Walt Tkaczuk
| Walt Tkaczuk | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Tkaczuk in 1980 | |||
| Born | (1947-09-29) September 29, 1947 Emsdetten, Germany | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm) | ||
| Weight | 185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb) | ||
| Position | Centre | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for | New York Rangers | ||
| Playing career | 1967–1981 | ||
Walter Robert Bogdan Tkaczuk (born September 29, 1947) is a Canadian retired ice hockey centre who played fourteen seasons in the National Hockey League for the New York Rangers between 1967 and 1981. Tkaczuk's family moved to Timmins, Ontario from West Germany when he was two years old.[1] He was the first German-born player to appear in an NHL game.
Contents
1 NHL career
2 Post-hockey career
3 Career statistics
4 References
5 External links
NHL career
Tkaczuk centered the "Bulldog Line" with Bill Fairbairn and Dave Balon, who was later replaced by Steve Vickers.[2] He could score his fair share of goals, however he was much better at producing assists. Tkaczuk's finest contribution to the game was that of the defensive forward, being among the NHL's elite shadows and faceoff men. This complemented the Rangers' high-scoring GAG line of Jean Ratelle, Rod Gilbert, Vic Hadfield. During his first 2 seasons with the Rangers, the club and media pronounced his name, "Taychuk" because Rangers' Director of Player Personnel felt it was easier to say that the correct pronunciation, "Ka-Chook." Prior to the 1969-70 season, the club announced he would henceforth be called by the correct pronunciation.[3]
In the 1972 playoffs, with Ratelle sidelined with a broken ankle and Gilbert hampered by injuries, Tkaczuk played a key role as the Rangers defeated the defending champions Montreal Canadiens, and the previous season's finalists Chicago Black Hawks, to reach the Stanley Cup Finals. While the Rangers lost to the Boston Bruins in six games, Tkaczuk earned much respect for holding the Bruins' Phil Esposito without a goal in the series.
Walt Tkaczuk was asked to play for Team Canada in the 1972 Summit Series but declined the invitation due to his obligation to his summer hockey school. He was replaced by Philadelphia Flyers' center Bobby Clarke)[4]
In the 1979 playoffs, Tkaczuk was a key contributor as the Rangers upset the first place New York Islanders to reach the Stanley Cup Finals, where they fell to Montreal in five games.
Towards the end of a game on February 2, 1981, Tkaczuk suffered an eye injury when a puck hit him in the eye. [5] He never played again.
Over his career, Tkaczuk played in 945 NHL games, scoring 227 goals and 451 assists for 678 points. Despite his physical presence, he only accumulated 556 minutes in penalties. In 2009, Tkaczuk was ranked No. 14 on the all-time list of New York Rangers in the book 100 Ranger Greats (John Wiley & Sons).
Post-hockey career
Tkaczuk is co-owner of River Valley Golf Course and Tube Slide in St. Marys, Ontario.
Career statistics
| | | Regular season | | Playoffs | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1963–64 | Kitchener Dutchmen | CJHL | 30 | 25 | 37 | 62 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1963–64 | Kitchener Rangers | OHA-Jr. | 21 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1964–65 | Kitchener Dutchmen | CJHL | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1964–65 | Kitchener Rangers | OHA-Jr. | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1965–66 | Kitchener Rangers | OHA-Jr. | 47 | 12 | 31 | 43 | 39 | 19 | 7 | 23 | 30 | 13 | ||
1966–67 | Kitchener Rangers | OHA-Jr. | 48 | 23 | 47 | 70 | 85 | 13 | 6 | 8 | 14 | 23 | ||
1966–67 | Omaha Knights | CPHL | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
1967–68 | Kitchener Rangers | OHA-Jr. | 52 | 37 | 56 | 93 | 81 | 19 | 17 | 20 | 37 | 58 | ||
1967–68 | New York Rangers | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1968–69 | Buffalo Bisons | AHL | 5 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 9 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1968–69 | New York Rangers | NHL | 71 | 12 | 24 | 36 | 28 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
1969–70 | New York Rangers | NHL | 76 | 27 | 50 | 77 | 38 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 17 | ||
1970–71 | New York Rangers | NHL | 77 | 26 | 49 | 75 | 48 | 13 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 14 | ||
1971–72 | New York Rangers | NHL | 76 | 24 | 42 | 66 | 65 | 16 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 35 | ||
1972–73 | New York Rangers | NHL | 76 | 27 | 39 | 66 | 59 | 10 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 8 | ||
1973–74 | New York Rangers | NHL | 71 | 21 | 42 | 63 | 58 | 13 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 22 | ||
1974–75 | New York Rangers | NHL | 62 | 11 | 25 | 36 | 34 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | ||
1975–76 | New York Rangers | NHL | 78 | 8 | 28 | 36 | 56 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1976–77 | New York Rangers | NHL | 80 | 12 | 38 | 50 | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1977–78 | New York Rangers | NHL | 80 | 26 | 40 | 66 | 30 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | ||
1978–79 | New York Rangers | NHL | 77 | 15 | 27 | 42 | 38 | 18 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 10 | ||
1979–80 | New York Rangers | NHL | 76 | 12 | 25 | 37 | 36 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
1980–81 | New York Rangers | NHL | 43 | 6 | 22 | 28 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 945 | 227 | 451 | 678 | 556 | 93 | 19 | 32 | 51 | 119 | ||||
References
^ [page 49] Illustrated Digest of Pro Hockey 1972-73 edition, Don Smith and Art Poretz, Stadia Sports Publishing Inc.
^ "New York Rangers Legends: Walt Tkaczuk"..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
^ {(cite web|url=http://rangers.ice.nhl.com/club/page.htm?id=67675%7C title=Tkaczuk: He's Always Been a Winner.)|
^ 1981 Canada Cup / Coupe Canada, p.126)
^ https://www.nytimes.com/1981/02/04/sports/tkaczuk-out-for-2-weeks.html
External links
Walt Tkaczuk career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database
- rivervalleygolfandtube.com
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Dave Maloney | New York Rangers captain 1980–81 | Succeeded by Barry Beck |
