Ross Lonsberry

David Ross Lonsberry (February 7, 1947 – May 4, 2014) was a Canadian professional ice hockey left winger who played 15 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Boston Bruins, Los Angeles Kings, Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins. He had his best seasons in a Flyers uniform and was a member of Philadelphia's back-to-back Stanley Cup championship teams in the mid-1970s.

Ross Lonsberry
Born (1947-02-07)February 7, 1947
Humboldt, Saskatchewan, Canada
Died May 4, 2014(2014-05-04) (aged 67)
Santa Clarita, California, U.S.
Height 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight 185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb)
Position Left Wing
Shot Left
Played for Boston Bruins
Los Angeles Kings
Philadelphia Flyers
Pittsburgh Penguins
Playing career 19661981

Playing career

Signed with the Boston Bruins organization as a teenager, Lonsberry enjoyed an outstanding junior career with the Estevan Bruins junior club of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL), winning the scoring championship in his final season with 144 points in only 60 games, and following with 23 goals in 25 playoff games en route to the Memorial Cup semifinals. Starting in 1966, Lonsberry had a three-year professional apprenticeship with the Bruins' Central Professional Hockey League farm team, the Oklahoma City Blazers, while spending some time with the NHL club in each of the three seasons.

Coveted by the Los Angeles Kings, they traded for him in 1970 for two first round draft picks, and he became a steady two-way performer for Los Angeles, scoring twenty or more goals each of his two full seasons with the Kings and being named to play in the NHL All-Star Game in 1972. He played 82 games combined in a 78-game season with the Kings and Flyers in 1971-72.

Shortly thereafter, however, he was traded in a seven-player deal that was at the time the largest in league history to the Philadelphia Flyers, with whom he would meet with the most success. Playing on a line with Rick MacLeish and Gary Dornhoefer, his hard-nosed two-way style fit in perfectly with the "Broad Street Bullies," scoring over twenty goals in three of his six and a half seasons in Philadelphia and participating in both of the Flyers' Stanley Cup championships. His best season was 1974, the first such championship, where he had a career high 32 goals and followed with 13 points in 17 playoff games.

In 1978, Lonsberry was dealt for the final time to the Pittsburgh Penguins, remaining an effective player for his three years with that club. With Pittsburgh in a youth movement and declining to renew his contract, he retired after the 1981 season.

Lonsberry finished his career with 256 goals and 310 assists for 566 points in 968 games, adding 806 penalty minutes. He also played in 100 playoff games, scoring 21 goals and 25 assists.

After his playing career, Lonsberry went into the commercial insurance business in the Los Angeles area.[1] He died of cancer on May 4, 2014.[2]

Career statistics

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1962–63Estevan BruinsSJHL10110
1963–64Estevan BruinsSJHL611826445511691523
1963–64Estevan BruinsMC51128
1964–65Estevan BruinsSJHL56405696130635815
1964–65Minneapolis BruinsCPHL2000051014
1964–65Estevan BruinsMC1920103023
1965–66Estevan BruinsSJHL596777144109121361926
1965–66Estevan BruinsMC131091917
1965–66Edmonton Oil KingsMC62136
1966–67Oklahoma City BlazersCPHL46121022831132531
1966–67Buffalo BisonsAHL71124
1966–67Boston BruinsNHL80112
1967–68Oklahoma City BlazersCPHL1922412733622
1967–68Boston BruinsNHL1922412
1968–69Oklahoma City BlazersCHL6528396716912481221
1968–69Boston BruinsNHL60002
1969–70Los Angeles KingsNHL76202242118
1970–71Los Angeles KingsNHL7625285380
1971–72Los Angeles KingsNHL509142339
1971–72Philadelphia FlyersNHL32771422
1972–73Philadelphia FlyersNHL7721295059114379
1973–74Philadelphia FlyersNHL753219514817491318
1974–75Philadelphia FlyersNHL80242549991743710
1975–76Philadelphia FlyersNHL8019284787164372
1976–77Philadelphia FlyersNHL75233255431012329
1977–78Philadelphia FlyersNHL7818304845122246
1978–79Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL802422463870229
1979–80Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL761518333652132
1980–81Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL801733507650002
CPHL/CHL totals 154 56 67 123 368 35 11 13 24 78
NHL totals 968 256 310 566 806 100 21 25 46 87

References

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