Chris Oddleifson

Playing career

Oddleifson went 10th overall to the California Golden Seals in the 1970 NHL Amateur Draft after a standout final junior season with the Winnipeg Jets of the WCHL, where he put up 95 points—leading the league with 64 assists—along with 243 penalty minutes. Before that draft, the Seals had sent their 1971 first-round pick and Francois Lacombe to the Montreal Canadiens for Montreal’s 1970 first-rounder, Ernie Hicke, and cash. Because the Seals had a terrible 1970–71 season, the Canadiens ended up with the top pick in 1971 and selected future Hall of Famer Guy Lafleur, while the Seals used Montreal’s number ten choice in 1970 to take Oddleifson. He never played an NHL game for California, instead being sent to the minors and then traded to the Boston Bruins midway through the 1971–72 season. Oddleifson made his NHL debut in 1972–73, appearing in six games for Boston without a point. He earned a full-time spot with the Bruins in 1973–74, highlighted by a four-goal game on December 30, 1973 against the same Golden Seals that had given up on him. On February 7, 1974, he was dealt to the Vancouver Canucks in a multi-player trade for sniper Bobby Schmautz, finishing his rookie season with 13 goals and 29 points in 70 games split between Boston and Vancouver. His breakout came in 1974–75, when he became a leader on a young Canucks team that won their division and reached the playoffs for the first time. He led Vancouver in scoring early on, but missed 20 games after a December 15, 1974 loss to the Chicago Black Hawks, during which he fractured his left jaw in a first-period fight with Keith Magnuson, who punched him with a cast-covered right hand. Despite that, Oddleifson finished with career highs of 16 goals and 35 assists for 51 points in just 60 games.