Frank St. Marseille

Lore & Background

St. Marseille began his professional career with the Chatham Maroons of the Senior Ontario Hockey Association, then moved with the team to the International Hockey League. After the Maroons dropped out, he was picked up by the Port Huron Flags, where he had three impressive seasons and won the Turner Cup in 1966. He scored 305 points in 210 games for Port Huron and was named to the IHL's second all-star team in 1967. That year, he was signed by the expansion St. Louis Blues and initially assigned to their minor-league affiliate, the Kansas City Blues.

After only 11 games, Blues coach Scotty Bowman called him up along with linemates Gary Sabourin and Terry Crisp, saying they were better than the team's third line. St. Marseille played on checking lines against opponents' top scorers, yet averaged 16 goals per season over a five-year stretch. He also played on both the penalty kill and power play, posted a plus/minus of +37 during those five years, and sits tied for sixth on the Blues' all-time game-tying goals list.

He made the 1970 West Division All-Star team and captained the Blues from 1970 to 1972. In 62 playoff games with St. Louis, he tallied 19 goals and 24 assists. Midway through the 1972–73 season, he was traded to the Los Angeles Kings for Paul Curtis.

With the Kings, he continued his defensive forward and penalty-killing roles but no longer played on the power play. He scored 54 goals in his Kings tenure, and the club made the playoffs in each of his final four seasons. His best season in Los Angeles was 53 points in 1974–75; his career high was 59 points with St. Louis in 1969–70. He finished his playing career with one season in the American Hockey League for the Nova Scotia Voyageurs in 1977–78, then became the Voyageurs' coach and later spent one year as an assistant coach with the Kings.

Reader's Guide

Frank St. Marseille's career illustrates the opportunities created by the 1967 NHL expansion, which opened the league to players who might otherwise have been overlooked. Undrafted and considered too slow for the big leagues, he worked his way through the minors, winning a Turner Cup and earning all-star recognition before being signed by the expansion Blues. His role as a defensive-minded forward on checking lines, combined with his ability to contribute offensively, made him a key part of St. Louis teams that reached three straight Stanley Cup Finals. He was named captain from 1970 to 1972 and selected to the West Division All-Star team in 1970.

After being traded to Los Angeles, he maintained his defensive role and helped the Kings reach the playoffs in each of his final four seasons. His NHL totals of 140 goals and 285 assists in 707 games reflect a steady, two-way career. After retiring as a player, he moved into coaching, first with the Nova Scotia Voyageurs and then as an assistant with the Kings. His legacy is also recognized in his hometown: in 1988, a Hall of Fame in Valley East inducted him and Ron Duguay as its first athletic members, and a Major Peewee Championship in the Nickel District Minor Hockey League is named after him.