Troy Gamble
Canadian goaltender for the Vancouver Canucks from 1987 to 1992.
Troy Duncan Gamble, a Canadian goaltender, spent parts of five seasons with the Vancouver Canucks, appearing in 72 NHL games between 1987 and 1992. Drafted by Vancouver in 1985, he played junior hockey for the Medicine Hat Tigers before turning pro. His career also included minor league stops in the AHL and IHL until 1996.
Quick Facts
- Position
- Goaltender
- Catches
- Left
- Played for
- Vancouver Canucks
- Born
- 7 April 1967
- Birthplace
- New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, Canada
- Draft
- 25th overall
Facts from the source article.
Career
Gamble won the WHL Top Goaltender Award for 1984–85 and was named a WHL All-Star First Team after leading the WHL in shutouts and GAA (2.86) while playing for the Medicine Hat Tigers. Drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the second round, 25th overall, in 1985, he played another junior season for Medicine Hat before being traded mid-year to the Spokane Chiefs during the 86–87 season. He made his NHL debut for Vancouver on November 22, 1986, a 5–2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers; at 19 years, 229 days, he was the youngest goaltender in franchise history. Vancouver returned him to juniors for the 87–88 season for more playing time and experience. In summer 1988, the Canucks sent Gamble and Jack McIlhargey to Russia to support a relationship that later brought Soviet stars Igor Larionov and Vladimir Krutov to the Canucks; Gamble trained with Dynamo Moscow for two weeks and Spartak for two weeks. In his rookie season of 1990–91, he posted a 16–16–6 record and a 3.45 GAA in 47 games, outplaying incumbent starter Kirk McLean, and started in the post-season against the Los Angeles Kings. Recurring concussion problems and PCS symptoms including nausea and headaches derailed his career. He spent most of his career in the minors, playing for five teams after 1991, and retired after the 1995–96 season with the Houston Aeros. After retirement, he did color commentary for select Aeros games on radio and internet broadcasts. He later took a manager's job with M-I SWACO, a Texas-based oil and gas production company, which took him on trips through the Middle East, including three years' residence in Libya.
Family tragedy
On March 11, 2010, it was reported that Troy's son Garrett Gamble was killed in Afghanistan while serving as a member of the United States Marine Corps. After attending Stephen F. Austin High in Sugar Land, Texas, Gamble joined the Marine Corps; a family friend stated that this was something he wanted to do even before high school. Sent to Afghanistan in October 2009 as a SAW gunner, Garrett Gamble, 20, was killed after stepping on a land mine while on patrol in Helmand province.
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