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Russ Courtnall

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Russ Courtnall
Courtnall in 2008
Born (1965-06-02) June 2, 1965 (age 59)
Duncan, British Columbia, Canada
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 175 lb (79 kg; 12 st 7 lb)
Position Right wing
Shot Right
Played for Toronto Maple Leafs
Montreal Canadiens
Minnesota North Stars
Dallas Stars
Vancouver Canucks
New York Rangers
Los Angeles Kings
National team  Canada
NHL draft 7th overall, 1983
Toronto Maple Leafs
Playing career 1983–1999

Russell William Courtnall (born June 2, 1965) is a Canadian former ice hockey player. He played in the National Hockey League for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, Minnesota North Stars, Dallas Stars, Vancouver Canucks, New York Rangers and Los Angeles Kings between 1984 and 1999. Courtnall was born in Duncan, British Columbia, but grew up in Oak Bay, British Columbia.

Professional career

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Courtnall was born in Duncan, British Columbia. His father, Archie, had played professional hockey, and worked in the forestry industry on Vancouver Island.[1] Archie had depression, and in 1978 killed himself.[2] Coming out of junior hockey, he was considered one of the top prospects in 1983 and the Toronto Maple Leafs selected him seventh overall in the 1983 NHL Entry Draft. In the 1982–83 season with the Cougars, Courtnall scored 36 goals and 61 assists for 97 points in 60 games. After being drafted by the Leafs, Courtnall appeared in just 32 games with the Cougars, scoring 29 goals and 66 points before being called up to the Maple Leafs, who were in dire need of scoring help at the time. As a rookie with Toronto, he scored 12 goals and 22 points in 69 games. Although his goal production was not as high as the Maple Leafs had hoped for, his speed opened up opportunities, especially for his linemates.

In 1984, Courtnall also suited up for the Canadian Olympic team, which finished out of the medals at the 1984 Winter Olympics. Upon returning, he rejoined the Maple Leafs. In the 1985–86 season, playing alongside fellow Notre Dame Hounds alumni Gary Leeman and rookie Wendel Clark on what was dubbed The Hound Line, Courtnall broke the 20-goal barrier, notching 22 to go along with 38 assists for 60 points. His offensive numbers improved the following year with 29 goals and 73 points.

In trying to force Courtnall to play a tougher brand of hockey, the club saw his offensive production decrease in the 1987–88 season. After just nine games into the 1988–89 season, on November 7, 1988, the Maple Leafs dealt Courtnall to the Montreal Canadiens for enforcer John Kordic. Although Courtnall's stock had clearly gone down in the eyes of Maple Leafs' management, most observers felt Montreal got a steal in that trade.

In 64 games, Courtnall put up 39 points with the Canadiens, but his fast skating and stickhandling abilities made him a fan favourite. Courtnall played strongly in the playoffs, where the Canadiens advanced to the 1989 Stanley Cup Finals where they lost to the Calgary Flames. In 21 postseason games, Courtnall contributed eight goals and 13 points.

Courtnall played for the Canadiens until 1991–92 season when on August 31, 1992, he was traded to the Minnesota North Stars for the 1992–93 season. In 84 games, he managed a career-high 36 goals and 43 assists for 79 points. He followed that up with an 80-point season in the team's first year of play in Dallas, and was selected to play in the 1994 National Hockey League All-Star Game. Late in the 1994–95 season, on April 7, 1995, Courtnall was traded to the Vancouver Canucks where he teamed up with his brother, Geoff Courtnall, for 13 games that year.

On March 8, 1997, the Canucks traded Courtnall to the New York Rangers, and on November 7, 1997, Courtnall signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Kings, where he played until his retirement following the 1998–99 season. He finished with 297 goals, 447 assists and 744 points in a 15-year NHL career.

Courtnall was a participant in both the second and third seasons of Battle of the Blades, the latter as a last-minute replacement for the late Wade Belak, but was eliminated early in the competition on both occasions.

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
1981–82 Notre Dame Hounds AAA SMHL
1982–83 Victoria Cougars WHL 60 36 61 97 33 12 11 7 18 6
1983–84 Victoria Cougars WHL 32 29 37 66 63
1983–84 Canadian National Team Intl 16 4 7 11 10
1983–84 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 14 3 9 12 6
1984–85 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 69 12 10 22 44
1985–86 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 73 22 38 60 52 10 3 6 9 8
1986–87 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 79 29 44 73 90 13 3 4 7 11
1987–88 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 65 23 26 49 47 6 2 1 3 0
1988–89 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 9 1 1 2 4
1988–89 Montreal Canadiens NHL 64 22 17 39 15 21 8 5 13 18
1989–90 Montreal Canadiens NHL 80 27 32 59 27 11 5 1 6 10
1990–91 Montreal Canadiens NHL 79 26 50 76 29 13 8 3 11 7
1991–92 Montreal Canadiens NHL 27 7 14 21 6 10 1 1 2 4
1992–93 Minnesota North Stars NHL 84 36 43 79 49
1993–94 Dallas Stars NHL 84 23 57 80 59 9 1 8 9 0
1994–95 Dallas Stars NHL 32 7 10 17 13
1994–95 Vancouver Canucks NHL 13 4 14 18 4 11 4 8 12 21
1995–96 Vancouver Canucks NHL 81 26 39 65 40 6 1 3 4 2
1996–97 Vancouver Canucks NHL 47 9 19 28 24
1996–97 New York Rangers NHL 14 2 5 7 2 15 3 4 7 0
1997–98 Los Angeles Kings NHL 58 12 6 18 27 4 0 0 0 2
1998–99 Los Angeles Kings NHL 57 6 13 19 19
NHL totals 1,029 297 447 774 557 129 39 44 83 83

International

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Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM
1984 Canada WJC 7 7 6 13 0
1984 Canada OG 7 1 3 4 2
1991 Canada WC 2 1 3 4 0
1991 Canada CC 8 0 2 2 0
Senior totals 17 2 8 10 2

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Kuzma, Ben (November 25, 2017). "Ex-NHLer Geoff Courtnall learns to stickhandle around life's adversity". The Province. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  2. ^ Robson, Dan (January 20, 2018). "Cowichan Valley 'where it all began' for ex-NHLer Geoff Courtnall". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
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Preceded by Toronto Maple Leafs first round draft pick
1983
Succeeded by