Val Fonteyne

Val Fonteyne
Born (1933-12-02) December 2, 1933
Wetaskiwin, AB, CAN
Height 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight 160 lb (73 kg; 11 st 6 lb)
Position Left Wing
Shot Left
Played for NHL
Pittsburgh Penguins
New York Rangers
Detroit Red Wings
Playing career 1954–1974

Valere Ronald Fonteyne (born December 2, 1933 in Wetaskiwin, Alberta) is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey left winger. He played in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1959 to 1972, serving the Detroit Red Wings (on two tours of duty), New York Rangers and Pittsburgh Penguins, and in the World Hockey Association (WHA) from 1972 to 1974 with the Alberta/Edmonton Oilers.

Playing career

While not an offensive star, Fonteyne was a hard-working and effective defensive forward. He is regarded as one of the cleanest players in National Hockey League history.[1] In 820 NHL games spanning 13 seasons, he served a remarkable total of just 26 minutes in the penalty box. He went completely unpenalized in five different seasons, including three in a row from 1965–1968. In a further 149 World Hockey Association games he was assessed only two minor penalties. In his entire professional career, Fonteyne only received a single fighting penalty.

In his NHL career, Fonteyne scored 75 goals and 154 assists for 229 points in 820 games. He also played in 59 playoff games, scoring 3 goals and 10 assists. He made it to the Stanley Cup finals with the Detroit Red Wings in 1961, 1963 and 1966 but lost each time.[1]

The Alberta native was the first player chosen by the then-Alberta Oilers in the 1972 WHA General Player Draft; he played two seasons in the WHA before ending his career. He was one of dozens of players to appear in a post-game ceremony when the Edmonton Oilers played their final game at Rexall Place in April 2016 before moving to a new arena.[2]

Career statistics

    Regular Season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1954–55 New Westminster Royals WHL 7 0 1 1 0 — — — — —
1955–56 Seattle Americans WHL 70 18 18 36 0 — — — — —
1956–57 Seattle Americans WHL 70 24 40 64 6 6 5 1 6 2
1957–58 Seattle Americans WHL 70 34 41 75 11 9 4 4 8 0
1958–59 Seattle Totems WHL 64 32 49 81 2 12 6 5 11 0
1959–60 Detroit Red Wings NHL 69 4 7 11 2 6 0 4 4 0
1960–61 Detroit Red Wings NHL 66 6 11 17 4 11 2 3 5 0
1961–62 Detroit Red Wings NHL 70 5 5 10 4 — — — — —
1962–63 Detroit Red Wings NHL 67 6 14 20 2 11 0 0 0 2
1963–64 New York Rangers NHL 69 7 18 25 4 — — — — —
1964–65 Baltimore Clippers AHL 9 2 3 5 2 — — — — —
1964–65 New York Rangers NHL 27 0 1 1 2 — — — — —
1964–65 Detroit Red Wings NHL 16 2 5 7 4 5 0 1 1 0
1965–66 Detroit Red Wings NHL 59 5 10 15 0 12 1 0 1 4
1965–66 Pittsburgh Hornets AHL 12 5 7 12 6 — — — — —
1966–67 Detroit Red Wings NHL 28 1 1 2 0 — — — — —
1966–67 Pittsburgh Hornets AHL 17 5 11 16 0 9 3 5 8 4
1967–68 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 69 6 28 34 0 — — — — —
1968–69 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 74 12 17 29 2 — — — — —
1969–70 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 68 11 15 26 2 10 0 2 2 0
1970–71 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 70 4 9 13 0 — — — — —
1971–72 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 68 6 13 19 0 4 0 0 0 2
1972–73 Alberta Oilers WHA 77 7 32 39 2 1 0 0 0 0
1973–74 Edmonton Oilers WHA 72 9 13 22 2 5 1 0 1 0
WHA Totals 149 16 45 61 4 6 1 0 1 0
NHL Totals 820 75 145 229 26 59 3 10 13 8

References

  1. 1 2 Val Fonteyne's biography at Legends of Hockey
  2. ↑ Klinkenberg, Marty (April 6, 2016). "The party's over: Edmonton Oilers say goodbye to Rexall Place". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved April 7, 2016.
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