Vic Hadfield

Lore & Background

Hadfield played minor hockey in Oakville before joining the Dixie Bee Hives for one season. He was signed by the Chicago Black Hawks and assigned to their junior affiliate, the St. Catharines Teepees of the Ontario Hockey League, where he established himself as a physical presence. With a strong squad in 1959–60 that included future NHL players Chico Maki, Roger Crozier and Pat Stapleton, he averaged a point a game and five penalty minutes per game in the playoffs, helping the Teepees win the Memorial Cup.

After one season with Chicago's Buffalo Bisons farm team in the AHL, he was left unprotected and claimed by the Rangers in the intra-league draft. By 1963–64 he had secured a place as an enforcer, but over time concentrated more on scoring, especially with feared enforcer Reggie Fleming on the team. He had the first of five 100-penalty-minute seasons in 1963–64.

NHL career

From 1967–68 onward, he scored at least 20 goals in any full season. His best season was 1971–72, when he was named team captain after the trade of Bob Nevin, scored 50 goals, and the GAG line collected 139 goals and 325 points on the way to the Stanley Cup Final, the Rangers' first appearance since 1950. In that final, Hadfield had one goal and two assists as the Rangers lost to the Boston Bruins in six games. He signed a controversial five-year, $1 million contract in summer 1972 to deter a defection to the WHA.

He was included on the roster for the Summit Series in September 1972 but played in only two games with no points; he left the team in Moscow alongside Rick Martin and Jocelyn Guevremont, citing a lack of playing time. After two more seasons with the Rangers, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Nick Beverley on May 28, 1974. He scored thirty goals in each of his two full seasons there, though plagued by injuries and weight troubles, and a knee injury near the end of the 1975–76 season forced his retirement.

Reader's Guide

At the time of his retirement, Hadfield ranked fourth in Rangers franchise history in goals, assists, and points (behind his linemates Ratelle and Gilbert, and Andy Bathgate), second in penalty minutes (behind Harry Howell), and fourth in games played (behind Ratelle, Howell and Gilbert). He currently stands ninth in scoring and third in penalty minutes in Rangers history. In the 2009 book 100 Ranger Greats, he was ranked No. 20 all-time among the 901 Rangers who had played during the team's first 82 seasons. In February 2018, days after the Rangers retired Ratelle's jersey, the team announced that Hadfield's #11 would be retired, much to his surprise.

The ceremony took place on December 2, 2018, with several teammates and Ranger legends including Mark Messier (who previously had his own #11 retired by New York) in attendance. Hadfield became the tenth Ranger to have his jersey retired and the final member of the GAG line to receive that honor. He now owns the Vic Hadfield Driving Range and instructional centre in Oakville, Ontario. His grandson Victor Hadfield is a defenseman in the ECHL.