Ten NHL Brother Combinations
#1 The Sutter Brothers
When we think of famous brother combinations that have played in the NHL, no family garners more recognition than the Sutter family. The family consists of seven brothers, six of whom played in the NHL (Brent, Brian, Darryl, Duane, Rich, and Ron), all made the NHL in the 1970s and early 1980s. According to his brothers, the oldest brother Gary is said to be the best hockey player among them but never advanced his hockey ambitions, preferring to stay home and work on the family farm in Viking, Alberta. After their playing careers, four of the brothers transitioned into NHL coaching jobs. Brent, Brian, Duane, and Darryl all became coaches or general managers of NHL clubs. Brian, Darryl, and Brent, all at one time or another, were head coaches of the Calgary Flames. All of the brothers played for the Chicago Blackhawks or the St. Louis Blues at some point in their careers.
The first generation of Sutters enjoyed immense success in the NHL. Collectively, the brothers laced up the blades for over 5,000 games and won six Stanley Cups. Brother Duane enjoyed the most success winning four Stanley Cups with the dynasty New York Islanders of the early 1980s, with brother Brent joining him on Long Island for the 1982-83 titles. Darryl had the most success as a coach; three times, he reached the Stanley Cup Final. The first time was as head coach and general manager of the Calgary Flames in 2003-04, where he lost in game seven to the Tampa Bay Lightning. In 2012 and 2014, he would return to the Stanley Cup Final. This time he would be victorious, defeating the New Jersey Devils and the New York Rangers to help the Los Angeles Kings win their first and second franchise championships. For 24 seasons from 1976-77 to 2000-01, the NHL has had at least one of the first-generation Sutter brothers carving up NHL ice, with all the brothers playing simultaneously from 1982-83 to 1986-87.
The second generation of Sutters includes Brandon, Brody, and Brett, who played for the Carolina Hurricanes. Rich Sutter’s son Lukas came close to the NHL when he was drafted 39th overall in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft by the Winnipeg Jets. He never did sign with the Jets but instead went back to the WHL’s Red Deer Rebels, where he was drafted a second time, this time by the New York Islanders, as the 200th overall pick in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft. Currently, he remains retired from hockey as of the 2017-18 season. Ron’s son, Riley Sutter, was selected by the Washington Capitals in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, 93 overall. He is currently for the Capitals farm team, the AHL’s Hershey Bears.
#2 The Stastny Brothers
Marian, Peter, and Anton were the third trio of brothers to play in the NHL on the same team, the first was the Bentley brothers (Chicago Blackhawks 1940s), and the second was the Plager brothers (St. Louis Blues 1970s). The Stastny’s defected to Canada in 1980, with brother Marian joining them a year later. The brothers are of Czechoslovakian descent. Marian is the oldest (born January 8, 1953), Peter (born September 18, 1956), and Anton (born August 5, 1959). The brothers learned their skills on a homemade outdoor rink. Marian played right wing, Peter played center, and Anton was on the Left-wing. The brothers grew up behind the iron curtain and were strongly opposed to communism, so when Vaclav Nedomansky, a star on the Czech national team, defected in 1974, becoming the first player to defect to North America from a communist country, he became an idol to the brothers.
Several teams were interested in signing the brothers to NHL contracts, but many teams shied away because of the risks involved and the tight security at that time. The Quebec Nordiques were the most persistent in obtaining the brothers, so in August of 1980, with the Czechoslovakian team playing a tournament in Austria, Peter called the Nordiques and told them that he and Anton wanted to defect.
The next day, CEO and Quebec Nordiques president Marcel Aubut and Gilles Leger, the director of player personnel, arrived in Innsbruck, Austria, to formulate a plan to help the brothers and their families get to the Canadian embassy in Vienna where they could apply for political asylum. When the Czech authorities caught wind of the plan, they quickly tried to stop the Stastnys, but with the help of Viennese police and several governing officials, including Immigration Minister Lloyd Axworthy and Douglas Fisher of Hockey Canada, they were able to make it to freedom.
Brother Marian had no idea of his brother’s plan to defect and was left out of the loop because they knew that he wouldn’t be able to join them because his wife and three children were unable to get out of Bratislava.
After the defection of Peter and Anton, communist authorities put Marian under constant surveillance. They made him report to the police once a week, blocked him from practicing law, and refused to allow him to play for his club or the national team. If not for having money smuggled to him, he would have been destitute. Finally, in 1981 due to the connections of Quebec Nordiques president Marcel Aubut, all three brothers and their families were reunited in North America.
With all three brothers now playing on the same line with the Quebec Nordiques, they began a torrid assault on opposition teams and recorded several NHL records along the way. Peter won the Calder Trophy for Rookie of the Year (1980) while accumulating a rookie-record (70) assists and (109) points. Anton had a stellar season registering 39 goals and 85 points in 1980. In that same year, the brothers combined for eight points each in a beat down of the Washington Capitals and set a new NHL road record. In 1981-82 the first year with all three brothers together, they combined for 300 points; with Peter accounting for 139 of them, it was the third-highest output that season.
The Stastny brothers were truly one of the top ten NHL brother combinations of all time. Wayne Gretzky was the only player to score more total points during the 1980s than Peter Stastny. Although the Nordiques were an exciting team with the highly talented Stastny’s they never achieved much playoff success, as they would often lose to the arch-rival Montreal Canadians. Only twice did they make it to the Conference Finals losing to the New York Islanders in 1982 and later to the Philadelphia Flyers in 1985.
#3 The Bentley Brothers
The Bentleys were Western Canada’s hockey sensation. The family produced 13 children, five of which were boys. All five boys played for the Drumheller Miners, a team that was both a senior and junior team. The senior team won the Alberta Senior Hockey Championship in 1964-65, 1965-66, 1966-67, and 1967-68. All five boys, Max, Doug, Reg, Roy, and Wyatt, grew up on the family farm in Delisle, Saskatchewan. Their father, Bill, instilled a strong work ethic in the boys. He would have the boys milk the cows and would tell them that it would help build strong wrists, which would strengthen their wrist shot.
Three of the boys would make the NHL, Max, Doug, and Reg. the Bently boys were small in stature, and because of this, their father Bill used to tell them, “If they can’t hit you, they can’t hurt you.” With this philosophy instilled in the boys, they became agile skaters stopping and turning on a dime and dazzling fans with their stickhandling finesse.
Initially, the Boston Bruins had an interest in Doug, while the Montreal Canadians were securing the rights to Max. Ultimately these deals fell through when Doug was released by the Bruins, and brother Max was diagnosed with a heart condition rendering him unfit to play for the Canadians. When the Canadians gave the rights to Max Bentley to the Boston Bruins in exchange for Vic Myles. Bruins’ owner Art Ross declared them “among the worst amateurs to come to my camp.“
A sportswriter would later inform the Chicago Blackhawks about two available highly-skilled players. With the Blackhawks desperate to acquire scoring power, they invited Doug Bentley to training camp in 1939-40. At the urging of Doug, the Blackhawks would invite his brother Max to camp in October 1940. Max paid immediate dividends, scoring the game-winning goal with twelve seconds left in his first NHL game. On January 1, 1943, the Bentleys made history, becoming the first brother trio to play on the same line in the NHL when the third brother Reg joined his two brothers on the Blackhawks roster but was later cut from the team after only 11 games.
On January 28, 1943, Max exploded for 7 points, scoring four times and adding three helpers in a 10-1 shellacking of the New York Rangers; it proved to be the most productive output of his career. That season Doug won the NHL scoring title registering 33 goals and 73 points, one point ahead of Boston Bruin’s Bill Cowley and just three points ahead of brother Max. Doug Bentley became the first Blackhawk to win the scoring title.
After traveling to Canada for an exhibition game in 1944, Doug was denied permission to return to the United States by Canadian officials due to the war. He instead was allowed to return to the family farm where he played senior hockey for the Laura Beavers, whom he helped win the western Canadian intermediate championship.
After spending two years in the Canadian military, Max re-joined his brother Doug in 1945-46 along with Bill Mosienko to form the “Pony Line,” a reference to their speed. Bill Mosienko would set an NHL record of his own that remains unmatched to this day when on the final night of the regular season, in a game against the New York Rangers on March 23, 1952, he scored three goals in 21 seconds in the third period against Rangers netminder Lorne Anderson, and linemate Gus Bondar assisted on all three goals, 45 seconds after scoring the hat-trick Mosienko narrowly missed scoring a fourth goal when he rang one off the post.
Max would be traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs for the 1947-48 season, breaking up the “Pony Line“. Both brothers would continue to excel in the NHL. Max would win the Stanley Cup in his first year with the Maple Leafs and two more in 1949 and 1951. The brothers were reunited one last time when they joined the New York Rangers for the 1953-54 season. Doug Bentley never did win a Stanley Cup.
#4 The Staal Brothers
The Staal brothers are four brothers, all of whom have played in the NHL. Three of the brothers have played for the Carolina Hurricanes, while one (Jared Staal) is no longer in the NHL, only having played two games in the league. Marc Staal is the only brother that has not played for the Hurricanes. All of the Stalls hail from Thunderbay, Ontario, Canada.
Marc Staal is the only brother to play defense. He was a 12th overall pick of the New York Rangers in 2005. He is a presence on the blue line at 6 ft 4 in and weighing 214 lb. He is one of the longest-tenured Rangers of all time, having played in 842 games for the Blueshirts. In 2020-21 he was traded to the Detroit Red Wings. He was the third of the brothers to reach the Stanley Cup Finals after brothers Eric won the cup in 2006, with Carolina and Jordan reaching the final in consecutive years in 2008 and 2009, with the Pittsburgh Penguins winning it in the latter year. His New York Rangers lost to the Los Angeles Kings in five games in his only Stanley Cup Final appearance.
Jordan Staal was the second overall pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2006. He did not disappoint; in his rookie year, he set several records. He scored two shorthanded goals in one game, was the youngest player to score on a penalty shot, the youngest player to score a hat trick in league history, and the youngest rookie to score the most shorthanded goals in a season. He was nominated for the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year and was named to the NHL All-Rookie Team.
Eric Staal is the oldest of the brothers; he was a second overall pick of the Carolina Hurricanes in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft. He was the first of the brothers to hoist the Stanley Cup after winning the Trophy in 2006 in seven games against the Edmonton Oilers. Eric has played for the Carolina Hurricanes, New York Rangers, Minnesota Wild, Buffalo Sabres, and the Montreal Canadians. He is the most consistent point producer among the brothers, having played in 1293 NHL contests while accumulating 441 goals and 593 assists for 1,034 points (2020-21).
Jared Staal is the youngest of the brothers. He was a 49th overall selection of the Phoenix Coyotes in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. he is the only brother to shoot right-handed. Of the four brothers, Jared has had the least success in the NHL, having appeared in only two games for the Carolina Hurricanes during the 2012-13 season. He recorded one two-minute penalty for his NHL career stats.
#5 The Gretzky Brothers
No brother combination in NHL history can match what these two siblings have accomplished. Wayne Gretzky is the NHL’s All-Time leader in goals, assists, and points. He holds or shares 61 records. Forty of those records are regular-season, with 15 playoffs and 6 for NHL All-Star games. He is the most dominant offensive player in the history of the game. If Wayne had never scored a goal in his entire career, he would still be the NHL’s All-Time point leader. He scored 894 goals and 1963 assists for 2857 points in 1487 games. Wayne’s nearest point competitor is Jaromir Jagr, who accumulated 1921 points in 1733 games while Wayne played 246 fewer games; Jaromir Jagr has career totals of 766 goals and 1155 assists and 1921 points. Wayne is still 936 points ahead of Jagr and the only player to have ever scored more than 2000 points in an NHL career. Ron Francis is second to Wayne Gretzky in assists with 1249 in 1731 games played, 714 assists less than Wayne and in 244 more games played; while Gordie Howe has 801 goals for his career for second place, Howe is 93 goals behind Wayne Gretzky after playing in 1767 games, 280 games more than Wayne.
Mario Lemieux was the only player to have ever had a chance to match Wayne Gretzky. Had Mario been healthy for his career, it may have been possible. Mario had a point-per-game average of 1.883, second only to Wayne Gretzky with a 1.921 points-per-game average. Mario had career totals of 915 games played, 690 goals, and 1033 assists for 1723 points. Wayne had 1134 points more than Mario but played 572 games more; if Mario maintained his point average over another 572 games, he would have finished with exactly 2800 points, 57 points less than Wayne. Gordie Howe played 32 years of professional hockey, 26 years of NHL, and six years in the WHL. Howe had NHL totals of 801 goals, 1049 assists, and 1850 points in 1767 games. In the WHA, his totals were 174 goals and 334 assists for 508 points in 419 games. If these totals are combined, Howe has 975 goals and 1383 assists for 2358 points in 2186 games. Howe would have 81 goals more than Wayne, 580 assists less than the Great One, and 499 points less than Wayne, having played six years more and registering 699 games more than Wayne Gretzky.
Wayne Gretzky was a sports dynamo and probably the best player in all of professional sports history. Let’s not forget that Wayne had a brother competing against him. Brent Gretzky played in the NHL for parts of two seasons with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Brent played ten games for the Lightning in 1993-94, racking up 1 goal and two assists. He played three more games for Tampa Bay in 1994-95, helping to light the lamp with an assist. Nuff said.
#6 The Plager Brothers
The Plager brothers were a trio of brothers who all played for the St. Louis Blues; the brothers were known for their hard-hitting defensive play. Bob and Barclay Plager were original 1967-68 expansion Blues members. Brother Bill would join his two brothers in St. Louis for two games during the 1968-69 season.
On March 1, 1969, Blues coach Scotty Bowman played all three defensive brothers on the same line in a game against the Montreal Canadians. Scotty started the brothers at forward that night instead of their defensive positions. Bowman played the brothers as forwards for one shift before returning them back to their defensive roles.
Interestingly the “Battling Plagers” all started as goaltenders due to the fact that they were the only family on the block in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, that had goalie pads.
All of the Plager brothers are now deceased, with Bobby Plager dying of a cardiac arrest while driving on March 24, 2021.
When I think of the Plager brothers, I’m reminded of another talented but violent trio of brothers, the Hanson Brothers of the movie Slapshot, starring Paul Newman.
#7 The Dryden Brothers
Ken Dryden was a 14th overall pick of the Boston Bruins in 1964. Ironically he would be traded to the Montreal Canadians just days after being selected by the Bruins, where he would become a Boston nemesis for years to come. It wasn’t until the mid-1970s that Dryden learned that he had been originally drafted by the Boston Bruins.
Ken Dryden made his NHL debut on March 20, 1971, in a home game against fellow goaltender and brother Dave Dryden of the Buffalo Sabres. To this day, it remains the only time in NHL history that brothers faced each other as goaltenders on opposing teams. Dryden came out of nowhere to replace an injured Rogie Vachon. Dryden played six regular-season games for the Habs, winning them all and compiling a sparkling 1.65 goals-against average and leading the Canadians to a Stanley Cup. He would go on to backstop the Habs to five more championships in 1973,1976,1977,1978, and 1979. Dryden had a very short NHL career, playing in just over seven seasons. He never lost more than ten games in a season and lost only six games during the 1977 season. Ken Dryden played in 397 NHL regular-season NHL games, winning 258, losing 57, and tying 74 with a career goals-against average of 2.24 and 46 shutouts.
Dryden won the Vezina in 1973, 1976, 1977, 1978, and 1979. Ironically and unbeknownst to him, Dryden would rest on his stick in the same pose as George Vezina 60 years earlier. He was ranked number 25 on The Hockey News’ list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players. Dryden was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983; his number 29 was retired by the Canadians on January 29, 2007
Dave Dryden is better known for being the goalie against whom Wayne Gretzky scored his first professional goal. He is also known as the first goalie to create and wear a fiberglass mask with a cage. Dave Dryden broke into the NHL with the New York Rangers in 1961-62, playing in one game; he would later play for the Chicago Blackhawks in 1965-66 and again in 1967-68, 1968-69, with later stops in Buffalo from 1970-71-1973-74 before having a final stint in 1979-80 with the Edmonton Oilers. Dave Dryden passed away at the age of 81, on October 4, 2022, due to complications from chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension surgery.
#8 The Hull Brothers
Bobby Hull played 23 years in the NHL and the WHA; he played for the Chicago Blackhawks, Winnipeg Jets, and the Hartford Whalers. He is regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. Hull broke into the NHL with the Blackhawks for the 1957-58 season. He played in the windy city until the end of the 1971-72 season, when he jumped ship and became the first million-dollar player, signing a lucrative contract with the Winnipeg Jets of the rival World Hockey Association. Hull would remain a Jet for eight seasons, leading the team to two Avco championships in 1976 and again in 1978. He played only a few games for the Jets in the WHA’s final season before retiring, but when the Jets merged with the NHL, he rejoined the team for the 1979-80 season, playing in 18 games before being traded to the Hartford Whalers to play with his idol, Gordie Howe.
Hull won his only Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks in 1961, defeating the Detroit Red Wings in six games. He is remembered for having the most feared shot in hockey, his shot was clocked at 118.3 mph, and he could skate 29.7 mph. He was a spectacle to behold with his blonde hair, blazing speed, and ferocious shot. He earned the name “The Golden Jet.” He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983 and was named one of the ‘100 Greatest NHL Players in history.
Dennis Hull played 14 seasons in the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks (1964-1977) and Detroit Red Wings (1977-78). He played in the shadow of older brother Bobby, but he did manage to become a bonafide star in the NHL, earning himself the nickname “The Silver Jet.” He recorded 30 or more goals in four separate seasons and finished his NHL career with 303 goals and 351 assists for 654 points over 959 NHL games.
#9 The Esposito Brothers
Phil Esposito is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame and, in 2017, was named one of the “100 Greatest NHL Players in history. He is the older brother of fellow Hall of Famer Tony Esposito. Phil began his NHL career in 1963-64 as Chicago Blackhawk; he played four seasons in the windy city before he was traded in 1967 to the Boston Bruins in a blockbuster deal that saw him, along with teammates Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield, going to Boston in exchange for Gilles Marotte, Pit Martin, and goaltender Jack Norris. At the time, the Blackhawks were disappointed in Esposito. They felt that his personality didn’t fit in with the team and that he was too soft and slow and couldn’t finish around the net. Little did they know that Esposito was about to begin an unprecedented assault on the record books and would become the greatest scorers of his generation playing alongside Bobby Orr. The Hawks couldn’t fathom that Esposito could use his lanky frame and strength to fend off abuse in front of the net, where he created havoc for opposing defenders trying to move him. He once said, “Scoring is easy. You just stand in the slot, take your beating and shoot the puck into the net.”
During the 1972 Summit Series, after a disappointing performance on home ice, fans began booing Team Canada; in a memorable response, Esposito passionately exclaimed, “If the Russian fans boo their players in Moscow like you people are booing us, I’ll come back and apologize personally to every one of you, but I really don’t think that will happen. We gave it and are doing our best. All of us guys are really disheartened. . . We came out here because we love Canada. They’re a good hockey team, and we don’t know what we could do better, but I promise we will figure it out. But it’s totally ridiculous – I don’t think it is fair that we should be booed.” This comment inspired Team Canada, who narrowly won the series on Russian ice.
After his playing day’s Esposito took on general managing and head coaching duties for three years with the New York Rangers, he later was largely responsible for helping the Tampa Bay Lightning secure a franchise in 1992. He was the team’s president and general manager until 1998. He is also responsible for making NHL history when he signed Manon Rheaume to an NHL contract, making her the first woman to sign with an NHL team. Phil Esposito remains active in hockey, acting as the team’s color commentator and co-hosts a daily call-in show on SiriusXM’s NHL Network Radio channel.
Anthony James “Tony O” Esposito was a Canadian-born professional ice hockey goaltender who played NHL 16 seasons in the NHL, primarily with the Chicago Blackhawks. Esposito first broke into the NHL with the Montreal Canadians during the 1968-69 season. He played 13 games for the Habs, registering two shutouts and recording a 2.73 GAA and a .913 SV%. He was among the first of his generation to implement the butterfly style. He is also the younger brother of Hockey Hall of Famer Phil Esposito. In 2017 he was named one of the ‘100 Greatest NHL Players in history.
Tony “O” grew up in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, with his older brother Phil.
In 1967-68 he turned pro when he began playing with the Vancouver Canucks of the Western Hockey League and the following year with the Houston Apollos.
Tony Esposito broke into the NHL with the Montreal Canadians during the 1968-69 season. He became only the third American college player chosen by an NHL team. He played 26 minutes in his NHL debut against the Oakland Seals in relief of Rogie Vachon. In his first game as a starter, he donned the pads against the Boston Bruins led by Phil Esposito. Ironically, brother Phil scored the first-ever two goals against his own brother, making it a unique piece of NHL lore. Tony made 33 saves, with the game ending in a 2-2 tie. Tony Esposito played in thirteen regular-season games for Montreal, mainly due to Gump Worsley and Rogie Vachon’s injuries. Esposito was sent back to the minors once Montreal’s goaltending tandem recovered from their injuries. However, Esposito was called back up during the Stanley Cup final when Gump Worsley again was sidelined due to an injury. He would serve as the backup goaltender to Vachon en route to a four-game sweep of the St. Loius Blues and win his first and only Stanley Cup of his 16-year career.
Due to the Intra-league draft in 1969 and Montreal being rich in goaltending talent, Tony Esposito was left unprotected and consequently claimed on waivers by the Chicago Blackhawks. In his first season in the windy city, he had a remarkable campaign, recording a modern-era record with 15 shutouts and a stingy 2.17 GAA to win the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year. However, the awards didn’t stop there. He won the Vezina Trophy and was named to the First All-Star team. He was also runner-up for the Hart Memorial Trophy as league MVP. Because of his 15 shutouts during his inaugural season, he earned the moniker Tony “O.” It’s ironic to note that although Esposito broke into the NHL with the Montreal Canadians and won a Stanley Cup with them as a nonstarter during the 1969 Stanley Cup Final, Montreal would become his greatest playoff nemesis. He would be on the losing end of a Stanley Cup Final in 1971, losing in game seven and again in 1973, losing in six games to the Montreal Canadians both times.
Esposito was selected to play for Team Canada at the historic Summit Series of 1972 against the Soviet Union. He shared netminding duties with Montreal Canadians Hall of Famer Ken Dryden. He was the first Team Canada goalie to win a game against the powerful Soviets. Of the three goaltenders (Esposito, Dryden, and Vladislav Tretiak) at the Series on either side of the puck, Esposito registered the lowest GAA and the best SA%.
After becoming a naturalized American citizen in 1981, he chose to represent Team USA in the Canada Cup after having previously played for Team Canada in 1977 at the Ice Hockey World Championship tournament.
Tony Esposito retired from the NHL in 1984. The Chicago Blackhawks retired his #35 on November 20, 1988. He was also inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in the same year.
In 1998, The Hockey News’ list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players ranked him number 79, 61 spots below his brother Phil who is listed at number 18.
In 2007, Tony “O” and his brother Phil were inducted into the Sault Ste. Marie Walk of Fame.
On March 19, 2008, the Chicago Blackhawks held a “Tony Esposito Night,” where he was named an Ambassador for the Blackhawks franchise.
Sadly, Tony Esposito passed away on August 10, 2021, from pancreatic cancer at the age of 78.
#10 The Richard Brothers
On August 4, 1921, Maurice Richard was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He was the oldest of eight children. Richard grew up in a poverty-stricken family during the Great Depression. Richard made the NHL in 1942-43, playing 16 games for the Montreal Canadians. He would spend his entire career in Montreal, retiring after the 1959-60 season.
Initially, it was thought that Richard was a fragile player and injury-prone. He had several setbacks early in his career. While playing in the QSHL during the 1941-42 season, he broke his wrist after crashing into the net. Previously, he had broken his ankle. During his NHL rookie season, he played in only 16 games due to suffering a broken leg. After a second attempt to join the military, he was rejected because x-rays revealed his ankle had not healed properly.
In 1942-43 Richard signed with the Canadians for $3,500. He originally wore the number 15, but upon the birth of his daughter Huguette he changed his number to 9 to match her birth weight. Richard scored his first NHL goal on November 8, 1942, against the New York Rangers.
Richard played on the “Punch Line,” playing the right wing with Toe Blake and Elmer Lach. During the 1944-45 season, Richard scored 50 goals in 50 games, an NHL record that went unmatched for 36 years until Mike Bossy of the New York Islanders equaled it in 1981. Only four players have ever matched Richard’s benchmark of 50 goals in 50 games. Richard nearly failed to score 50 in 50 when he went eight games without a goal. In the last game of the regular season, he scored his 50th with 2:15 remaining in a game against the Boston Bruins.
Richard was a fierce competitor and was prone to violence if provoked. He had several altercations with players such as Bill Eznicki and Hal Laycoe, even assaulting a referee, which caused him to be suspended for the remainder of the regular season and playoffs. This sparked the 1955 “Richard Riot.” Early in Richards’s career, he was dubbed “The Comet,” but when teammate Ray Getliffe commented that Richard “went in like a rocket,” local sportswriter Baz O’Meara of the Montreal Star and Dink Carroll of the Montreal Gazette used the term his name was cemented.
Gordie Howe on the Maurice Richard “He sure was a drawing card. He brought in the crowds that helped pay our wages. Richard certainly has been one of the greatest players in the game, and we will miss him.
Glenn Hall “What I remember most about Rocket was his eyes. When he came flying toward you with the puck on his stick, his eyes were all lit up, flashing and gleaming like a pinball machine. It was terrifying.“
Richard was a ferocious scoring dynamo that refused to be stopped; he was so intense that passing was rarely an option for Richard; as one teammate once said, “Maurice wouldn’t even pass you the salt.”
Maurice “Rocket” Richard won eight Stanley Cups with Montreal, including five straight in the late fifties. In 2017 he was named one of the 100 Greatest Players in history and is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Henri Richard, the younger brother of NHL legend Maurice Richard was an NHL superstar. Henri played 20 season’s in the NHL from 1955-to 1975, all with the Montreal Canadians. Henri, along with his brother Maurice are both Hockey Hall of Famers. He was dubbed “The Pocket Rocket” because of his diminutive stature, being 5 ft 7 in and weighing only 160 lb. Richard is in a class by himself, as he is the only player ever to win 11 Stanley Cups as a player. In 2017 Richard was named one of the ‘100 Greatest NHL Players in history. Richard played Centre on a line with his brother Maurice and Hall-of-Famer Dickie Moore.
In Game Six of the 1966 Stanley Cup Finals, Henri scored the Cup-clinching goal at the 2:20 mark of the first overtime against the Detroit Red Wings. In 1971 Richard scored the tying goal and the Stanley Cup-winning goal in Game 7 against the Chicago Black Hawks. The Pocket Rocket was benched in Game 5 of the 1971 Finals by coach Al MacNeil for alleging that MacNeil was discriminating against French players on the team. Henri later commented that MacNeil “was the worst coach I ever played for.” Henri would later become the new Captain of the storied Habs after retiring the legendary Jean Beliveau. Eventually, MacNeil and Richard reconciled.
Henri Richard finished his impressive NHL career with 1256 Games Played, 358 Goals, and 688 Assists for 1046 points. Henri wore the #16 for his entire career, which was retired on December 10, 1975. He was elected to the Hockey Hall of fame in 1979. In 1988 he was ranked #29 on The Hockey News‘ list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players. Henri Richard share’s his record of 11 Championships with only one other North American professional athlete, Bill Russell of the NBA’s Boston Celtics.
In 2015 it was revealed that Richard had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. On March 6, 2020, he passed away at the age of 84 in Laval, Quebec.
All-Star Game: 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1963, 1967, 1974
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy:1974
First All-Star Team: 1958
Second All-Star Team: 1959,1961,1963
Stanley Cup Winner: 1956,1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1973.
Well, there you have it, ten of the greatest NHL brother combinations in NHL history. If there are any you would like to mention, please name them in the comments. Honorable mention goes to the Sedin Twins and the Courtnalls (Geoff and Russ).
I know I said this would be a list of ten NHL brother combinations, and it is, but there is one combination of brothers that cannot be ignored.
# 11 The Hanson Brothers
The Hanson brothers are a trio of brothers who played in the movie Slapshot. Their real names are Jeff Carlson, Steve Carlson, and Dave Hanson. Steve Carlson played in 225 games in the NHL and WHA. Dave Hanson played 136 games in the NHL and WHA, and Jeff Carlson played seven games in the WHA. Like their on-screen personas, Dave Hanson and Jeff Carlson were known fighters; while Steve Carlson did fight, he was more of a playmaker.
Steve Carlson was picked 131st overall by the Detroit Red Wings in 1975. He played 52 games in the NHL with the Los Angeles Kings, scoring nine goals and twelve assists at the center position. He also played in the WHA for the Minnesota Fighting Saints, New England Whalers, and Edmonton Oilers.
Dave Hanson played 33 NHL games, 11 for the Detroit Red Wings in 1978-79 and 22 more for the Minnesota North Stars in 1979-80. He scored 1 goal and one assist in the NHL and played for several WHA teams, being drafted 59th overall by the Minnesota Fighting Saints in 1974; he played defense.
Jeff Carlson played right wing for the Minnesota Fighting Saints scoring one assist in 7 games during the 1975-76 season.
Keep Your Stick on the Ice.
