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Garry Unger

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Garry Unger
Born (1947-12-07) December 7, 1947 (age 76)
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st 2 lb)
Position Centre
Shot Left
Played for AHL
Rochester Americans
Moncton Alpines
NHL
Toronto Maple Leafs
Detroit Red Wings
St. Louis Blues
Atlanta Flames
Los Angeles Kings
Edmonton Oilers
National team  Canada
Playing career 1967–1988

Garry Douglas Unger (born December 7, 1947) is a former professional ice hockey centre who played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League from 1967 until 1983.

Playing career

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Unger set an NHL record by playing 914 consecutive games in the regular season between February 24, 1968, and December 21, 1979, doing so with four teams: the Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings, St. Louis Blues and Atlanta Flames.[1] Unger passed Andy Hebenton, who had the record of 630 consecutive games played that had stood since the 1963-64 NHL season. Unger's streak came to an end after Flames' coach Al MacNeil benched him on December 21, 1979 (the only game he would miss that season). His record has since been surpassed by Phil Kessel who has played over 1000 consecutive games as of the completion of the 2022–23 NHL season.

He was part of a six-player blockbuster transaction in which he was traded along with Frank Mahovlich and Pete Stemkowski from the Maple Leafs to the Red Wings for Norm Ullman, Paul Henderson and Floyd Smith on March 4, 1968. The Maple Leafs and Red Wings were in fifth and sixth place respectively at the bottom of the East Division standings at the time of the deal.[2]

Unger finished his career with 1105 career NHL games, scoring 413 goals and 391 assists for 804 points, and he also registered 1075 career penalty minutes.[1] Unger was the 1974 NHL All-Star Game MVP played in Chicago. He had an assist and scored a shorthanded goal in the West Division's 6–4 victory over the East Division.

After retiring from the NHL he went to play for three seasons in the British professional league. During a season for the Peterborough Pirates he racked up 95 goals and well over 200 points while playing in only 30 games.

Personal

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Garry was the oldest of four children of Jakob and Olive (Wheeler) Unger. Unger's younger sister used a wheelchair; she proved to be an inspiration to Unger during his playing career. After being traded to Atlanta in 1979, Unger encountered a group of Christian players, including Paul Henderson, whom Unger credits with helping him discover spirituality and giving meaning to his life.[3]

He and his wife Beverly have three children. Garry presently works with the Banff Hockey Academy in Banff, Alberta, Canada.[citation needed]

Career statistics

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Regular season and playoffs

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Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1965–66 Calgary Buffaloes AJHL
1966–67 London Nationals OHA 48 38 35 73 60 6 2 5 7 27
1966–67 Rochester Americans AHL 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
1966–67 Tulsa Oilers CPHL 2 2 0 2 2
1967–68 London Nationals OHA 2 4 1 5 2
1967–68 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 15 1 1 2 4
1967–68 Tulsa Oilers CHL 9 3 5 8 6
1967–68 Rochester Americans AHL 5 1 3 4 6
1967–68 Detroit Red Wings NHL 13 5 10 15 2
1968–69 Detroit Red Wings NHL 76 24 20 44 33
1969–70 Detroit Red Wings NHL 76 42 24 66 67 4 0 1 1 6
1970–71 Detroit Red Wings NHL 51 13 14 27 63
1970–71 St. Louis Blues NHL 28 15 14 29 41 6 3 2 5 20
1971–72 St. Louis Blues NHL 78 36 34 70 104 11 4 5 9 35
1972–73 St. Louis Blues NHL 78 41 39 80 119 5 1 2 3 2
1973–74 St. Louis Blues NHL 78 33 35 68 96
1974–75 St. Louis Blues NHL 80 36 44 80 123 2 1 3 4 6
1975–76 St. Louis Blues NHL 80 39 44 83 95 3 2 1 3 7
1976–77 St. Louis Blues NHL 80 30 27 57 56 4 0 1 1 2
1977–78 St. Louis Blues NHL 80 32 20 52 66
1978–79 St. Louis Blues NHL 80 30 26 56 44
1979–80 Atlanta Flames NHL 79 17 16 33 39 4 0 3 3 2
1980–81 Los Angeles Kings NHL 58 10 10 20 40
1980–81 Edmonton Oilers NHL 13 0 0 0 6 8 0 0 0 2
1981–82 Edmonton Oilers NHL 46 7 13 20 69 4 1 0 1 23
1982–83 Edmonton Oilers NHL 16 2 0 2 8 1 0 0 0 0
1982–83 Moncton Alpines AHL 8 2 3 5 0
1985–86 Dundee Rockets BHL 35 86 48 134 64 6 7 6 13 44
1986–87 Peterborough Pirates BHL-2 30 95 143 238 58 8 17 15 32 38
1987–88 Peterborough Pirates BHL 32 37 44 81 116
NHL totals 1,105 413 391 804 1,075 52 12 18 30 105

International

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Year Team Event   GP G A Pts PIM
1978 Canada WC 10 0 0 0 30
1979 Canada WC 7 2 1 3 12
Senior totals 17 2 1 3 42

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Garry Unger player profile". Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved February 8, 2010.
  2. ^ "Mahovlich, Ullman Traded," The Edmonton Journal, Monday, March 4, 1968. Retrieved January 25, 2023.
  3. ^ "Doug Jarvis player profile". Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved February 8, 2010.
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Preceded by St. Louis Blues captain
1976–77
Succeeded by
Red Berenson