Eric Nesterenko
Eric "Sonja" Paul Nesterenko (born October 31, 1933) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Toronto Maple Leafs from 1951 until 1956 and for the Chicago Black Hawks from 1956 until 1972.
| Eric Nesterenko | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Born |
October 31, 1933 Flin Flon, Manitoba, Canada | ||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) | ||
| Weight | 186 lb (84 kg; 13 st 4 lb) | ||
| Position | Centre | ||
| Shot | Right | ||
| Played for |
Toronto Maple Leafs Chicago Black Hawks Chicago Cougars | ||
| Playing career | 1951–1974 | ||
Early life
Nesterenko was born in Flin Flon, Manitoba to immigrants from Ukraine. He attended high school at North Toronto Collegiate Institute.[1]
Playing career
Following his long NHL career - in 1973–74 he played for the Chicago Cougars of the World Hockey Association, after a year of coaching in Switzerland.[2] He had 250 goals and 324 assists during his NHL career, and won a Stanley Cup championship with Chicago in 1961. The rangy right winger was a superb penalty killer, who also was known for using his elbows in the corners.
Nesterenko infamously attacked Willie O'Ree, the first black player in the NHL, with his hockey stick and racial slurs knocking out O'Ree's front teeth. O'Ree retaliated with his stick and Nesterenko required 15 stitches in his head.[3]
Personal life
In 1986, he played the father of character Dean Youngblood (Rob Lowe) in the movie Youngblood, and was also the film's hockey consultant.[4] He has worked as a disk jockey, a stockbroker, a travel broker, a freelance writer, a university professor and a ski instructor.[5][4]
Near the end of his NHL career, he was interviewed for Studs Terkel's bestselling book, Working: What People do all Day and How They Feel About What They Do.
Awards and achievements
- WHL championship (1956)
- Edinburgh Trophy championship (1956)
- Stanley Cup championship (1961)
- Played in NHL All-Star Game (1961 and 1965)
- "Honoured Member" of the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1949–50 | Toronto Marlboros | OHA | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1950–51 | Toronto Marlboros | OHA | 46 | 28 | 22 | 50 | 90 | 13 | 7 | 9 | 16 | 27 | ||
| 1951–52 | Toronto Marlboros | OHA | 52 | 53 | 42 | 95 | 133 | 6 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 12 | ||
| 1951–52 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1952–53 | Toronto Marlboros | OHA | 34 | 27 | 21 | 48 | 46 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1952–53 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 35 | 10 | 6 | 16 | 27 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1953–54 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 68 | 14 | 9 | 23 | 70 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 9 | ||
| 1954–55 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 62 | 15 | 15 | 30 | 99 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 1955–56 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 40 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 65 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1955–56 | Winnipeg Warriors | WHL | 20 | 8 | 6 | 14 | 27 | 14 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 22 | ||
| 1956–57 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 24 | 8 | 15 | 23 | 32 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1957–58 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 70 | 20 | 18 | 38 | 104 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1958–59 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 70 | 16 | 18 | 34 | 81 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 8 | ||
| 1959–60 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 61 | 13 | 23 | 36 | 71 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1960–61 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 68 | 19 | 19 | 38 | 125 | 11 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | ||
| 1961–62 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 68 | 15 | 14 | 29 | 97 | 12 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 22 | ||
| 1962–63 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 67 | 12 | 15 | 27 | 103 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | ||
| 1963–64 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 70 | 7 | 19 | 26 | 93 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 8 | ||
| 1964–65 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 56 | 14 | 16 | 30 | 63 | 14 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 16 | ||
| 1965–66 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 67 | 15 | 25 | 40 | 58 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 1966–67 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 68 | 14 | 23 | 37 | 38 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 1967–68 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 71 | 11 | 25 | 36 | 37 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 1968–69 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 72 | 15 | 17 | 32 | 29 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1969–70 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 67 | 16 | 18 | 34 | 26 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | ||
| 1970–71 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 76 | 8 | 15 | 23 | 28 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 19 | ||
| 1971–72 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 38 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 27 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | ||
| 1973–74 | Chicago Cougars | WHA | 29 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1975–76 | Trail Smoke Eaters | WIHL | 40 | 10 | 25 | 35 | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| WHA totals | 29 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| NHL totals | 1219 | 250 | 324 | 574 | 1273 | 124 | 13 | 24 | 37 | 127 | ||||
See also
- List of NHL players with 1000 games played
References
- http://www.ntci.on.ca/alumni/FN-sp2002.pdf
- Frayne, Trent (10 March 1980). "Out of hockey and listening still for that distant drum". Maclean's - The Complete Archive. Maclean's. Retrieved 15 September 2019.
- "Willie O'Ree's little-known journey to break the NHL's color barrier". theconversation.com. January 17, 2018. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
- Barry, Sal (August 7, 2016). "The Making of 'Youngblood: An Oral History". The Hockey News. Retrieved October 24, 2016.
- Chicago Blackhawks Legends: Eric Nesterenko
External links
- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or Legends of Hockey, or The Internet Hockey Database