Posts Tagged ‘Autograph’

Okay, it’s time to goon it up a little around here and who better to do that with than the NHL’s all-time leader in penalty minutes, Dave “Tiger” Williams.

Tiger Williams was selected 31st overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs during the 1974 draft and would make his debut the following season as a twenty-year old. He played in 42 games that season, scoring 10 goals and helping on 19 others for a total of 29 points. Not too shabby for a rookie, right? Potential offensive abilities be damned, it was with his hard-nosed playing style that Tiger would make his name. That same season, Williams tallied 187 penalty minutes, dropping the mitts 22 times against guys like Terry O’Reilly (three times), Bob Gassoff (twice),  and Keith Magnuson. His 187 PIMs would be the second lowest total of his career and also one of only two times he would finish under 200 PIMs. The only other time was his last season in the NHL, when he played in just 28 games.

Over the next four seasons with the Maple Leafs, Tiger Williams was one of the premier tough guys in the NHL. During those four season, he put up 299, 338, 351, and 298 PIMs respectively. He fought 130 times and traded punches with every goon worth a damn. In that same span, Tiger continued to show that he was more than an enforcer. He scored 77 goals over those four seasons and totaled 172 points in 320 games. Again, not too shabby for a fighter, right?

Towards the end of the 79-80 season, Williams was traded from the Maple Leafs to the Vancouver Canucks. He would spend the next four seasons in Vancouver and continue to do what he did best, police the ice and generate some offense. Over those four seasons, he put up 343, 341, 265, and 294 PIMs.  He didn’t fight as much, only dropping the gloves 89 times, but c’mon? That’s like saying Gretzky wasn’t as good in LA because he was only scoring 150+ total points instead of the 200+ in Edmonton. Williams also managed to score 75 goals (on par with his Toronto days) and rack up 152 points in 289 games.

Williams was traded to the Detroit Red Wings prior to the start of the 84-85 season for Miracle on Ice star Rob McClanahan. He would play 55 games in Detroit before being shipped off to the Los Angeles Kings. He played the next two seasons in LA, accumulating 320 and 358 PIMs. His offensive ability was still there as he netted 36 goals and 83 points in 148 games.

Two games into the 87-88 season, he was traded to the Hartford Whalers for cash. Williams played in just 26 games in Hartford, scoring 6 goals and spending 87 minutes in the sin bin. He was placed on waivers and would not play again. He officially retired at the end of the season at the ripe ol’ age of 33.

For his career, Williams led the NHL in PIMs three times and finished in the top-10 twelve times. He had twelve seasons of over 200 PIMs and six with more than 300. He is the all-time leader in PIMs with 3966 in 962 games. He dropped the gloves 323 times, beginning with Gary Howatt and ending with Shane Churla. He scored a total of 241 goals and helped on 272 others, giving him 962 total points.

This card is from the 2005-06 Upper Deck The Cup set. This product is one of those high-end things that I would never ever buy a pack/box of. I think the overall design is solid and I get the best of three different things: a jersey, on-card signature, and a low print run of just 75. If I remember correctly, I think I got this card for about $25 which, for the reasons I just listed, is a steal. Part of me wishes it was a card from his Canuck days and featured a piece of those god-awful early-80s jerseys, but this will do. He has a nice, clean signature that is not as good as the old timers, but much better than the current players. I’ll say its a transition signature.

Here is his rookie card which I showed on here a while ago:

Ahhh, he is going to carve your eyes out with his blade!

Lastly, I wanted to include a fight clip, but I couldn’t find a really memorable Tiger fight. He just fought SO much, no one sticks out in my mind. I’ll ask you, what is YOUR favourite Tiger fight?

In place of a hockey fight clip, I give you one of the best goal celebrations ever, courtesy of Mr. Williams:

The legacy of Jean Ratelle can be summed up in a few adjectives: consistent, gentlemanly and classy. While most of us would consider ourselves lucky to have such a legacy, it actually hurts Ratelle a little. Instead of being a superstar, he flies under the radar as one of the all-time greats because he was not flashy, outspoken, dirty, or anything else that would make us remember him. He simply played the game and played it well. So let’s dig a little deeper into the career of Jean Ratelle, shall we…

Jean Ratelle broke into the NHL with the New York Rangers during the ’60-’61 season as a twenty year old. Enjoying a cup of coffee that season (3 games), he would rejoin the team for the  following season but ended up splitting his time between the Rangers and the Kitchener-Waterloo Beavers of the EPHL. During the next two seasons, he would again split time between the Rangers and the Baltimore Clippers of the AHL. After suffering a major back injury that required spinal chord surgery during the latter half of the ’63-’64, Ratelle finally joined the Rangers for good the following season.

Ratelle would be one of the Rangers’ best players during his tenure with the team. From ’64-’65 to ’75′-’76, he would put up 774 (319 goals, 455 assists) points in 714 games. He would score over 30 goals six times and over 40 goals twice during his Broadway run. His best season with the Rangers came during ’71-’72 when he put up 109 points (46 goals, 63 assists) in only 63 games. Oh, and he had just FOUR (!!) PIMs that season. It sort of goes without saying that he won the Lady Byng that season in addition to the Lester Pearson Award. He was inducted into the HOF in 1985.

Ratelle (and Brad Park) was traded to the Boston Bruins early in the ’75-’76 season and would thrive. In 67 games, he ended up with 90 points (31 goals, 59 assists). Combined with the 13 games (15 points) he played with New York, Jean Ratelle totalled over 100 points for the second time in his career. In Boston, he was often paired with Middleton and Jonathan on a gritty, hard-working line that was the trademark of the Don Cherry Bruins. During his six seasons with the Bruins, Ratelle tallied 450 points (155 goals, 295 assists) before retiring at the age of 40.

Looking at his career numbers, Ratelle stands out as one of the best of his era. He played 1281 games, scored 491 goals, helped on 776 others, and nearly averaged a point-per-game. He finished with a higher career +/- (+299) than career PIMs (276). Fourteen times he scored over 20 goals; eight of those times he scored over 30 goals and twice over 40 goals. He scored 90+ points four times and 100+ twice. Three times he was in the top-10 in goals, six times in the top-10 in assists, and seven times in the top-10 in total points. Career wise, Ratelle is in the top-50 in goals, assists, and points. He won two Lady Byng Trophies, a Pearson Award, and the Masterton Trophy.

What hurts Ratelle is that he was never really the best player on his team. In New York, that honour usually belonged to Rod Gilbert. In Boston, the scoring tended to be spread evenly throughout the entire team. Additionally. Ratelle never won a Stanley Cup and that tends to make great players forgotten.  The biggest negative about Ratelle is that he wasn’t negative. By all accounts, he was a class act on and off the ice; admired and respected by his teammates and opponents and sometimes referred to as “Gentleman” Jean Ratelle. As fans, we  tend to forget the nice guys or the guys who just go about their business. We’d rather remember the outspoken characters or flashy players. Jean Ratelle was neither of these. It’s a shame too, because Ratelle was really REALLY good.

Onto the card…

This is Ratelle’s second card and the second card I have from this set (the other is Dallas Smith). I really like the blue border and the sort of painted photograph. Look at Jean; doesn’t he just look like a nice guy? The back is simple and contains a brief writeup in both English and French. There is not a whole lot to say about this set. It’s beautiful in it’s simplicity and I wouldn’t think twice about picking up other cards from this set. There aren’t really any notable rookies in this set. Vic Hadfield, who was Ratelle’s linemate on the GAG (Goal-A-Game) Line, has a rookie card, but that’s about it. The Bobby Hull is the big card (~$350) followed by Stan Makita (~$125). Oh, and I guess the checklist (~$250) but that is just lame.

Here is a bonus Jean Ratelle card. It comes from the 2001-02 Fleer Greats of the Game set. It’s one of his few certified on-card autographs and can be had for around $20. That’s a steal!