Alex Delvecchio
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Alexander Peter "Fats" Delvecchio, born December 4, 1931 in Fort William, Ontario, is a former ice hockey player and member of the Hockey Hall of Fame.
After playing a single junior league season for the Oshawa Generals of the OHA (during which he led the league in assists) Delvecchio joined the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League for the 1952 season, and helped the team to win the Stanley Cup that year.
He would go on to excel both at center and left wing for twenty-two full seasons and parts of two others, and was notable for his spot on the Production line with linemates Gordie Howe and Ted Lindsay. No player in NHL history played more games with just the one team. One of the true gentlemen in the game of hockey, he was a three-time winner of the Lady Byng Trophy for combining good sportsmanship with excellence on the ice.
Following his retirement as a player in 1973 -- having, at the time, played the second most games and with the second highest assist and point totals in league history -- Delvecchio served two stints as Detroit's head coach and then as General Manager, until leaving hockey in 1977 to go into business. He was named to the Hockey Hall of Fame in that year.
[edit] Career statistics
| Regular Season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1950-51 | Oshawa Generals | OHA | 54 | 49 | 72 | 121 | 36 | |||||||
| 1950-51 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1951-52 | Indianapolis Capitols | AHL | 6 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 4 | |||||||
| 1951-52 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 65 | 15 | 22 | 37 | 22 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | ||
| 1952-53 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 | 16 | 43 | 59 | 28 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 2 | ||
| 1953-54 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 69 | 11 | 18 | 29 | 34 | 12 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 7 | ||
| 1954-55 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 69 | 17 | 31 | 48 | 37 | 11 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 2 | ||
| 1955-56 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 | 25 | 26 | 51 | 24 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 2 | ||
| 1956-57 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 48 | 16 | 25 | 41 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 2 | ||
| 1957-58 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 | 21 | 38 | 59 | 22 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1958-59 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 | 19 | 35 | 54 | 6 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1959-60 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 | 19 | 28 | 47 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 0 | ||
| 1960-61 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 | 27 | 35 | 62 | 26 | 11 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 0 | ||
| 1961-62 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 | 26 | 43 | 69 | 18 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1962-63 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 | 20 | 44 | 64 | 8 | 11 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 2 | ||
| 1963-64 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 | 23 | 30 | 53 | 11 | 14 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 0 | ||
| 1964-65 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 68 | 25 | 42 | 67 | 16 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 4 | ||
| 1965-66 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 | 31 | 38 | 69 | 16 | 12 | 0 | 11 | 11 | 4 | ||
| 1966-67 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 | 17 | 38 | 55 | 10 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1967-68 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 74 | 22 | 48 | 70 | 14 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1968-69 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 72 | 25 | 58 | 83 | 8 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1969-70 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 73 | 21 | 47 | 68 | 24 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1970-71 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 77 | 21 | 34 | 55 | 6 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1971-72 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 75 | 20 | 45 | 65 | 22 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1972-73 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 77 | 18 | 53 | 71 | 13 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1973-74 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 11 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| NHL Totals | 1549 | 456 | 825 | 1281 | 383 | 121 | 35 | 69 | 104 | 29 | ||||
[edit] Achievements and Facts
- Won three Stanley Cups with Detroit, in 1952, 1954 and 1955.
- Delvecchio did not learn to skate until he was twelve years old, a remarkably late age for a NHL player
- Named a Second Team All-Star in 1953 (at center) and 1959 (at left wing).
- Played in the All-Star Game in 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965 and 1967, a total surpassed by only five players.
- Served as team captain for twelve years, a mark surpassed only in Wings' history by Steve Yzerman.
- Remains 8th all time in NHL history in games played and 27th in points scored.
- In 1998, he was ranked number 82 on The Hockey News' list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players.
- On November 10, 1991 his jersey, number #10, was retired by the Detroit Red Wings
[edit] See also
- List of famous ice hockey linemates
- List of NHL statistical leaders
- List of NHL players with 1000 points
- List of NHL players with 1000 games played
- List of retired NHL players
- Production line (hockey)
- Captain (ice hockey)
| Detroit Red Wings Head Coaches |
|---|
| Duncan • Adams • Ivan • Skinner • Abel • Gadsby • Harkness • Barkley • J. Wilson • Garvin • Delvecchio • L. Wilson • Kromm • Lindsay • Maxner • Dea • Polano • Neale • Park • Demers • Murray • Bowman • Lewis • Babcock |
| Preceded by Gordie Howe |
Detroit Red Wings captains 1962-73 |
Succeeded by Nick Libett |
| Preceded by Ted Garvin |
Head Coaches of the Detroit Red Wings 1973-1975 |
Succeeded by Doug Barkley |
| Preceded by Doug Barkley |
Head Coaches of the Detroit Red Wings 1976 |
Succeeded by Larry Wilson |
| Preceded by Camille Henry |
Winner of the Lady Byng Trophy 1959 |
Succeeded by Don McKenney |
| Preceded by Bobby Hull |
Winner of the Lady Byng Trophy 1966 |
Succeeded by Stan Mikita |
| Preceded by Stan Mikita |
Winner of the Lady Byng Trophy 1969 |
Succeeded by Phil Goyette |
Categories: 1931 births | Canadian ice hockey centres | Canadians of Italian descent | Detroit Red Wings coaches | Detroit Red Wings players | Hockey Hall of Fame | Ice hockey personnel from Ontario | Lady Byng winners | Lester Patrick Trophy recipients | Living people | National Hockey League players with retired numbers | Oshawa Generals alumni | People from Thunder Bay, Ontario | Stanley Cup champions
