Robert Bryant Plager (March 11, 1943 – March 24, 2021) was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for 14 seasons from 1964 until 1978, primarily for the St. Louis Blues. Plager spent over half a century with the Blues organization in various capacities.
| Bob Plager | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Plager in 2014 | |||
| Born | March 11, 1943 Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada | ||
| Died | March 24, 2021 (aged 78) St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. | ||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) | ||
| Weight | 190 lb (86 kg; 13 st 8 lb) | ||
| Position | Defence | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for | New York Rangers St. Louis Blues | ||
| Playing career | 1962–1978 | ||
Early career edit
Plager was born in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, on March 11, 1943.[1] His father, Gus, worked as the chief official in the Northern Ontario Hockey Association.[2] Plager played junior hockey with the Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters and the Guelph Royals.[3] Known for his aggressive, highly physical play, he broke what was then the Ontario Hockey Association record for penalty minutes in a season in 1961–62.[2] He subsequently signed a professional contract with the New York Rangers in 1964, but only played 29 games with this club over the next three years, spending most of his time with the minor league Baltimore Clippers. The NHL's expansion gave Plager his chance to become an NHL regular; he was traded to St. Louis with Gary Sabourin, Tim Ecclestone, and Gord Kannegiesser for Rod Seiling on June 6, 1967.[4]
Blues playing career edit
Plager was reunited with his brothers Bill and Barclay as all three took the ice for St. Louis Blues as the team started its existence with a hard-hitting, defensive-oriented squad that appeared in three straight Stanley Cup Finals. Bob Plager earned a reputation as a bruising player with a devastating hip check. Off the ice, he was known as a prankster who was able to bond teammates through his lighthearted demeanor.[5] Despite injuries, Plager was able to play 615 games over 11 years on the St. Louis blue line.[6]
Post-playing career edit
Plager retired from on-ice action in 1978 and took a job with the Blues front office. He is credited with developing the process of advanced scouting. During the 1990–91 season, he took over as head coach of the Peoria Rivermen, a Blues affiliate club. In his one-season behind the bench, he led the team to a Turner Cup championship and won the Commissioners' Trophy as coach of the year. During the 1992–93 season, he became the Blues' head coach, but, unhappy with his new role, he resigned after 11 games to return to his job as vice president of player development.[7]
His jersey was retired on February 2, 2017, the seventh for a Blues player.[8] He was either a player, coach or executive for nearly all of the Blues' existence until his death.[9]
Personal life edit
Plager's brothers, Bill and Barclay, also played in the NHL.[1] All three of them played together with the St. Louis Blues from 1968 to 1972.[1][10][11] Plager was a convert to Judaism.[12][13]
Death edit
Plager died of a "cardiac event" suffered while driving eastbound near St. Louis' Vandeventer neighborhood, on Interstate 64, on March 24, 2021, leading to a two-vehicle collision.[14][15][16] During a commemoration ceremony at Enterprise Center, organist Jeremy Boyer played "When The Blues Go Marching In" while Blues alumni carried his coffin out of Enterprise Center to be transported.[17]
Career statistics edit
Source:[1]
Regular season and playoffs edit
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1959–60 | Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters | OHA | 44 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 37 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 1960–61 | Guelph Royals | OHA | 43 | 3 | 12 | 15 | 99 | 14 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 73 | ||
| 1961–62 | Guelph Royals | OHA | 50 | 5 | 22 | 27 | 161 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1961–62 | Kitchener-Waterloo Beavers | EPHL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1962–63 | Guelph Royals | OHA | 45 | 11 | 28 | 39 | 97 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1962–63 | Baltimore Clippers | AHL | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | ||
| 1963–64 | St. Paul Rangers | CHL | 61 | 13 | 35 | 48 | 158 | 8 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 21 | ||
| 1964–65 | New York Rangers | NHL | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1964–65 | Vancouver Canucks | WHL | 31 | 5 | 12 | 17 | 103 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1964–65 | Baltimore Clippers | AHL | 19 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 27 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 1965–66 | New York Rangers | NHL | 18 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1965–66 | Minnesota Rangers | CHL | 44 | 7 | 12 | 19 | 145 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1966–67 | New York Rangers | NHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1966–67 | Baltimore Clippers | AHL | 63 | 3 | 16 | 19 | 169 | 9 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 15 | ||
| 1967–68 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 53 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 86 | 18 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 69 | ||
| 1968–69 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 32 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 43 | 9 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 47 | ||
| 1968–69 | Kansas City Blues | CHL | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1969–70 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 64 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 113 | 16 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 46 | ||
| 1970–71 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 70 | 1 | 19 | 20 | 114 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 1971–72 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 50 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 81 | 11 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 5 | ||
| 1972–73 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 77 | 2 | 31 | 33 | 107 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1973–74 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 61 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 48 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1974–75 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 73 | 1 | 14 | 15 | 53 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | ||
| 1975–76 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 63 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 90 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1976–77 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 54 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 23 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1976–77 | Kansas City Blues | CHL | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 15 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1977–78 | Salt Lake Golden Eagles | CHL | 11 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 52 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 6 | ||
| NHL totals | 644 | 20 | 126 | 146 | 802 | 74 | 2 | 17 | 19 | 195 | ||||
Coaching record edit
Source:[18]
| Team | Year | Regular season | Post season | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | L | T | Pts | Division rank | Result | ||
| St. Louis Blues | 1992–93 | 11 | 4 | 6 | 1 | (9) | (resigned) | — |
See also edit
References edit
- ^ a b c d "Bob Plager Stats". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
- ^ a b Timmermann, Tom (March 24, 2021). "Bob Plager remembered for all he meant to team and St. Louis". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
- ^ "Bob Plager Hockey Stats and Profile". HockeyDB. The Internet Hockey Database. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
- ^ "Legends of Hockey -- NHL Player Search -- Player -- Bob Plager". Legendsofhockey.net.
- ^ "Honored Numbers - Bob Plager". Blues.nhl.com.
- ^ "Bob Plager". Players. Hockey-Reference.com (Profile). Sports Reference. Archived from the original on December 1, 2008. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
- ^ "Archives | The Philadelphia Inquirer". Inquirer.com.
- ^ "Plager retirement ceremony set for 6:30 p.m." NHL.com. January 23, 2017.
- ^ Kaplan, Emily (March 24, 2021). "St. Louis Blues legend Bob Plager dies in car accident at age 78". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
- ^ "Bill Plager Stats". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
- ^ "Barclay Plager Stats". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
- ^ "Plager, Bob : Jews In Sports @ Virtual Museum". Jewsinsports.org. March 11, 1943. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
- ^ "All-Time List of Jewish Skaters in the NHL". Jewishsportsreview.com. Archived from the original on March 10, 2021. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
- ^ Heffernan, Erin (March 24, 2021). "Blues hockey legend Plager killed in crash on Highway 40". The St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
- ^ "Blues legend Bobby Plager dead in car accident on Interstate 64". Kmov.com. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
- ^ "Blues legend Bob Plager died from cardiac-related issue". Ksdk.com. March 26, 2021.
- ^ Jeremy playing "When the Blues Go Marching In" one last time for Bobby, retrieved January 12, 2022
- ^ "Bob Plager NHL & WHA Hockey Coaching Record". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
External links edit
- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
- St. Louis Blues biography