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Carol Vadnais
Carol Vadnais 1978.JPG
Vadnais with the New York Rangers in 1978
Born (1945-09-25)September 25, 1945
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Died August 31, 2014(2014-08-31) (aged 68)
Laval, Quebec, Canada
Height 6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight 190 lb (86 kg; 13 st 8 lb)
Position Defence
Shot Left
Played for Montreal Canadiens
Oakland Seals
California Golden Seals
Boston Bruins
New York Rangers
New Jersey Devils
National team Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Canada
Playing career 1966–1983

Carol Marcel Vadnais (September 25, 1945 – August 31, 2014) was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who played 17 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1966–67 until 1982–83. Vadnais won the Stanley Cup twice during his career, in 1968 with the Montreal Canadiens and again in 1972 with the Boston Bruins.

Playing career

Originally a forward, Vadnais was shifted to defence in his final year of junior hockey with the Montreal Jr. Canadiens. In his first NHL training camp, he made the Montreal Canadiens lineup for the 1966-67 season. While the Canadiens were initially successful in not exposing Vadnais to the 1967 expansion draft, he was left unprotected after the 1967-68 season and would be claimed by the expansion Oakland Seals in the June 1968 intra-league draft. He became the Seals' captain at the beginning of the 1971-72 season but was traded mid-season.

On February 23, 1972, Vadnais was acquired by the Boston Bruins in an attempt to bolster their blueline for a Stanley Cup run. The Bruins outbid Vadnais' old club, the Canadiens, to secure his services. The move paid off and Vadnais headed the Bruins' second defence pairing behind Bobby Orr's first unit, which helped the Bruins capture the 1972 Stanley Cup.

Vadnais was involved in the November 7, 1975 blockbuster trade that sent him along with star forward Phil Esposito to the New York Rangers for Jean Ratelle and Brad Park. Vadnais went on to play seven seasons for the Rangers and one for the New Jersey Devils before retiring in 1983. Along with Wayne Cashman of the Bruins and Serge Savard of the Winnipeg Jets, he was one of the final NHL players to participate in the pre-expansion Original Six era (the Bruins and Jets both made the playoffs, extending Cashman's and Savard's careers by that long).

Vadnais played 1,087 career NHL games, scoring 169 goals and 418 assists for 587 points, as well as adding 1,813 penalty minutes. In his best statistical season (1974–75), he scored 18 goals and set career highs with 56 assists and 74 points. Vadnais participated in six NHL All-Star Games and was a member of Team Canada at the 1976 Canada Cup (but didn't play in the tournament) and 1977 World Ice Hockey Championships.

Coaching career

Vadnais joined the Rangers' coaching staff as an assistant for the 1983–84 and 1984-85 seasons. This was followed by one season as the head coach of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League's Verdun Junior Canadiens, after which Vadnais left hockey for good.

Personal

After hockey, Vadnais worked as a real estate agent in the Montreal area. His wife, Raymonde, died of cancer in 2004; they had one daughter, Michele.

Vadnais died of cancer on August 31, 2014, at the age of 68.

Achievements

  • In the 2009 book 100 Ranger Greats, was ranked No. 52 all-time of the 901 New York Rangers who had played during the team's first 82 seasons

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1963–64 Montreal NDG Monarchs MMJHL 44 39 49 88 90 17 7 15 22 34
1963–64 Montreal NDG Monarchs M-Cup — — — — — 13 13 11 24 12
1964–65 Montreal Jr. Canadiens OHA 56 9 16 25 74 7 1 0 1 13
1965–66 Montreal Jr. Canadiens OHA 48 9 14 23 184 10 1 4 5 24
1966–67 Montreal Canadiens NHL 11 0 3 3 35 1 0 0 0 2
1966–67 Houston Apollos CPHL 21 5 5 10 45 — — — — —
1967–68 Montreal Canadiens NHL 31 1 1 2 31 1 0 0 0 0
1967–68 Houston Apollos CPHL 36 5 21 26 178 — — — — —
1968–69 Oakland Seals NHL 76 15 27 42 151 7 1 4 5 10
1969–70 Oakland Seals NHL 76 24 20 44 212 4 2 1 3 15
1970–71 California Golden Seals NHL 42 10 16 26 91 — — — — —
1971–72 California Golden Seals NHL 52 14 20 34 106 — — — — —
1971–72 Boston Bruins NHL 16 4 6 10 37 15 0 2 2 43
1972–73 Boston Bruins NHL 78 7 24 31 127 5 0 0 0 8
1973–74 Boston Bruins NHL 78 16 43 59 123 16 1 12 13 42
1974–75 Boston Bruins NHL 79 18 56 74 129 3 5 6 0
1975–76 Boston Bruins NHL 12 2 5 7 17 — — — — —
1975–76 New York Rangers NHL 64 20 30 50 104 — — — — —
1976–77 New York Rangers NHL 74 11 37 48 131 — — — — —
1977–78 New York Rangers NHL 80 6 40 46 115 3 0 2 2 16
1978–79 New York Rangers NHL 77 8 37 45 86 18 2 9 11 13
1979–80 New York Rangers NHL 66 3 20 23 118 9 1 2 3 6
1980–81 New York Rangers NHL 74 3 20 23 91 14 1 3 4 26
1981–82 New York Rangers NHL 50 5 6 11 45 10 1 0 1 4
1982–83 New Jersey Devils NHL 51 2 7 9 64 — — — — —
NHL totals 1,087 169 418 587 1,813 106 10 40 50 185

International

Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM
1977 Canada WC 10 1 3 4 33
Senior totals 10 1 3 4 33

See also

  • List of NHL players with 1000 games played
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