept. 22

1945 – Rick Foley was born in Niagara Falls, ON. The defenseman had one assist in his two games with the Blackhawks during the 1970-71 season. On Oct. 15, 1971, Foley was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers for Andre Lacroix, a center who scored four goals and 11 points in 51 games in Chicago.

1969 – Milan Tichy was born in Plzen, Czechoslovakia. The Blackhawks selected the blueliner in the eighth round (153^rd overall) of the 1989 NHL Entry Draft. He appeared in 13 games during the 1992-93 season and picked up one assist and 30 penalty minutes. The Florida Panthers took Tichy during the 1993 NHL Expansion Draft.

1972 – The Summit Series shifted to Moscow for Game 5. Team Canada built a 3-0 lead midway through the second period and had a 4-1 advantage with just over 15 minutes left to play. However, legendary Blackhawks goaltender Tony Esposito could not make the lead stick as the Soviets scored four goals in less than five minutes to stun the Canadians 5-4 and take a 3-1-1 advantage in the eight-game series.

1975 – Ethan Moreau was born in Huntsville, ON. The left wing was a first-round pick (14^th overall) of the Blackhawks in 1994. He had 33 goals and 65 points in 210 games over four seasons. On March 20, 1999, he was traded with Dan Cleary, Chad Kilger, and Christian Laflamme to the Edmonton Oilers for Jonas Elofsson, Dean McAmmond, and Boris Mironov.

1983 – Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita were elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame. It was fitting that these two long-time teammates were inducted into the same class. This iconic duo played 2,432 for the Blackhawks and spent all but one season in Chicago as teammates. They combined for 1,145 goals and 2,620 points. Hull is still the franchise leader in goals (604), even strength goals (433), game-winning goals (98), and hat tricks (28). Mikita still tops the list of games played (1,396), assists (926), points (1,467), and plus/minus (+329). Montreal Canadiens goaltender Ken Dryden and builder Harry Sinden joined them in the 1983 class.

2000 – The Blackhawks officially named Mike Smith the seventh general manager in franchise history. His tenure only lasted three years, but he drafted Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, Corey Crawford, and Dustin Byfuglien, who all had prominent roles in future Stanley Cup championships.

Sept. 23

1906 – Wildor Larochelle was born in Sorel, QC. The Blackhawks acquired the two-time Stanley Cup winner from the Canadiens for cash on Dec. 21, 1935. He played the final 70 games of his career in Chicago and scored 11 goals and 23 points.

1947 – Christian Bordeleau was born in Noranda, QC. The center was acquired with John Garret from the St. Louis Blues on Feb. 8, 1972, for Danny O’Shea. Bordeleau had six goals and 14 points in 25 games to close out the 1971-72 season. He then moved on to the World Hockey Association (WHA), where he played until the league folded in 1979. He won a Stanley Cup with Montreal in 1969 and an Avco Cup with the Quebec Nordiques in 1977.

1991 – Clint Smith was named as part of the Hockey Hall of Fame class. Two former Blackhawks executives, Bob Pulford and Scotty Bowman, were elected for their playing and coaching careers. Mike Bossy and Denis Potvin of the dynasty-era New York Islanders were also included.

Smith played the first seven seasons of his career with the New York Rangers, winning a Stanley Cup in 1940. The center signed with the Blackhawks in 1943 and played four seasons in Chicago, scoring 81 goals and 202 points in 202 games. He formed a line with fellow Hall of Famers Bill Mosienko and Doug Bentley in 1943-44. During this year, he set an NHL single-season NHL record with 49 assists. Smith also won the Lady Bing Trophy, having been called for only two minor penalties.

Sept. 24

1950 – Dan Maloney was born in Barrie, ON. The Blackhawks selected him in the first round (14^th overall) of the 1970 NHL Amateur Draft. The left wing had 25 goals and 56 points in 131 games before being traded to the Los Angeles Kings on Feb. 6, 1973, for Ralph Backstrom. The Kings eventually used Maloney as part of the package that landed them Hall of Famer Marcel Dionne from the Detroit Red Wings in 1975.

1972 – Canada began their epic comeback in the Summit Series by beating the Soviet Union 3-2 in Game 6. Dryden took over in goal after Esposito’s third-period collapse in the previous contest. Dennis Hull had Canada’s opening goal before Paul Henderson scored his first of three straight game-winning goals. This game is best remembered for “The Slash,” when Flyers star Bobby Clark fractured Valeri Kharlamov’s ankle with a deliberate two-handed slash in the second period.

Sept. 25

1926 – The NHL officially approved new franchises in Chicago and Detroit for the 1926-27 season. Along with a second franchise awarded earlier to New York, the NHL became a 10-team league and adopted a two-division format.

The Chicago franchise was granted to Major Frederic McLaughlin, who named the team in honor of his military unit in World War I. The team was known as the Black Hawks until 1986, when the name was changed to Blackhawks.

The team in Detroit was first known as the Cougars until 1930, when they became the Falcons. They did not adopt the Red Wings name and logo until 1932.

1984 – Phil Esposito was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame along with Jacques Lemaire, Bernie Parent, and builders Punch Imlach and Jake Milford. The elder of the Esposito brothers played the first 235 games of his career in Chicago, scoring 74 goals and 174 points. On May 15, 1967, Esposito was part of the worst trade in Blackhawks history when he was dealt to the Boston Bruins with Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield for Gilles Marotte, Pit Martin, and Jack Norris. He finished his career in 1983 with 717 goals and 1,590 points in 1,282 games.

Sept. 26

1912 – Vic Heyliger was born in Boston, MA. He played in 33 games for the Blackhawks between 1938 and 1944. The center had two career NHL goals and five points.

1914 – Fido Purpur, one of the greatest hockey names of all time, was born in Grand Forks, ND. He was acquired on May 3, 1941, from the St. Louis Flyers of the American Hockey Association (AHA) for Sammy McManus. The right wing played 119 games over the next four seasons and scored 24 goals and 57 points. On Jan. 4, 1945, Purpur was traded with Earl Siebert to the Red Wings for Don Grosso, Butch McDonald, and Cully Simon.

1915 – Frank Brimsek was born in Eveleth, MN. The Blackhawks acquired the Hall of Fame goaltender from the Bruins for cash on Sept. 8, 1949. He played in all 70 games of the 1949-50 seasons and went 22-39-10 with a 3.49 goals-against average (GAA) and five shutouts.

1972 – Canada beat the Soviet Union 4-3 in Game 7 of the Summit Series, drawing even at 3-3-1 with one last game to go. Tony Esposito made 27 saves for the victory while his brother Phil scored twice. Dennis Hull had the primary assist on Rod Gilbert’s second-period tally.

1979 – Chris Kunitz was born in Regina, SK. The left wing played his final of 15 NHL seasons with the Blackhawks after signing as a free agent on July 1, 2018. He had five goals and 10 points in 56 games and retired after the season. He has since stayed with the organization as a player development coach.

1982 – John Scott was born in Edmonton, AB. The future All-Star Game MVP signed with the Blackhawks on July 2, 2010. The giant forward/defenseman had two assists in 69 games for the team. On Feb. 27, 2012, Scott was traded to the Rangers for a fifth-round draft pick used to take Travis Brown, who never played in the NHL.

Sept. 27

1935 – Al MacNeil was born in Sydney, NS. The defenseman was traded to Chicago on May 30, 1962, by the Canadiens for Wayne Hicks. He had 10 goals and 56 points in 260 games over four seasons with the Blackhawks. The Rangers claimed him in the 1966 NHL Intra-League Draft. His grandson Jack Sparkes, also a blueliner, was drafted in the sixth round (180^th overall) in last July’s draft by the Kings.

1937 – Wally Boyer was born in Cowan, MB. The Blackhawks claimed the center from the Canadiens in the same NHL Intra-League Draft in which they lost MacNeil. He had five goals and 11 points in 42 games during the 1966-67 season. He was lost to the California Golden Seals in the 1967 NHL Expansion Draft.

1950 – Michel Archambault was born in St. Hyacinthe, QC. The left wing was a second-round pick (28^th overall) by the Blackhawks in 1970. After a season with the Nordiques in WHA, he appeared in just three games in Chicago during the 1976-77 season and did not find the scoresheet.

Sept. 28

1912 – Art Wiebe was born in Rosthern, SK. The defenseman played his entire 11-season career with the Blackhawks, starting in 1933. He had 14 goals and 40 points in 412 games before retiring in 1944. He was a member of the 1938 Stanley Cup-winning team.

1959 – Tim Trimper was born in Windsor, ON. Originally a second-round pick (28^th overall) in 1979, the left wing had six goals and 16 points in 30 games for the Blackhawks. On Dec. 1, 1980, he was traded with Doug Lecuyer to the Winnipeg Jets for Peter Marsh.

1972 – Canada completed its epic comeback by defeating the Soviet Union 6-5 to win the Summit Series 4-3-1. The Canadians were down 5-3 heading into the final frame before getting goals from Phil Esposito and Yvan to tie things up. Henderson scored the series-clinching goal with 34 seconds remaining. Dennis Hull picked up an assist on Brad Park’s first-period tally. He finished the series with two goals and four points in four games. Mikita played in two games and registered an assist. Defenseman Pat Stapleton dressed in seven of the eight games and did not record a point. Tony Esposito went 2-1-1 with a 3.33 GAA and a .882 save percentage (SV%).

1982 – Ray Emery was born in Hamilton, ON. The goaltender signed with the Blackhawks on Oct. 3, 2011. He spent two seasons as Corey Crawford’s backup and got his name on the Stanley Cup in 2013 before signing with the Flyers. He went 32-10-4 in 55 games with a 2.47 GAA, .908 SV%, and three shutouts.

2001 – Isaak Philips was born in Barrie, ON. The Blackhawks drafted the blueliner in the fourth round (141^st overall) of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. He made his NHL debut last season, playing in four games but not picking up a point. Philips has 12 goals and 34 points in 91 games for the Rockford IceHogs.