Bob Probert

Bob Probert
Born	(1965-06-05) June 5, 1965 Windsor, ON, CAN
Height	6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight	225 lb (102 kg; 16 st 1 lb)
Position	Right Wing
Shot	Left
Played for	OHL  Brantford Alexanders  Hamilton Steelhawks  Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds AHL  Adirondack Red Wings NHL  Detroit Red Wings  Chicago Blackhawks
NHL draft	46th overall, 1983 Detroit Red Wings
Playing career	1982–2002

Robert Probert (born June 5, 1965 in Windsor, Ontario) is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey forward. Probert played for the National Hockey League's Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks. While a successful player by some other measures, Probert is best known for his activities as a fighter and enforcer. Probert was also known for his on (and off)-ice antics and legal problems, as well as being one half of the "Bruise Brothers" with then-Red Wing teammate Joe Kocur, during the late 80s and early 90s.

Playing career

Prior to playing with the Detroit Red Wings, Probert was with the Brantford Alexanders of the Ontario Hockey League. After being drafted, he spent one more season with the Alexanders before spending his 1984-85 season with both the Hamilton Steelhawks and the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the OHL

Detroit Red Wings (1985 – 1994)

Probert was drafted as the 4th pick in the third round (46th overall) in the 1983 NHL Entry Draft, in which the Red Wings also selected Kocur and Steve Yzerman.

During the 1985-86 and 1986-87 seasons, Probert spent the majority of his time with the Red Wings while occasionally playing for their minor league affiliate at the time, the Adirondack Red Wings of the American Hockey League. While he wasn't the most prolific pointmaker in the 1985-86 season, he finished third on the team in penalty minutes behind Kocur and Randy Ladouceur, both of whom played more regular season games than Probert. In the 1986-87 season, Probert accumulated only 24 points, but amassed 221 penalty minutes.

The 1987-88 season saw Probert develop his fighting abilities and reputation as a tough guy with 398 penalty minutes. He also tied for third on the team in points with 62 (Petr Klima also had 62 points). That season, Probert played in his first (and only) NHL All-Star Game, and he contributed the most points during the Red Wings' playoff run, in which Yzerman missed all but the final three games with a knee injury.

Probert's career hit a snag in 1989 when he was arrested for cocaine possession while crossing the Detroit-Windsor border. He served three months in a federal prison in Minnesota, three more months in a halfway house, and was indefinitely suspended from the NHL. The NHL lifted the suspension at the conclusion of his prison term.

When Probert returned to the Red Wings, he was temporarily one of the Alternate (or Associate) Captains of the team along with Gerard Gallant. While his penalty minutes remained high, he also averaged 40 points a season. During his last season with the Red Wings, he accumulated 17 points for the team.

At this time, Probert was once again in trouble with the law. On July 15, 1994, Probert suffered minor injuries when he crashed his motorcycle into a car while driving in West Bloomfield Township, Michigan. At the time of the accident, Probert had been ruled an unrestricted free agent. On July 19, the Red Wings announced that they would not offer a contract to Probert. "This is the end," said senior vice-president Jim Devellano. "[In] my 12 years with the organization ... we've never spent more time on one player and his problems than we have on Probert."

Chicago Blackhawks (1994 – 2002)

Probert's first season with the Blackhawks was the last in which he accumulated over 40 points in a season. From then on, his points and penalty minutes gradually decreased. While he never returned to the levels of point production he achieved with the Red Wings, he remained a physical force on the ice and continued many long-term battles with other enforcers.

Probert also sustained various injuries during his time with the Blackhawks, most notably a torn rotator cuff injury which caused him to miss most of the 1997-98 season. One of the more noteworthy occurrences of his career with Chicago is that he scored the final NHL goal at the historic Maple Leaf Gardens on February 13, 1999.

Bob Probert brawls with Darren Langdon

Fighting

Probert will always be remembered as one of the NHL's toughest players, and many enforcers considered him the toughest and most feared fighter in the NHL. Several web sites, such as Hockeyfights.com, chronicle his long list of fights with other league enforcers. He saw it as his job to protect his teammates, especially Detroit captain Steve Yzerman. In a recent news story, he recalled a time that he sucker-punched enforcer Kevin Maguire of the Buffalo Sabres after Maguire pummelled Yzerman.

Some fights in Probert's career:

• Two long fights with Craig Coxe of the Vancouver Canucks in the mid-1980s.
• A career-spanning series of battles with Tie Domi of the Winnipeg Jets, New York Rangers, and Toronto Maple Leafs.
• A memorable fight on December 17, 1993 with former teammate Joe Kocur of the Rangers, during a brawl involving several players from both teams. Probert and Kocur had grabbed the nearest opposing player without realizing who it was, and continued trading punches even after they identified each other.
• A fight on February 4, 1994, against Marty McSorley, then of the Pittsburgh Penguins, lasting nearly 100 seconds.

In his career, Probert took part in many other classic hockey fights against noted enforcers such as Todd Ewen, Troy Crowder, Tony Twist, Donald Brashear, Stu "The Grim Reaper" Grimson, Bob McGill, Dave Semenko, and "Big" Jay Caufield.

Retirement

After the 2001-02 season, Probert was placed on waivers by the Blackhawks. Because he was not picked up by another team, he was advised that his role with the Blackhawks would be limited, or even relegated to playing in the minor leagues again. On November 16, 2002, Probert opted to "unofficially" retire so that he could join the Blackhawk's radio broadcasting team. He had finished fourth on the NHL's all-time list with 3,300 penalty minutes.

His stint with the Blackhawks radio team did not last long. In February 2003, it was reported that Probert went back to rehab. During the 2002-03 offseason, Probert formally announced his retirement.

Post-retirement

Probert continues to make appearances in the media for various activities.

Hockey-related appearances

Probert regularly appears in charity games (he estimates at least 20 this year), speaks at conventions, and conducts youth clinics. His activities as a Red Wings alumnus are somewhat limited by the fact that, due to his criminal background, he requires an immigration waiver each time he wants to cross the border.

On January 2, 2007, Probert appeared along with many other former Red Wings teammates to honor the retiring of Steve Yzerman's number 19 at Joe Louis Arena. He wore his number 24 Red Wings sweater, and helped former teammate Vladimir Konstantinov onto the ice for the ceremony. The Detroit crowd gave him a very warm welcome, which he later said he appreciated. He stayed on to watch the game with Joe Kocur.

This was noted as a possible reconciliation with the Red Wings Organization. Apparently it worked, as Probert became a late addition to a January 27, 2007 Red Wings Alumni game against the Boston Bruins Alumni at Joe Louis Arena. He scored a goal and two assists, though the Red Wings alumni lost the game 8-6.

Legal problems

In 2004, Probert was arrested for allegedly parking his BMW SUV on the wrong side of the street and entering into an altercation over drugs with bystanders. Several police officers intervened and had to subdue Probert with taser and stun guns. He was later acquitted on all charges related to this incident.

On July 1, 2005, Probert was arrested at his Windsor-area home for breach of peace, resisting arrest, and assaulting a police officer. Probert's attorney, Patrick Ducharme, advised the media, "I anticipate he will be pleading not guilty and going to trial." Probert was arrested again on August 23, 2005, at a bar in Tecumseh, Ontario for violating two conditions of his probation that he not consume alcohol or be in an establishment that serves liquor. He was released after paying a $200 CAD fine. All charges stemming from the arrest on July 1 were eventually dropped.

Career statistics

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1982-83	Brantford Alexanders	OHL		15	12	16	28	133		8	2	2	4	23
1983-84	Brantford Alexanders	OHL		65	35	38	73	189		6	0	3	3	16
1984-85	Hamilton Steelhawks	OHL		4	0	1	1	21		-	-	-	-	-
1984-85	Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds	OHL		44	20	52	72	172		15	6	11	17	60
1985-86	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL		32	12	15	27	152		10	2	3	5	68
1985-86	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		44	8	13	21	186		-	-	-	-	-
1986-87	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL		7	1	4	5	15		-	-	-	-	-
1986-87	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		63	13	11	24	221		16	3	4	7	63
1987-88	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		74	29	33	62	398		16	8	13	21	51
1988-89	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		25	4	2	6	106		-	-	-	-	-
1989-90	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		4	3	0	3	29		-	-	-	-	-
1990-91	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		55	16	23	39	315		6	1	2	3	50
1991-92	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		63	20	24	44	276		11	1	6	7	28
1992-93	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		80	14	29	43	292		7	0	3	3	10
1993-94	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		66	7	10	17	275		7	1	1	2	8
1995-96	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL		78	19	21	40	237		10	0	2	2	23
1996-97	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL		82	9	14	23	326		6	2	1	3	41
1997-98	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL		14	2	1	3	48		-	-	-	-	-
1998-99	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL		78	7	14	21	206		-	-	-	-	-
1999-00	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL		68	4	11	15	114		-	-	-	-	-
2000-01	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL		79	7	12	19	103		-	-	-	-	-
2001-02	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL		61	1	3	4	176		2	0	0	0	0
NHL totals				935	162	221	384	3300		81	16	32	48	274

Records

• Detroit Red Wings franchise record for career penalty minutes (2,090)
• Detroit Red Wings franchise record for penalty minutes in a season (398 in 1987-88)

References

Other references

• "Bob Probert". The Internet Hockey Database. Retrieved 2007-01-28. - Source for player statistics

Bob Probert / Michigan In Play! magazine Michigan In Play! magazine

External links

• hockeyfights.com - Bob Probert
• The Bob Probert Experience
• Web Site offering downloads of many Probert fights described above
• Bob Probert biography at Legends of Hockey (archived)