Denis Savard

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Denis Joseph Savard (born February 4, 1961) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player in the National Hockey League from 1980 to 1997.

• Position: Centre
• Shoots: Right
• Height: 5'10"
• Weight: 170 lb

Savard was born in Pointe Gatineau, Quebec, Canada.

Contents 1 NHL Career 2 Career Statistics 3 See also 4 References

[edit] NHL Career

Denis Savard was drafted in the first round, 3rd overall, in the 1980 NHL Entry Draft by the Chicago Blackhawks. He was the highest drafted player in Blackhawks' history. He began his career during the 1980-81 NHL season in which he had three assists in his first game. He then went on to set the Blackhawks' record (since broken) for most points by a rookie with 75.

He was known for his trademark move, the 'Savardian Spin-o-rama' (a term actually coined by Danny Gallivan, referencing the move performed by Serge Savard [1]) , which entailed Savard whirling around with the puck in a full rotation allowing him to defeat defenders and goaltenders alike.

Savard had two separate stints with the Blackhawks. The first was from the 1980–81 season to the 1989–90 season. The second was from 1994–95 to 1996–97. During his absence from Chicago, he played for the Montreal Canadiens (1990–91 to 1993–94) and the Tampa Bay Lightning (1993–94 to 1994–95).

In 1990, Savard was traded to the Montreal Canadiens for Defenceman and future team captain Chris Chelios and a second-round pick (Mike Pomichter) on June 29, 1990. Savard won the Stanley Cup with the Canadiens in 1993. He was soon traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning, where he played 2 seasons. On April 6, 1995 Savard was traded back to Chicago, for a 1996 sixth-round pick (Xavier Delisle).

In 1196 NHL games, Savard scored 473 goals and 865 assists, totalling 1338 points. He trails only Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita for total points in Chicago Blackhawks history. Six times during his career he scored at least 100 points and for seven straight years he had at least 30 goals. His highest point total of 131 came in 1987–88 and his highest goal total of 47 came in 1985–86. In 169 playoff games, he scored 66 goals and 109 assists for a total of 175 points.

Savard retired on June 26, 1997 and on March 19, 1998, had his jersey number #18 retired. Savard was also inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on November 13, 2000. He is currently the assistant coach of the Chicago Blackhawks. Denis Savard had a cousin named Jean Savard who also played in the NHL.

[edit] Career Statistics

                                  Regular Season
Season  Team                    Lge   GP   G   A   Pts  PIM

1977–78 Montreal Juniors        QMJHL 72   37  79   116  22
1978–79 Montreal Juniors        QMJHL 70   46  112  158  88
1979–80 Montreal Juniors        QMJHL 72   63  118  181  93
1980–81 Chicago Black Hawks     NHL   76   28  47   75   47
1981–82 Chicago Black Hawks     NHL   80   32  87   119  82
1982–83 Chicago Black Hawks     NHL   78   35  86   121  99
1983–84 Chicago Black Hawks     NHL   75   37  57   94   71
1984–85 Chicago Black Hawks     NHL   79   38  67   105  56
1985–86 Chicago Black Hawks     NHL   80   47  69   116  111
1986–87 Chicago Blackhawks      NHL   70   40  50   90   108
1987–88 Chicago Blackhawks      NHL   80   44  87   131  95
1988–89 Chicago Blackhawks      NHL   58   23  59   82   110
1989–90 Chicago Blackhawks      NHL   60   27  53   80   56
1990–91 Montreal Canadiens      NHL   70   28  31   59   52
1991–92 Montreal Canadiens      NHL   77   28  42   70   73
1992–93 Montreal Canadiens      NHL   63   16  34   50   56
1993–94 Tampa Bay Lightning     NHL   74   18  28   46   106
1995    Tampa Bay/Chicago       NHL   43   10  15   25   18
1995–96 Chicago Blackhawks      NHL   69   13  35   48   102
1996–97 Chicago Blackhawks      NHL   64   9   18   27   60

                   NHL Totals         1196 473 865  1338 1336

[edit] See also

• Retired NHL Players
• List of members of the Hockey Hall of Fame
• Hockey Hall of Fame
• List of NHL statistical leaders
• List of NHL seasons
• List of NHL players with 1000 points

[edit] References

• "One on One with Serge Savard" by Kevin Shea, December 16, 2003, retrieved August 10, 2006
• Hockey Database Statistics
• Hockey draft central

Preceded by: Bob Pulford	Head Coaches of the Chicago Blackhawks 1997–1998 (Co-coach)	Succeeded by: Brian Sutter
Preceded by: Darryl Sutter	Chicago Blackhawks captains 1988–89	Succeeded by: Dirk Graham