Rick Chartraw

Lore & Background

Chartraw was born in Caracas, Venezuela while his father was employed as an engineer. Upon moving back to the United States, Chartraw predominantly grew up in Erie, Pennsylvania where he learned to play hockey before moving to Canada as a teenager to play junior hockey for the Kitchener Rangers. Beginning his NHL career with the Montreal Canadiens in 1975, Chartraw spent seven seasons with the Canadiens before being traded to the Los Angeles Kings. He later played for the New York Rangers and Edmonton Oilers. Chartraw won a total of five Stanley Cups during his playing days: four with Montreal (1976 to 1979) and one with the Oilers (1984). Whereas he only played 24 regular season games and one playoff game in 1984 for Edmonton, Chartraw did not qualify for engravement of his name on the Stanley Cup. Chartraw also played for Team USA and participated in the 1976 Canada Cup.

In Their Own Story

The arena lights hummed their low, electric buzz above the ice. It was a Tuesday in November, the kind of night where the crowd was a steady murmur rather than a roar. Chartraw stood at the blue line, stick planted, eyes tracking the puck as it cycled through the neutral zone. He could feel the cold seep through his skates, the familiar ache in his shoulders from a shift that had gone a beat too long. The opposing winger came in hot, shoulder down, looking for the body. Chartraw didn't flinch. He set his edge, turned, and met the hit with a sound that echoed off the boards. The puck squirted loose. He picked it up, turned, and fed the pass up the wing without looking back. No one in the crowd would remember that play by name. But the team would. And that was enough.

Reader's Guide

Chartraw never played for the Calgary Flames. His NHL teams were the Montreal Canadiens, Los Angeles Kings, New York Rangers, and Edmonton Oilers.

Did You Know?

• Chartraw was the first American skater ever drafted in the first round of the NHL entry draft.
• He won four Stanley Cups with the Montreal Canadiens from 1976 to 1979.
• Though he was part of the Edmonton Oilers' 1984 Stanley Cup win, he did not qualify to have his name engraved on the Cup.