Errol Thompson (ice hockey)

Errol Thompson
Errol Thompson
Born	May 28, 1950 (age 73); Summerside, Prince Edward Island, Canada
Height	5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Weight	185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb)
Position	Left wing
Shot	Left
Played for	Toronto Maple Leafs; Detroit Red Wings; Pittsburgh Penguins
NHL draft	22nd overall, 1970; Toronto Maple Leafs
Playing career	1970–1981

Loran Errol Thompson (born May 28, 1950) is a Canadian former professional

1970 Amateur Draft. Thompson is also a former captain of the Detroit Red Wings.^[1]

Junior and senior leagues

Thompson started turning heads at a young age while playing for the

Tulsa Oilers of the Central Hockey League

.

NHL career

In 1972, Thompson was called up to play full-time for Toronto and with his blazing speed and scoring touch quickly established himself as a reliable offensive NHL talent. On a Leaf team that lost more games than it won, he scored 32 points in his first NHL season. Thompson began improving with each year and in the 1974–75 season scored 25 goals. Next season, on a line with Darryl Sittler and Lanny McDonald, he scored 43 goals, becoming the second player in Leaf history, after Frank Mahovlich, to score 40 goals in a season. The Thompson-Sittler-McDonald line became well known throughout North America after Sittler set an NHL record with ten points in one game on February 7, 1976.

After breaking his arm in the 1976–77 season, Thompson missed one half of the season but still managed 21 goals. The offensively talented winger began to see less ice time under defense-oriented coach Roger Neilson and was eventually traded with various draft picks to the Detroit Red Wings for Dan Maloney and a future second round draft pick, on March 13, 1978. With Detroit, Thompson continued to produce, scoring 23 goals his first full season and 34 goals the following season. In 1980, he was named co-captain of the Wings, splitting time with Reed Larson. After scoring 26 points in the 1980–81 season he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Gary McAdam on January 8 and played his final 34 games in Pittsburgh.

Career statistics

			Regular season					Playoffs
Season	Team	League	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1966–67	Halifax Jr. Canadians	Exhib.	47	28	32	60	29	—	—	—	—	—
1966–67	Halifax Jr. Canadians	M-Cup	—	—	—	—	—	17	15	9	24	9
1967–68	Halifax Jr. Canadians	Exhib.	45	41	40	81	55	—	—	—	—	—
1967–68	Halifax Jr. Canadians	M-Cup	—	—	—	—	—	11	6	7	13	12
1968–69	Halifax Jr. Canadians	MaJHL	30	11	18	29	25	—	—	—	—	—
1969–70	Charlottetown Royals	NBSHL	20	13	23	36	—	3	1	3	4	0
1970–71	Tulsa Oilers	CHL	65	15	14	29	37	—	—	—	—	—
1970–71	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	1	0	0	0	0	—	—	—	—	—
1971–72	Tulsa Oilers	CHL	46	21	21	42	30	13	4	6	10	8
1972–73	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	68	13	19	32	8	—	—	—	—	—
1973–74	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	56	7	8	15	6	2	0	1	1	0
1974–75	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	65	25	17	42	12	6	0	0	0	9
1975–76	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	75	43	37	80	26	10	3	3	6	0
1976–77	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	41	21	16	37	8	9	2	0	2	0
1977–78	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	59	17	22	39	10	—	—	—	—	—
1977–78	Detroit Red Wings	NHL	14	5	1	6	2	7	2	1	3	2
1978–79	Detroit Red Wings	NHL	70	23	31	54	26	—	—	—	—	—
1979–80	Detroit Red Wings	NHL	77	34	14	48	22	—	—	—	—	—
1980–81	Detroit Red Wings	NHL	39	14	12	26	52	—	—	—	—	—
1980–81	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL	34	6	8	14	12	—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals			599	208	185	393	184	34	7	5	12	11

References

^ ^a ^b "Personalities". The Prince Edward Island Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. Archived from the original on 2011-07-06. Retrieved Dec 6, 2009.

External links

Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database

Preceded by Dale McCourt	Detroit Red Wings captain 1980–81 with Reed Larson	Succeeded by Reed Larson

[PEISHOF-1] "Personalities". The Prince Edward Island Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. Archived from the original on 2011-07-06. Retrieved Dec 6, 2009.

[1]